American Perceptions of Immigrant and Invasive Species: Strangers on the Land

Book Description

Sometimes by accident and sometimes on purpose, humans have transported plants and animals to new habitats around the world. Arriving in ever-increasing numbers to American soil, recent invaders have competed with, preyed on, hybridized with, and carried diseases to native species, transforming our ecosystems and creating anxiety among environmentalists and the general public. But is American anxiety over this crisis of ecological identity a recent phenomenon? Charting shifting attitudes to alien species since the 1850s, Peter Coates brings to light the rich cultural and historical aspects of this story by situating the history of immigrant flora and fauna within the wider context of human immigration. Through an illuminating series of particular invasions, including the English sparrow and the eucalyptus tree, what he finds is that we have always perceived plants and animals in relation to ourselves and the polities to which we belong. Setting the saga of human relations with the environment in the broad context of scientific, social, and cultural history, this thought-provoking book demonstrates how profoundly notions of nationality and debates over race and immigration have shaped American understandings of the natural world.

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Great look at the history of park rangers
National Park Ranger
An Absolute Must for Fans of Our National Parks

National Park Ranger: An American Icon
Charles R. Butch Farabee
Manufacturer: Roberts Rinehart Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Park Ranger True Stories from a Ranger's Career in America's National Parks
National Park Service Law Enforcement
Hey Ranger!: True Tales of Humor & Misadventure from America's National Parks
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ASIN: 1570983925

Book Description

In this celebration of one of America's most enduring symbols, fromer ranger Butch Farabee brielfy revies the evolution of this national symbol.

Customer Reviews:

Great look at the history of park rangers.......2005-08-16

This book is full of wonderful photos that tell the history of national park rangers, as well as some interesting text. If you're a ranger, related to one, or simply a fan of parks, you'll enjoy this book. It's an easy read and will probably make you wish you had one of these great jobs.

National Park Ranger.......2004-06-23

With 30 years of first-hand experience, Butch Farabee captures the culture, values, language, objectives, history, unspoken processes and people of the National Park Service - rangers. A wealth of photographs and inside knowledge makes this essential reading for spouses and visitors. There is a thorough and illustrated discussion of uniforms and badges, evolution from predator control and fire suppression, to sustaining natural processes and recognizing the integral role of wildland fire in healthy ecosystems.

Rangers must have and constantly upgrade diverse knowledge, skills and abilities, and be able to diplomatically use those skills alone in the wild or in crowded urban settings. Rangers carry out technical search and rescue in every ecosystem - from 594 meters below the surface of Crater Lake to the top of Denali in Alaska at 6,194 meters, and under water in the Florida Everglades and Hawaii - while working efficiently using appropriate skills and equipment in team efforts. Commissioned rangers are federal law enforcement officers who effectively work with felons, traffic infractions and other local, state and federal agencies. Other ranges are interpreters who share the human and natural history of an area with visitors. Resource management, for the parks and people, permeates everything and every day. A ranger may repair a plumbing problem in the morning, help a visitor identify a plant, animal or rock before noon, carry out a custodial arrest or technical search and rescue in early afternoon, while working creatively within budget and administrative limitations.

The "way of life" of being a ranger is hard on rangers, spouses and children. Living conditions are often sparse and distant and people must be very tolerant, proactive for food, education and routine maintenance and be able to think and act long-term. Advancement comes competitively, often requiring major long-distance moves and extreme changes in climate - from cold interior Alaska, to warm Death Valley, to warm and humid Guam or Florida, to the snowy Great Lakes.

Rangers are female and male, come in every type of skin pigmentation, are physically abled and disabled, speak a wide variety of languages and come from many cultures. National Park Service rangers are consistently the most admired people and the most admired agency. Too many legislators use the NPS for political expediency and short-term gain. This is a good read and underscores the strong need for much better funding and support of rangers and the National Park Service.

