Book Description

Monarch butterflies abound in Canada. We marvel at their beauty and the magic of their metamorphosis. Familiar as they are to us, these tiny creatures nevertheless harbour many secrets. Perhaps the deepest mystery is the monarchs' annual migration. Each autumn, they travel unimaginably long distances, something no other butterflies do. How do they know when to migrate? How, unguided by memory, do they navigate to their destination in the heart of the threatened Mexican jungle?

Sue Halpern recounts the mesmerizing story of these mysteries, and the race to solve them. She describes the discoveries of Canadian biologist Fred Urquhart and his wife, who first encouraged amateur lepidopterists to tag butterflies. We follow her to Mexico, where she searches for butterflies. She introduces us to Don Davis, an enthusiast who has tagged an estimated 20,000 monarchs since 1985. And though terrified of flying, she takes us on a flight with University of Toronto biologist David Gibo, as they attempt to predict the flight vectors of butterflies.

Astonishing, fascinating, Four Wings and a Prayer, like our encounters with these delicate winged creatures, is a rare gem. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Veryhting on the monarch butterfly!
Two hundred pages on a single insect might strike some readers as overkill, but the monarch butterfly deserves every one. As fall temperatures drop, monarch butterflies throughout the Eastern US and Canada migrate south of the Rio Grande. No one knows how they make this journey of several thousand miles (memory cannot guide them, since three or four butterfly generations pass in a year). No one even knew where they spent the winter until the 1970s, when researchers discovered that millions of migrating monarchs collect regularly in a few small patches of forest in the remote Neovolcanic mountains of Mexico, where they cover every visible surface and fill the air with the sound of their wings. This phenomenon has fascinated laymen as well as scientists. Halpern (Migrations to Solitude, not reviewed) was captivated after visiting a butterfly reserve during a Mexican vacation, and she manages to convey her enthusiasm to the reader. Rather than research the subject herself, she finds the experts and lets them tell the story. She drives a battered pickup to remote mountains (with a grizzled field biologist who has spent his life studying the monarch), visits universities where precise chemical analyses are teasing out the insect's secrets, and reports on the work of the amateurs (an often eccentric but dedicated group who are making important contributions-they have, for example, tagged tens of thousands of butterflies, many later recovered far across the continent). Inevitably, the author writes about the future (almost always a depressing subject when wildlife is involved) and points out that the monarch is not endangered, even if logging operations are steadily reducing its wintering habitat in Mexico. An appealing account. Author tour

Boring for non-devotees
I suppose if you are extremely interested in monarch butterflies you will find this book fascinating. I must admit I read only 100 pages. I enjoyed the beginning, when Halpern traveled to Mexico, but after page 100 the book was too academic, filled with the points of view of various monarch afficionados. Pretty dull stuff. I didn't think the writing was all that great, either. I suppose it was an academic success, but it didn't draw me in to the adventure.

it soars
Halpern has the precision of a scientist, the grace of a poet, and the passion of someone truly informed and alarmed by humanity's headlong tilt against the beauty and variety of our natural world. Never shying away from the complexities of her subject--scientists and nature-lovers from a rich and profligate country demanding preservation sacrifices from the peasants of a poor one--she writes a seamless, and ultimately very moving, tale of wonder.

