Book Description

Filled with succinct descriptions and dazzling photographs, the National Audubon Society Pocket Guide to Familiar Butterflies in North America is designed to be compact enough for nature-lovers to easily bring along when observing butterflies. This streamlined volume contains: a simple field guide identifying 80 of the most widespread butterflies in North America and a complete overview of observing butterflies, covering basic identifying field marks and practical tips for observing and distinguishing different butterflies.

This pocket guide is packed with information; bright photographs capturing the butterflies perched with their wings spread and closed; specific descriptions of each species' important identifying characteristics, life cycle, habitat and range, line drawings depicting the basic butterfly anatomy, a description of major butterfly groups and a glossary of technical terms.

When observing these beautifully fragile creatures, the National Audubon Society Guide to Familiar Butterflies of North America is an excellent and handy reference guide to take along during any nature walk.

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Reviews (1)

Familiar Butterflies of North America
The size makes it very convenient for use while observing. Species pictures on the left hand pages in the upper left corner are most useful when the pages are fanned for quick identification. Information on that particular member of the species is excellent. ... Read more

Book Description

Book Description

Human beings have long been captivated by the striking orange and black dress and the epic migrations of monarch butterflies. The World of the Monarch Butterfly combines a graceful text and stunning full-color photographs to capture the essence of this fragile yet hardy species.

Monarchs have the longest migration in the insect world. The monarch takes about three months to migrate approximately 2500 miles and may cover over 80 miles each day. Tens of millions of monarchs in North America migrate to a single small area of rare oyamel forests high in the mountains west of Mexico City. How does each generation find its way to the same place every year? How do monarchs know when to begin their journey? And what causes monarchs born at the end of the summer to migrate while those born in midsummer don't?

Well-known science writer Eric S. Grace explores these and other questions, describing the dangers of migration, the monarch's use of the milkweed plant as a defense against predators, the intricate courtship rituals of the monarch, and the dramatic metamorphosis that transforms a voracious stay-at-home caterpillar into an elegant and gregarious beauty. He also discusses the tragic loss of monarch roosting sites to logging, the destruction of monarch habitat by agriculture and urbanization, and the need for international cooperation to protect the monarch.

Exquisite photographs portray monarch butterflies filling an intense blue sky, alighting singly on a wildflower, and emerging from a cocoon. Other photographs show the environment where they live. Together, text and photographs elucidate the mystery of the marvelous monarch. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Amazing!!!!!
I've got a thing for Monarch butterflies so when I saw this book I jumped on getting it. I have a number of other books pertaining to Monarchs but the photographs in here are absolutely moving! There are close-up images of the egg and emerging caterpillar, there are pictures of the sky filled with these orange and black jewels, there are close-ups of chrysallids that fill a page of the book. Its just amazing. But wait, its much more than just a picture book. The text is great too. Each stage of development is covered (with great corresponding photographs, extreme close-ups), and following metamorphosis, there's discussion of the Journey South, the paths of migration, some discussion of tagging, a section on the winter roosts, and a discussion of morach habitats, food predators etc. A really wonderful work, extremely well done!!! ... Read more

Book Description

This is the most comprehensive field guide to the butterflies of Europe. The magnificent color illustrations and succinct entries cover all 440 species across, and sometimes beyond, the continent--from Lapland to North Africa, from the British Isles to Portugal to Greece, from the Pyrenees to the Caucasus. Completely up-to-date, the book includes dozens of species absent in earlier guides and covers the Canary Islands, the Azores, Madeira, and the Aegean Islands, home to several butterflies found nowhere else in Europe.

The entries cover taxonomic nomenclature, range, distribution, description, flight period, variation, habitat, life history--including, importantly, larval host plants--and behavior. The 104 color plates feature over 2,000 illustrations, including both genders of each species and lateral views. Distribution maps accompany nearly all entries. In this journey to the haunts of the Old World's most kaleidoscopic creatures we encounter: Swallowtails and Festoons, Orange Tips, Hairstreaks and Blues, Emperors and Tortoiseshells, Fritillaries, Ringlets, Skippers, and many other delicately winged delights.

All who find butterflies beautiful will treasure this authoritative guide. Whether already afield or still at home dreaming of that trip to Europe, they will feel what the great literary lepidopterist, Vladimir Nabokov, did as a schoolboy in Russia, when, as he once recounted, he so yearned to identify one of those "delicate little creatures that cling in the daytime to speckled surfaces, with which their flat wings and turned-up abdomens blend."