An Absolute Must for Fans of Our National Parks.......2003-06-23

The mission of the National Park Service to preserve and protect our natural and cultural resources for future generations. Charles Farabee's knowledge and experience is portrayed superbly in National Park Ranger: An American Icon. Farabee is able to make the reader feel like they've been transported back to the late 1800's where our earliest parks were protect by members of the U.S. Army. Farabee then takes the reader to when the park ranger comes onto the scene and beyond. The history of the park ranger is very romantic and makes the reader yearn to travel back in time.

Book Description

Based on years of practical experience and research, and informed by the California Center for Wildlife's commitment to humane treatment of animals, Living with Wildlife traces the evolution of attitudes toward wildlife and provides sensible guidelines for co-existing with animals encountered around the home and in wild areas. It is both a comprehensive reference to common North American wildlife and a guide to resolving - in the most humane ways possible - common conflicts that arise from human-wildlife contact. Included are invaluable tips on what to do when:
You head up to the attic to investigate strange noises, and find that a family of raccoons has taken up residence there
Your prized rosebush is suffering from nightly "pruning" by deer
Your child rushes into the house holding a fledgling bird found on the lawn after it apparently fell from its nest
You find, upon returning from a day hike while camping in bear country, that your food supplies have been raided and are scattered all over the campsite
Throughout, the book encourages humans to share their habitat and suggests ways to make residential environments more hospitable to wildlife.

Customer Reviews:

excellent reference for wildlife care.......1998-07-26

I am a licensed rehabilitator and I wouldn't be without this book. The in-depth information on most all North American wildlife is truly valuable for all purposes, whether one is a rehabilitator or a homeowner trying to keep lids on garbage cans.

Upstream: Salmon and Society in the Pacific Northwest

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Upstream: Salmon and Society in the Pacific Northwest
Committee on Protection and Management of Pacific Northwest Anadromous Salmonids , and National Research Council
Manufacturer: National Academies Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

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The Behavior And Ecology Of Pacific Salmon And Trout
Messages from Franks Landing: A Story Of Salmon, Treaties, And The Indian Way
Salmon Without Rivers: A History Of The Pacific Salmon Crisis
King Of Fish: The Thousand-Year Run Of Salmon

ASIN: 0309053250

Foxes: Living on the Edge (Wildlife Series (Minocqua, Wisc))

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Excellent book on a relatively misunderstood animal!
Excellent book

Foxes: Living on the Edge (Wildlife Series (Minocqua, Wisc))
J. David Henry
Manufacturer: Northword Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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RED FOX PB (Smithsonian Nature Book)
The World of the Fox
Foxes (WorldLife Library Series)

ASIN: 1559715685

Customer Reviews:

Excellent book on a relatively misunderstood animal!.......2001-05-30

I really enjoyed this book and the information provided on these beautiful animals. Very educational and the photographs are outstanding. It helped me to identify the gray foxes which live around my house.

Excellent book.......2000-10-22

i must say this book gives very good info. I would recommend anyone who is intrested in foxes they have info from the swift fox to red foxes etc...

Greenways for America (Creating the North American Landscape)

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Greenways for America Goes Places!

Greenways for America (Creating the North American Landscape)
Charles E. Little
Manufacturer: The Johns Hopkins University Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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Trails for the Twenty-First Century: Planning, Design, and Management Manual for Multi-Use Trails
Designing Greenways: Sustainable Landscapes for Nature and People
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ASIN: 0801851408

Book Description

From Brooklyn's parks and parkways, across the Iowa prairie, to Big Sur's coastal highway, people are drawing green lines on local maps and building "greenways" -linear open spaces that preserve and restore the skein of nature in cities, suburbs and rural areas. Charles Little's "Greenways for America" describes this remarkable citizen-led effort to get Americans out of their cars and into the landscape of nature via greenways. Such greenways provide paths or trails for recreation and "link" a region's traditional parks and open spaces. They preserve natural corridors for wildlife migration and protect scenic and historic routes from commercial development. In this first comprehensive account of the movement that is now gathering power in every region of the country, Little describes dozens of greenway projects that have improved environmental quality, invigorated local economies, and preserved outdoor space for millions of citizens.