Four Wings and a Prayer - caught in the morass of New Age
Author Sue Halpern has written a book about her time spent with people across North America who follow the supposed migration of Monarch Butterflies through the United States to Mexico. Entitled Four Wings and a Prayer - Caught in the Mystery of the Monarch Butterfly, the book chronicles her journeys throughout the US and Canada in pursuit of knowledge about the Monarch butterfly while detailing her interaction with the various butterfly enthusiasts (lepidopterists) that she meets along the way. Superficially, the book's subject would seem to hold much promise. Interesting people, little-known facts, sweeping vistas described in stirring detail; there would seem to much that this book could offer the reader, sadly, not much of it is here. Like far too many writers today, Halpern can't seem to keep herself out of the story. In the context of this book, which indeed includes some fine passages, Halpern's New Age navel- gazing is largely unwanted and often tiresome; "What is passion? I asked myself again." Halpern writes (and the reader cringes) and then goes on to wax philosophically about 'knowing before understanding' or some other such airy-fairy mysticism. It's unfortunate that in a book that offers glimpses of some true characters Halpern can't help interjecting herself. The reader is told that Bill Calvert is a legend among Lepidopterists not only for his research but for his passion and unique character, yet description of that character is largely limited to repeated references to his messy truck and trite answers to the questions of others. The reader can forgive Calvert this though after having been subjected to Halpern's rhetorical wonking - by the end of the book the reader suspects that Calvert might not have been so taciturn had the company been less vocal. Like so much literature today Halpern's Four Wings and a Prayer unfortunately attempts to serve up commonplace events as mystic happenings. Worse still, the story is overlaid with the trappings of New Age mysticism at its worst: the reader is treated to the writer's account of her attempt to think like a butterfly and to experience flight as known by a butterfly via a convenient flight in a glider. These events, which are silly and romanticised in themselves, in the context of the book enmesh the reader in a sickly treacle of breathless prose from which it is frustratingly hard to escape. Hard fact is confused with psuedo-intellectual fancy, buried beneath a style of writing which encompasses so much forced gravitas that the reader is wont to think that the appropriate response would be to cry while reading this book.

At 29.95 CAN and at 207 pages this book is certainly not a good buy for everyone. Those that ponder this book should do so at length. Contrary to the heartfelt testimony printed on the cover this book will probably not "change your life" nor is it "a book we have needed whether we knew it or not". This book may be life-affirming and transcendent to a crystal-wearing, latte- guzzling "wind spirit" but to the average reader, even to the inveterate naturalist, this book is bound to be a disappointment. If you want to read of one woman's spiritual awakening in the world of butterflies this might be the book for you; but for those truly interested in the fascinating sub-culture of the lepidopterist and their pursuit of the Monarch, your money is better spent elsewhere.

Magical, Poetic, Lyrical breathtaking
Sue Halpern has a gift of composition to describe the wonder of the Monarch Butterly that practically takes your breath away. The book begins with her journey with a butterfly tracker real life "Indiana Jones" character as they drive to the butterfly preserves in Mexico. Her description of her first visit there which happened earlier with her tiny daughter and the truly awesome, almost religious experience of the sound of millions of butterflies rustling wings and of butterflies alighting on her daughter walking up her arm, the child watching without fear takes you into this book like a lover invites you to be with her. This is a book for all ages, and will be a standard to invite readers to the mysteries and beauty of nature. It is also hoped that the book serves to help advocacy to preserve this miracle of nature which is taken foregranted by so many. Sue Halpern is a writer in the same pantheon as Barry Lopez and Farley Mowat in her research skills, her love of nature and her literary abilities. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Butterfly House Companion Guide
If you love visiting of the new year-round butterfly houses popping up around the U.S., you can't live without this book. It is an excellent companion to your walks through the conservatories.

Butterflies of the World
If you want to know the anatomy and physiology of butterflies this is the book to get. It tells you EVERYTHING about butterflies and has beautiful, colorful pictures to add to this great book. It has so much detail... a very comprehensive addition to your library. And it looks so nice you'll want it on top of your cocktail table! ... Read more

Book Description

Hummingbirds and butterflies add interest, beauty, and enjoyment to a garden.This book describes the characteristics, behavior, and needs of these creatures.Plant-selection lists and necessary design elements are included, as are descriptions of the most common hummingbird and butterfly species.