*Comprehensive field guide to the 440 butterflies found in Europe
*Each species fully illustrated with paintings of the male, female, and, where appropriate, all major forms
*Over 2,000 color illustrations and more than 400 distribution maps--one for every widespread species
*Text covering taxonomic nomenclature, distribution, flight period, variation, habitat, behavior, life cycle, food plants, and conservation
*All information researched from original sources

Book Description

Beginners and longtime butterfly watchers alike will find much to celebrate in Butterflies in the Backyard. Part natural history, part gardening guide, the book contains solid information on butterfly behavior and habitats and also explains in careful detail how to attract these lovely creatures to your backyard with plants and feeders. Includes up-to-date information on migration and conservation efforts, as well as an identification guide for the most common North American species. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Charming!
A tiny jewel studded with quotes, lines of poetry, a smattering of history and lovely pictures of many of the more common butterflies with brief information about each. A real gem and perfect gift for any buterfly lover! ... Read more

Book Description

Almost 400 species of butterflies flutter about the Southwest, well adapted to the varying conditions. This book pictures all butterflies you are most likely to see in the Southwest-in their natural environment. ... Read more

Book Description

What an audience! Millions of bird watchers, butterfly enthusiasts, and gardeners. * Potential audience: 55 million bird watchers, millions of butterfly enthusiasts, and countless gardeners* Explanation of anatomy, life cycle, and food requirements * 15 plans for gorgeous gardens that double as friendly habitats* Gallery of plants, including regional recommendations* 236 photographs ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Beauty is more than petal-deep.
As the authors of this book point out, butterflies and hummingbirds add beauty to the garden. In my opinion, a garden made to sustain these interesting creatures is more than just pretty - it gives something back to nature. This guide describes how to attract butterflies and hummingbirds and provide essentials to keep them around. It offers many practical tips as well as background information on the species. The guide includes charts of plants which will attract and sustain hummers and butterflies throughout their lifespans, suggested garden designs, and an encyclopedia of hummingbird and butterfly species. It does not include a color photographs of each plant, but those can easily be found elsewhere. If you would like to devote a whole garden to hummers or butterflies, or just incorporate a few plants to attract them, this book is a good starting place and reference. ... Read more

Reviews (3)

Encyclopedic Natural History. Field Guide?
This book is a superb natural history. The author has obtained information from studies in scientific journals and from experts in the field. He consulted 700 sources for information on how butterflies overwinter. There is a wealth of detail. For the Spring Azure alone, he describes four subspecies and six forms, giving appearance, range, and flight periods of each. 56 of its host plants are listed, the most common ones marked with an asterisk. There are 10 photographs of the forms. Host plants for all butterflies are listed in alphabetical order in the index with the species numbers on the same line.

There are better books for use as a field guide. This book is too big (8x10) to carry in a pocket or binoculars case. I would be afraid of damaging this large, relatively expensive book. The sheer number of photographs makes a quick tentative identification harder.

This is a book that any butterfly enthusiast should add to his library. However, he should start his library with one of the smaller guides, such as Butterflies Through Binoculars: The East, the Golden Guide, or one of the regional guides.

First Class - little more to say really
By far the best single volume covering the North American butterflies. I have only one reservation. I don't know if this is a cultural thing, but US guide books tend towards colour photos instead of drawings. For a foreigner (UK) who hasn't been brought up with the American fauna, it is nearly impossible to tell from a photo which marks on an insect's wing are characteristics of the species, and which are that-own-specific-individual-in-the-photo's unique birth marks, imperfections etc. The better of the European butterfly guide books, and most of the world's better bird books all use high quality generalized drawings/paintings.

Superb overall quality and an absolute must for anyone with the slightest serious interest.

By far the best one-volume guide to N.American Butterflies
Probably the most valuable feature of this book are its colour plates, which depict a huge amount of subspecies and variations. As the colour plates are made up of photographs and not drawings, the species have certain natural defects and thus make it easier to identify species caught in the wild. The text is also exceptional, pointing out minute differences between species and describing in great detail their natural behaviour. Another extremely useful feature is the maps, which point out the exact distribution of species throughout North America. This is a wonderful book and belongs in the library of any naturalist, scientist, or entomologist, both amateur and professional. ... Read more

Book Description

The definitive guide to the world's most recognized butterfly.

Monarch butterflies are widely distributed around the world. The two most distinct populations are located in North America -- one to the east and the other to the west of the Rocky Mountains.

Their wide distribution, coupled with their vivid orange, white and black coloring makes the monarch the most recognizable butterfly. Regrettably, in recent years, ecological changes -- specifically the loss of its feeding grounds -- are threatening the monarch's existence.

The Last Monarch Butterfly provides a thorough and essential overview of these delightful creatures and helps readers to understand their plight. The book documents the monarch's life cycle to provide a clear understanding of its natural condition including its migratory nature. Easy-to-understand text is illustrated with thirty bright, colorful photographs.

The western butterfly winters in California and the eastern butterfly winters in Mexico. Natural disasters such as a recent cold snap in Mexico imperil the already depleted monarch populations. Areas in California that once hosted the monarch are now being used for residential and industrial development. Even the vast fields of flowering weeds that supported the monarch in the northern states are depleted for new development.

The Last Monarch Butterfly is the definitive environmental reference on this endangered species. ... Read more

Book Description

Reviews (1)

Butterflies of Oregon and Washington
Good book of common species. A Few photo's blurry and information on all species not consistent. Such as, not all species have a photo of the catapillar stage nor does it indicate at what time of year each species is most common. Not a complete guide, but a guide of 100 of the common species of the PNW. ... Read more

Book Description

This essential handbook covers where to find butterflies; how to observe and photograph them; their behavior, biology, ecology, and life histories; butterfly gardening; butterfly rearing; identification; and conservation. ... Read more

Book Description