Customer Reviews:

Greenways for America Goes Places!.......2001-01-03

This is a great work by Mr. Little. I have learned something each time I have read it (3 or 4)! He does an excellent job of dealing with technical subjects in a very readable narrative manner.

His way of telling the story of the history of modern trails and greenways is inspirational in that it makes you want to go out and really do something in your community. He chronicles several projects with very different origins that all have been successful.

Book Description

Dave Foreman is one of North America's most creative and effective conservation leaders, an outspoken proponent of protecting and restoring the earth's wildness, and a visionary thinker. Over the past 30 years, he has helped set direction for some of our most influential conservation organizations, served as editor and publisher of key conservation journals, and shared with readers his unique style and outlook in widely acclaimed books including The Big Outside and Confessions of an Eco-Warrior.

In Rewilding North America, Dave Foreman takes on arguably the biggest ecological threat of our time: the global extinction crisis. He not only explains the problem in clear and powerful terms, but also offers a bold, hopeful, scientifically credible, and practically achievable solution.

Foreman begins by setting out the specific evidence that a mass extinction is happening and analyzes how humans are causing it. Adapting Aldo Leopold's idea of ecological wounds, he details human impacts on species survival in seven categories, including direct killing, habitat loss and fragmentation, exotic species, and climate change. Foreman describes recent discoveries in conservation biology that call for wildlands networks instead of isolated protected areas, and, reviewing the history of protected areas, shows how wildlands networks are a logical next step for the conservation movement. The final section describes specific approaches for designing such networks (based on the work of the Wildlands Project, an organization Foreman helped to found) and offers concrete and workable reforms for establishing them. The author closes with an inspiring and empowering call to action for scientists and activists alike.

Rewilding North America offers both a vision and a strategy for reconnecting, restoring, and rewilding the North American continent, and is an essential guidebook for anyone concerned with the future of life on earth.

Customer Reviews:

Finally.......2006-03-13

Finally there is something which dares to challenge conventionality in its face and say capitalism and manifest destiny arent doing us any favours... This books opens your mind to greater processes and aspirations than what were are trained for in society... go for it!

The "Sand County Almanac" of our time!.......2005-03-08

Nearly 60 years ago, Aldo Leopold gave the world a treasure: his "Sand County Almanac". "Rewilding North America" is the Sand County Almanac of our time, in eloquence as well as vision. Dave Foreman, who raised the conservation bar so shockingly (and successfully) with "Earth First!" 25 years ago, has now become an elder, a respected colleague of the leading lights in conservation biology, while carrying on his legacy of showing the rest of us new possibities for bolder and more biocentric paths of ethics and action.

"Rewilding North America" is THE environmental vision for this era and for this continent. The book begins with the most succinct and heart-stoppingly depressing summary of the bad news of biodiversity and ecological losses that I have yet encountered. But hang in there, because Foreman then masterfully unfolds a program of possibility that is both radical and realistic -- and inspirational beyond measure!

As we biodiversity and wilderness advocates continue the important work in the paradigm of preservation (that is, saving all the pieces we can against the onslaught of vapid consumerism), we can also begin to take the exciting first steps in a new form of ecological restoration. Dave's "rewilding" proposal is long-term in both directions: He considers a baseline for rewilding that goes back 13,000 years to just before the first humans arrived in North America, while setting forth a vision that is intended -- dare I say, destined -- to grow over this century and the next. That means we don't just stop at bringing back Wolf and Griz; we also start plotting paths for repatriating Cheetah to its continent of origin, and assisting Order Proboscidea in once again leisurely reshaping the tusked behemoths of the Old World into New World natives.

Onward with the Great Work!