... Read more

Reviews (1)

A Fount of Information
This is a very informative book for those who want plain language information on attracting hummingbirds and butterflies. The author explains things, step by step, and shows pictures to help your understanding. All of the Ortho books are written in a clear, comprehensible manner. A definite buy for your library! ... Read more

Book Description

This all-new edition includes more than 590 species, illustrated in lifelike positions on beautiful new color plates. With descriptions of all the butterflies that occur west of the 100th meridian in the United States and Canada, this guide has accurate information on ranges, habitats, flight seasons, food plants, and more. Brand-new color range maps and more than 100 color photographs accompany the species descriptions. Paul Opler is the author of several books, including the Peterson Field Guide to Eastern Butterflies. He is a professor and senior research scientist at Colorado State University and a vice president of the North American Butterfly Association. Amy Bartlett Wright wrote and illustrated the Peterson First Guide to Caterpillars and illustrated the Peterson First Guide to Butterflies and Moths. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

A Standard for Butterfly Watchers
"A Field Guide to Western Butterflies" by Paul Opler is the book I use as a standard when taking part in the North American Butterfly Association (NABA) 4th of July Butterfly Count. It is by far the best book to use in the field. I prefer the artist's illustrations to a totally photographic approach for accurate identification because several aspects of the same species can be shown on a given plate. In addition there are a number of complementary photos of butterflies in natural habitats inserted in the text and distribution maps are placed next to the species descriptions.

The discussions are very useful in locating food plants and in confirming field marks and distributions. Even tiny lycaenids and difficult skippers are usually identified easily once you get used to the format. All in all this is the book to have for identifying butterflies in the west and it outshines all its competitors for handiness in the field. Combined with a pair of short-focus binoculars and a good butterfly net for capture and release it just cannot be beaten.

If you are a butterfly watcher in the west you really need to own this book!

A Must-Have for Lepsters!
In the first part of this excellent field guide, families of butterflies are presented together on color plates, ably illustrated by Amy Bartlett Wright. This allows the reader to compare similar looking species--a must with hard-to-differentiate groups like the Blues, where minute differences mean the difference between one genus and another. The illustrations are cross-referenced to fuller descriptions in the second part of the book. Here there is additional information about appearance, food, habitat, flight, and range. As a beginner, I especially like author Paul Opler's decision to organize the butterflies by taxon rather than appearance. As I identify butterflies in the field, I am also learning a bit about the science of these beautiful creatures. Highly recommended. ... Read more

Book Description

Butterflies are hot! No one knows this better than butterfly expert, gardener and lecturer Patti Putnam and her butterfly expert spouse - gardener and photojournalist Milt Putnam. Featuring outstanding color photographs with nuggets of important information on each butterfly, the Putnams have assembled an easy-to-use, easy-to-carry field guide to North America's 50 most popular butterflies. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

A strongly recommended pick for all butterfly enthusiasts!
Herbert Clarke's gorgeous and colorful photos (over 250 of them) fill butterfly expert Fred Heath's An Introduction To Southern California Butterflies with clear close-ups of Southern California butterflies, enabling identification of almost 90 species and highlighting their favorite foods and plants. Heath has lectured, led field trips, and written many articles about the butterflies in his area: his region-specific Introduction To Southern California Butterflies is a strongly recommended pick for all butterfly enthusiasts! ... Read more

Book Description

The ancient Greeks considered the butterfly a symbol of immortalitybecause of its astonishing beauty and grace. In this stunning book, butterfliesare displayed as never before through exceptional photographs that capture thestriking detail of their wings as well as the surprising beauty of every momentof life—from eggs and caterpillars to chrysalis and final birth. Thephotographer's special techniques and hours of patience—all of the butterfliesat their various stages were photographed alive—allow the reader to perceive thevoluptuousness of a wing surface or the step-by-step opening of a chrysalis.From the common to the very rare, Butterfly is a unique homage thattransforms these gorgeous insects into works of art. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Excellent - Beautifully Photographed
This is a memorable book full of huge pictures beautifully shot by photographer Paul Starosta. I like the large format and the printing qulality. Examining the caterpillar and its metamorphosis into a butterfly is one of the great photo essays in the book. There are great photos of a huge assortment of butterflies and moths in this book with good info on the species and their geographic data. The emphasis is on pictures, so if you're into the mistery and beauty of butterflies this book will not dissapoint. ... Read more

Book Description

A beautiful and authoritative reference on the butterflies of the world.

