Author: Andrea M. Jones
Publisher: University of Iowa Press
ISBN: 1609382129
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 196
Book Description
In her calm, carefully reasoned perspective on place, Andrea Jones focuses on the familiar details of country life balanced by the larger responsibilities that come with living outside an urban boundary. Neither an environmental manifesto nor a prodevelopment defense, Between Urban and Wild operates partly on a practical level, partly on a naturalist’s level. Jones reflects on life in two homes in the Colorado Rockies, first in Fourmile Canyon in the foothills west of Boulder, then near Cap Rock Ridge in central Colorado. Whether negotiating territory with a mountain lion, balancing her observations of the predatory nature of pygmy owls against her desire to protect a nest of nuthatches, working to reduce her property’s vulnerability to wildfire while staying alert to its inherent risks during fire season, or decoding the distinct personalities of her horses, she advances the tradition of nature writing by acknowledging the effects of sprawl on a beloved landscape. Although not intended as a manual for landowners, Between Urban and Wild nonetheless offers useful and engaging perspectives on the realities of settling and living in a partially wild environment. Throughout her ongoing journey of being home, Jones’s close observations of the land and its native inhabitants are paired with the suggestion that even small landholders can act to protect the health of their properties. Her brief meditations capture and honor the subtleties of the natural world while illuminating the importance of working to safeguard it. Probing the contradictions of a lifestyle that burdens the health of the land that she loves, Jones’s writing is permeated by her gentle, earnest conviction that living at the urban-wild interface requires us to set aside self-interest, consider compromise, and adjust our expectations and habits—to accommodate our surroundings rather than force them to accommodate us.
Between Urban and Wild
Author: Andrea M. Jones
Publisher: University of Iowa Press
ISBN: 1609382129
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 196
Book Description
In her calm, carefully reasoned perspective on place, Andrea Jones focuses on the familiar details of country life balanced by the larger responsibilities that come with living outside an urban boundary. Neither an environmental manifesto nor a prodevelopment defense, Between Urban and Wild operates partly on a practical level, partly on a naturalist’s level. Jones reflects on life in two homes in the Colorado Rockies, first in Fourmile Canyon in the foothills west of Boulder, then near Cap Rock Ridge in central Colorado. Whether negotiating territory with a mountain lion, balancing her observations of the predatory nature of pygmy owls against her desire to protect a nest of nuthatches, working to reduce her property’s vulnerability to wildfire while staying alert to its inherent risks during fire season, or decoding the distinct personalities of her horses, she advances the tradition of nature writing by acknowledging the effects of sprawl on a beloved landscape. Although not intended as a manual for landowners, Between Urban and Wild nonetheless offers useful and engaging perspectives on the realities of settling and living in a partially wild environment. Throughout her ongoing journey of being home, Jones’s close observations of the land and its native inhabitants are paired with the suggestion that even small landholders can act to protect the health of their properties. Her brief meditations capture and honor the subtleties of the natural world while illuminating the importance of working to safeguard it. Probing the contradictions of a lifestyle that burdens the health of the land that she loves, Jones’s writing is permeated by her gentle, earnest conviction that living at the urban-wild interface requires us to set aside self-interest, consider compromise, and adjust our expectations and habits—to accommodate our surroundings rather than force them to accommodate us.
Publisher: University of Iowa Press
ISBN: 1609382129
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 196
Book Description
In her calm, carefully reasoned perspective on place, Andrea Jones focuses on the familiar details of country life balanced by the larger responsibilities that come with living outside an urban boundary. Neither an environmental manifesto nor a prodevelopment defense, Between Urban and Wild operates partly on a practical level, partly on a naturalist’s level. Jones reflects on life in two homes in the Colorado Rockies, first in Fourmile Canyon in the foothills west of Boulder, then near Cap Rock Ridge in central Colorado. Whether negotiating territory with a mountain lion, balancing her observations of the predatory nature of pygmy owls against her desire to protect a nest of nuthatches, working to reduce her property’s vulnerability to wildfire while staying alert to its inherent risks during fire season, or decoding the distinct personalities of her horses, she advances the tradition of nature writing by acknowledging the effects of sprawl on a beloved landscape. Although not intended as a manual for landowners, Between Urban and Wild nonetheless offers useful and engaging perspectives on the realities of settling and living in a partially wild environment. Throughout her ongoing journey of being home, Jones’s close observations of the land and its native inhabitants are paired with the suggestion that even small landholders can act to protect the health of their properties. Her brief meditations capture and honor the subtleties of the natural world while illuminating the importance of working to safeguard it. Probing the contradictions of a lifestyle that burdens the health of the land that she loves, Jones’s writing is permeated by her gentle, earnest conviction that living at the urban-wild interface requires us to set aside self-interest, consider compromise, and adjust our expectations and habits—to accommodate our surroundings rather than force them to accommodate us.