A level-headed, serious call to action!.......2004-08-12

Foreman paints both a depressing and hopeful picture of the state of eco-affairs. Sobering information regarding the war on nature along with a plan to recoup some of the biological losses mother nature has endured in the industrial/tech ages.

This is a MUST READ book for anyone with an ounce of caring in their bones for the future of life on Earth.

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Land and Wildlife of North America
Peter Farb
Manufacturer: Time Life
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Wildlife | Conservation | Outdoors & Nature | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 080940608X

More Wildlife On Your Land: a Guide For Private Landowners

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For property owners and dedicated wildlife enthusiasts
Great resource for improving your lands wildlife

More Wildlife On Your Land: a Guide For Private Landowners
Neil F. Payne
Manufacturer: Barberie Productions
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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ASIN: 0971163405

Book Description

More Wildlife on Your Land is a how-to book written in everyday language for the layperson—mainly the landowner who owns a few or many acres in the United States and Canada. This book describes how you can change your habitat to attract more wildlife, from songbirds to deer, to your property. Information includes 1) how to landscape and restore your woodlots, pastures, prairies, riparian areas, wetlands, and ponds; 2) how to raise crops and wildlife; 3) how to control grazing; 4) how to build and locate birdhouses, bat houses and other structures for backyard wildlife; 5) how to build watering devices and fences; 6) how to control nuisance wildlife; 7) how to get income from your wildlife; and 8) how to apply for financial assistance and other help.

Customer Reviews:

For property owners and dedicated wildlife enthusiasts.......2003-11-13

More Wildlife On Your Land: A Guide For Private Landowners by Neil F. Payne (Professor Emeritus of Wildlife, University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point) is a practical and thoroughly "user friendly" instructional guide to changing property and habitat in order to attract more wildlife, including songbirds and deer. From restoring woodlots, pastures, prairies, riparian areas, wetlands, and ponds; to raising crops and wildlife while controlling grazing; to building watering devices and fences; to constructing and locating birdhouses and bat houses; to controlling nuisance wildlife; to deriving income from wildlife; to applying for financial assistance, and much, much more, More Wildlife On Your Land is a highly accessible and practical guide recommended for property owners and dedicated wildlife enthusiasts.

Great resource for improving your lands wildlife.......2002-05-11

I was given this book by my dad who met the author a few weeks ago. We recently purchased 120 acres in the beautiful state of wisconsin. We wanted to select cut our woods and put in a large fish pond. This book gives all the information you need and tells you how to improve your land in easy to understand language. If you are an outdoors person and would like to improve your land to attract wildlife of any kind, this book will get you started and will show results.

Wild Alaska: The Complete Guide to Parks, Preserves, Wildlife Refuges, & Other Public Lands, Second Edition

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Wild Alaska: The Complete Guide to Parks, Preserves, Wildlife Refuges, & Other Public Lands, Second Edition
Nancy Simmerman , Tricia Brown , and Nancy Lange Simmerman
Manufacturer: Mountaineers Books
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

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55 Ways to the Wilderness in Southcentral Alaska
Lonely Planet Alaska

ASIN: 0898865832

Book Description

The essential guide for exploring outdoor Alaska, fully updated and detailing state parks, preserves, forests, rivers and national parks.

Wild Alaska offers both the first-time visitor and the experienced Alaskan trailblazer countless opportunities to explore the beautiful glaciers, rivers, and shorelines of "The Great Land." It escorts travlers through these unique areas with detailed descriptions of their exact locations, acreage, access, wildlife, terrain, and the best season in which to visit. From boating and hiking to backpacking and camping, this is the most comprehensive encyclopedia for outdoor adventure in Alaska.

Readers will also find an appendix of useful information including the locations of campgrounds; addresses and phone numbers of land managers; access and services available at each village; and recommendations for further reading sources. With this guidebook in hand, Alaska's doors are open to anyone who aspires to enter.

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