Butterflies are the most charismatic species of the insect world. Their brilliant colors, ability to fly, complex behavior, ecological relationships with plants and other animals, and their broad distribution in a wide variety of habitats have fascinated experts and laypersons alike for centuries.

Now, as the butterfly's migratory routes are destroyed by deforestation and pollution, this book is an urgent plea to nature lovers to become more aware of the very real threats to this magnificent creature.

With over 300 color photographs and drawings, this lavishly illustrated guide to the world of butterflies provides the reader with a wide range of information about this colorful and graceful insect.

The book is divided into five chapters, each focusing on a major question:
- What are butterflies?
- How many kinds of butterflies are there?
- Where do they live?
- How do they live?
- What can we do to help them survive?

Among the many topics discussed in detail are evolution, life cycle, courtship and reproduction, anatomy, geographic distribution, migration, demography, as well as butterfly-watching.

Always informative and engaging, this comprehensive look at the world of butterflies is replete with fascinating facts and is the first book to feature pictures of butterflies in their natural settings.

Accurate, comprehensive, and beautifully illustrated, this is the ultimate guide to the world of butterflies. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Highly Recommended-- Fills a Great Need
This book can be unreservedly recommended-- not only for butterfly lovers and aficionados but the general lover of nature. To its great credit, it does many things at the same time, and does them all well. While it can introduce the general nature lover to the wonders of butterflies, it can also take seasoned butterfly enthusiasts even deeper into their favorite subject. Neither party will feel left out. The book is a judicious combination of informed text and beautiful, pertinent, photographs and graphic illustrations. One role this book fills is a gap which has "gaped" for many decades-- one between the simple love of Lepidoptera and the science of Lepidoptera. Many lepidopterists who see this book are going to wish THEY had it when they were young. This is because the book builds so many easy bridges between the simple love of butterflies and the wondrous complexity of their science. It hits the whole spectrum-- from life cycle, body and structure, classification, distribution, and general biology to more complex topics-- like mimicry and genetics. And, in each case, there are diagrams and/or photographs making even the most complex topics readily understandable. I bought a copy and gave it to a young friend who, at 10, is just beginning to take his love of butterflies to a higher level of serious learning. However, the book will work just as well for adults; if a professional wanted a quick refresher on many topics in lepidoptery he could find them here as well. The other major topic that A World For Butterflies bites off with gusto is conservation. The topic is treated not just with sweeping worldwide generalities but with compelling and intricate case studies highlighting the complexities that lie beneath the problem of species endangerment worldwide. This book deserves to do very well.

A World for Butterflies
The author's goal was to bridge the gap between researcher and teacher. I think he accomplished this admirably through the pictures. Almost every page has a beautiful photograph. The book is comprehensive and authoritative, covering conservation, classification, life cycle, and geographic distribution. "Six case studies illustrate some of the major problems faced by butterflies, and some of the real and potential solutions that have been (or can be) used to moderate their decline or endangerment". Includes bibliographic references and index. This book should appeal to young fans of the Very Hungry Butterfly as well as older students studying and classifying butterflies. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Incredible information and photos!
This book is a must-have, even for people who don't live in Florida. It is filled to the brim with wonderful photos and information on many types of North American butterflies. Just the photos make it worth the purchase! We're adding it to our butterfly library for reference work.

A fascinating look at Florida's butterflies.
As a beginning butterfly gardener in Florida, I found this book to be an essential tool near my window. The beautiful, large photographs always helped me identify the beauties that visit my backyard. The book also helped me identify the eggs, caterpillars and pupas in my garden. The text is also very interesting and includes information about butterfly habits and food. This is a must for anyone who wants to learn more about the butterflies in Florida. ... Read more

Book Description

Identifying butterflies in the field has never been so easy. This book is an excellent guide for both experienced and novice lepidopterists who wish to identify, attract, raise, and photograph butterflies.

Butterflies of Oklahoma, Kansas, and North Texas focuses on one hundred butterfly species common to the southern plains, a crucial crossroads region of the central United States. Each species is illustrated with one to four color photographs of butterflies in free flight and other natural settings. These candid shots are a welcome departure from the dried-and-pinned specimen photographs of some field guides. Photographs are placed alongside each butterfly's physical description and natural history, eliminating the need to flip between galleries and text. Other unique features include:

• modern terminology that general readers will understand
• descriptions of twenty prime butterfly spotting sites in the tri-state region
• information on how to raise butterflies from larval to adult stages
• an extensive bibliography of additional resources.

More conservationists are recognizing the importance of butterflies to the ecosystem-as plant pollinators and examples of natural mimicry and coloration. The authors of this guidebook hope that a deeper understanding of these intriguing insects will lead to their protection and to preservation of their habitat. ... Read more

Book Description

The monarch butterfly is our best-known and best-loved insect, and its annual migration over thousands of miles is an extraordinary natural phenomenon. Robert Michael Pyle, "one of America's finest natural history writers" (Sue Hubbell), set out late one summer to follow the monarchs south from their northernmost breeding ground in British Columbia. CHASING MONARCHS tells the engrossing story of his adventurous journey with these graceful wanderers -- down the Columbia, Snake, Bear, and Colorado rivers, across the Bonneville Salt Flats, and through the Chiricahua Mountains to Mexico, returning north along the California coast. Part travelogue, part scientific study, CHASING MONARCHS is one of the most fascinating books ever written about butterflies. "[Pyle's] delightful anecdotes, thought-provoking philosophical questions and personal passion make this chronicle a potential classic" (Monarch News). ... Read more

Reviews (5)

an ok book
This is an ok book - it was a bit hard to get into/get through and a bit repetitive. I wish it had more science (written in lay terms) woven in. It was more about driving, spotting a butterfly, driving again to the next spot. (Its more about the journey than about butterflies, they're just the excuse for the drive it seems) Did't really capture me like I hoped it would and I didn't learn much. I was looking for a story more based on the butterfly's experiece and what it goes through than that of the author. Monarchs are actually quite incredible in that its not the same butterfly that makes the whole journey from the east coast all the way to Mexico - it lays eggs and the offspring carry out the journey, knowing which direction to go in innately. Then the process reverses in the spring. I was hoping to learn more about all that in this book but didn't.

Chasing Monarchs. Warning this book may change your life!
Bob Pyle has given us an insightful look into the butterfly lover's life and inspirations. This a nice way to review your own feelings about conservation, the natural world, and how you spend your time. Traveling will never be the same again for me. Now I can boldly ask any convenience store clerk, "Have you seen any Monarchs lately?" This book is a travel log, a natural history lesson, and an expansive look at the world around us.

Pyle's books are fantastic
This is a great book detailing a threatened bio-phenomenon. As always, you can't go wrong with one of Bob Pyle's books!

Chasing Monarchs Review
This book is excellent; if you loved Anne Dillard's you will love this one. Nuff said.

One of the Big Two for 1999
I'm amazed no one else wrote about this book. Lepidopterists know it, and Pyle, well. My friends at the New York Butterfly Club put me on to this book and Kurt Johnson's Nabokov's Blues. They are both great books. Pyle's book takes you on a journey from the Pacific Northwest all the way to Mexico, following the annual fall migration of these magnificent orange butterflies. You not only learn about butterflies but a historical travelog of much of the old west, tidbits of local history, fantastic scenery and lots of scientific adventure and daring. Conservation issues are the internal lesson, so you have a worthwhile message along with a great story. The other book, about Nabokov's science is similar-- a great adventure story with butterflies, and a great novelist/writer as central character. Someone told me butterflies are about as popular now as dinosaurs. Its easy to see why. I live and work in the city, so reading about the great outdoors is a great break and fascination. Its wonderful that respected scientists are telling fascinating stories about the creatures they study. You can't go wrong with either of these books. ... Read more

Book Description

Here is an exquisitely beautiful homage to the colorful celebrity of the insect world, the butterfly. With more than 300 photographs of real butterflies presented in a unique accordion-fold format, Butterflies in Flight is a strikingly attractive gift book that will appeal to anyone who appreciates art and nature.

Hundreds of butterflies soar and drift across the page. Each panel of this traditional Japanese format stands on its own visually, yet is also designed to lead to the next panel so that the flight itself appears to glide, panel after panel, before the viewer. The accordion format, which unfolds to more than seventy feet, allows the book to be set upright and displayed as a delightful art object.

Roger Camp has used modern techniques of photography and digital imaging brilliantly to create an irresistible flight of real butterflies. He was inspired by Kanzaka Sekka's 1904 woodblock-printed book, One Thousand Kinds of Butterflies, to find a contemporary way of marrying beauty with technology, thus creating a magical presentation of these infinitely graceful creatures.

Over 300 images of more than 250 species of butterflies. A separate "Guide to the Butterflies" identifies by name and habitat every butterfly depicted. Slipcase and real cloth binding. Over 300 color illustrations; 104 pages, accordion format. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Butterflies in Flight
The book "Butterflies in Flight" by Roger Camp is such a visceral experience. It is so striking, intuitive and emotional. It just grabs you and takes you on a visual and sensitive but demonstrative trip through an explosion of color that transforms it into a butterfly sanctuary. Wow! What a great book for everyone affected by Sept. 11. The book takes you to ethereal places far from hate and anxiety.

Flight and Color as Rhythm
The joy that Camp brings to this accordian format tickles my senses and transports me to long-ago childhood gardens. Colors dazzle, while shapes and markings mystify me. He offers a wondrous world, indeed. I deeply appreciate the hours and patience Camp devoted to this digital project - that we might take off on our own flights of fancy. This is a marvelous gift for the holiday season. It should have a vast appeal to naturalists and photographers, both the young and the adult.

Art and the Butterfly
If you love art as much as you love butterflies, you'll find this book is an amazing combination of the two. The layout and design makes it all the more unique. If you have a butterfly lover in your family, you MUST add this to their holiday gifts.

Beauty in flight
a beautiful picture essay dipicting the essence and colour of these lovely insects.

a true fantasy of flight as I turned each page.

the unique format helps make the book even more special. ... Read more

Book Description

The Stokes Beginner's Guides, intended for beginning nature lovers of all ages, offer a wealth of identification and behavior information in a portable pocket-sized format. Illustrated throughout with full-color photographs and range maps, each Beginner's Guide is organized according to the Stokes' easy-to-use and popular color-tab system. ... Read more

Book Description

Garden Butterflies of North America is a vivid color portfolio of 40 of North America's most treasured and colorful garden butterfly varieties. It's also loaded with natural history vignettes of the individual butterflies as well as illustrated information on how to design and manage gardens and backyards to attract them. You will find numerous charts and plans for all types of gardens, from a container garden to a full-sized formal garden, specific details on plants that attract butterflies, how-to diagrams for building a butterfly hibernating box, and water sources such as ponds, fountains, mud baths, and waterless ponds. Rick Mikula is the founder of the Hole-in-Hand Butterfly Farm where he's been breeding and selling butterflies in seven greenhouses since 1980. His work has been profiled in People magazine, The Wall Street Journal and on the Discovery Channel. In addition, Mikula serves as the butterfly habitat consultant for many universities, zoos, museums and aviaries. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Wonderful, informative book
I checked out several books from the library to complete my research on a butterfly garden for my backyard. This one book was the best, most informative, easiest instructions I found. I had a small area to work with, and 2 years later my butterfly garden is a beautiful sight to behold, and my personal treasure to work in and with. It's design follows Mr. Mikula's basic instructions, and to date we have had several different types of butterflies visit our garden. What a joy. Thank you, Mr. Mikula!!

Beautiful book but misleading title
The photos are superb and the text interesting; if the title were "Common Garden Butterflies of the United States" I'd give it 5 stars. The existing title is very misleading, however. Only the most common U.S. butterflies are included and coverage of Canada is neglible.

bunt@duke.usask.ca ... Read more

Book Description

All across the country, butterflies are becoming as popular as birds and wildflowers, especially among people seeking to enjoy the rich natural resources that Texas possesses. John and Gloria Tveten have been studying butterflies in Southeast Texas for thirty-five years, and here they offer their considerable knowledge to everyone who shares their passion for butterflies.In this easy-to-use field guide, the Tvetens describe and illustrate more than 100 species of butterflies that live in Southeast Texas and can often be found across the state. Striking color photographs of living butterflies and caterpillars (a unique addition) show the key marks and characteristics necessary for field identification. The Tvetens' enjoyable and authoritative text describes each species' life history, habits, flight patterns, and characteristic markings.An account of the different butterfly families, from swallowtails to longwings to skippers, precedes the descriptions of the species within each family. The Tvetens also include an interesting discussion of butterfly biology, a complete checklist of area butterflies, an index of butterfly-attracting plants, and pointers to other butterfly resources.This field guide is the first to focus exclusively on Southeast Texas butterflies. It will be the essential reference for everyone seeking a reliable way to identify these butterflies, from field observers to apartment dwellers who wonder what is fluttering around the pot plants on the balcony. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

The Best
The Tvetens have written the definitive account of butterflies in eastern Texas. John's photos are incredible and show the key field makes needed to identify each species. Most accounts of each species also include a photo of the larval stage. All account include a description of the egg, larva, male and female adult and seasonal variations. I use this book all the time.

excellent field guide to Texas butterflies
This is a beautifully illustrated guidebook. What makes it particularly useful and informative are the outstanding photographs of butterflies in different stages of their life cycle and different color phases, together with the extremely well-written text which thoroughly describes the natural history of each variety. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Great for beginners and cross-over birders
I found this a great book for getting a start on butterfly identification. I wanted something limited to my part of North America since I have found that field guides that cover the whole continent are overwhelming and time-consuming to use when first trying to get to know any group of plants or animals.

The book is easy to flip through rapidly. You need only look at the lefthand pages to quickly review a group of butterflies. Most double page spreads show both the dorsal (upperside) and ventral (underside) views of both the fore and hind wings. Family and subfamily are at the bottom of the pages and there is a useful monthly occurrence chart (phenogram) under each picture. Each picture also includes a bar that indicates the actual wing span of the species--a very useful device I haven't seen in other butterfly books. Textual notes include the "Nature Notes" which give behavioral or other useful information for making ids.

The standard text sections for each species include: Description, Similar Species, Life Cycle, Eggs, Caterpillar, Chrysalis, Wintering, Caterpillar Food, and Adult Food. The descriptive text is excellent. It gives a description from above and from below and provides clear references to the field mark lines which indicate key points in the photos.

All in all, this is a superb field guide if you are interested in the butterflies of New England. I have compared it to the Kaufman Focus and Petersen field guides on butterflies and it seems to lack nothing for someone whose focus is on the northeast.

It's even sized to fit into your pants pocket and weighs about 1/3 what a "standard" field guide weighs.

I'd say this book may currently be a sleeper, but is destined to become a classic. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Monarch Journal is Outstanding
This book is an excellent teaching guide for young children and adults to learn about the miracle of metamorphosis of a monarch butterfly. There are many sharp, colorful photographs showing in detail each stage from the egg to the butterfly. On each page below the stage by stage photos there is an area for keeping a journal about one's own butterfly's development including an area for an original drawing. The back part of this parent/teacher version of the book has much information about raising a monarch, and study questions for each page of the journal. The many photos are the best I have seen of the life cycle of the monarch, and make the book accesible for preschoolers as well as older children and adults. ... Read more

Book Description

Reviews (1)

Attrating Birds, Butterflies & Other Winged Wonders Inspires
What a fantastic book. Everyone who reads it will be inspired to create a garden habitat for things with wings.The book is very enjoyble to read with lots of personal stories that illustrate the author knows what she is talking about!The concise, but friendly, organization of the information and the beautiful photos make this book an outstanding "how to" resource, as well.A "must have" book for every gardeners and for every bird and butterfly enthusiast. ... Read more