Wild Urban Plants of the Northeast
Author: Peter Del Tredici
Publisher: Cornell University Press
ISBN: 1501740466
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 412
Book Description
"This field guide is useful for trained ecologists, botanists, and naturalists, and is accessible to anyone else who wonders what is sprouting up from that sidewalk crack or in that corner of their suburban garden."― Rhodora In this field guide to the future, esteemed Harvard University botanist Peter Del Tredici unveils the plants that will become even more dominant in urban environments under projected future environmental conditions. These plants are the most important and most common plants in cities. Learning what they are and the role they play, he writes, will help us all make cities more livable and enjoyable. With more than 1000 photos, readers can easily identify these powerful plants. Learn about the fascinating cultural history of each plant.
Publisher: Cornell University Press
ISBN: 1501740466
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 412
Book Description
"This field guide is useful for trained ecologists, botanists, and naturalists, and is accessible to anyone else who wonders what is sprouting up from that sidewalk crack or in that corner of their suburban garden."― Rhodora In this field guide to the future, esteemed Harvard University botanist Peter Del Tredici unveils the plants that will become even more dominant in urban environments under projected future environmental conditions. These plants are the most important and most common plants in cities. Learning what they are and the role they play, he writes, will help us all make cities more livable and enjoyable. With more than 1000 photos, readers can easily identify these powerful plants. Learn about the fascinating cultural history of each plant.
Urban Wildlife Conservation
Author: Robert A. McCleery
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 1489975004
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 408
Book Description
In the past, wildlife living in urban areas were ignored by wildlife professionals and urban planners because cities were perceived as places for people and not for wild animals. Paradoxically, though, many species of wildlife thrive in these built environments. Interactions between humans and wildlife are more frequent in urban areas than any other place on earth and these interactions impact human health, safety and welfare in both positive and negative ways. Although urban wildlife control pest species, pollinate plants and are fun to watch, they also damage property, spread disease and even attack people and pets. In urban areas, the combination of dense human populations, buildings, impermeable surfaces, introduced vegetation, and high concentrations of food, water and pollution alter wildlife populations and communities in ways unseen in more natural environments. For these ecological and practical reasons, researchers and mangers have shown a growing interest in urban wildlife ecology and management. This growing interest in urban wildlife has inspired many studies on the subject that have yet to be synthesized in a cohesive narrative. Urban Wildlife: Theory and Practice fills this void by synthesizing the latest ecological and social knowledge in the subject area into an interdisciplinary and practical text. This volume provides a foundation for the future growth and understanding of urban wildlife ecology and management by: • Clearly defining th e concepts used to study and describe urban wildlife, • Offering a cohesive understanding of the coupled natural and social drivers that shape urban wildlife ecology, • Presenting the patterns and processes of wildlife response to an urbanizing world and explaining the mechanisms behind them and • Proposing means to create physical and social environments that are mutually beneficial for both humans and wildlife.
Publisher: Springer
ISBN: 1489975004
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 408
Book Description
In the past, wildlife living in urban areas were ignored by wildlife professionals and urban planners because cities were perceived as places for people and not for wild animals. Paradoxically, though, many species of wildlife thrive in these built environments. Interactions between humans and wildlife are more frequent in urban areas than any other place on earth and these interactions impact human health, safety and welfare in both positive and negative ways. Although urban wildlife control pest species, pollinate plants and are fun to watch, they also damage property, spread disease and even attack people and pets. In urban areas, the combination of dense human populations, buildings, impermeable surfaces, introduced vegetation, and high concentrations of food, water and pollution alter wildlife populations and communities in ways unseen in more natural environments. For these ecological and practical reasons, researchers and mangers have shown a growing interest in urban wildlife ecology and management. This growing interest in urban wildlife has inspired many studies on the subject that have yet to be synthesized in a cohesive narrative. Urban Wildlife: Theory and Practice fills this void by synthesizing the latest ecological and social knowledge in the subject area into an interdisciplinary and practical text. This volume provides a foundation for the future growth and understanding of urban wildlife ecology and management by: • Clearly defining th e concepts used to study and describe urban wildlife, • Offering a cohesive understanding of the coupled natural and social drivers that shape urban wildlife ecology, • Presenting the patterns and processes of wildlife response to an urbanizing world and explaining the mechanisms behind them and • Proposing means to create physical and social environments that are mutually beneficial for both humans and wildlife.
Wild Urban Woodlands
Author: Ingo Kowarik
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 3540268596
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 312
Book Description
This book provides a first overview of the phemonemon of post-industrial urban wilderness: urban landscapes once shaped by heavy industry that are being re-colonized naturally by forests. These new types of urban woodlands are often overlooked by ecologists, foresters and planners. Individual chapters consider urban woodlands from the perspectives of ecology, environmental sociology, forestry, nature conservation and landscape architecture.
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 3540268596
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 312
Book Description
This book provides a first overview of the phemonemon of post-industrial urban wilderness: urban landscapes once shaped by heavy industry that are being re-colonized naturally by forests. These new types of urban woodlands are often overlooked by ecologists, foresters and planners. Individual chapters consider urban woodlands from the perspectives of ecology, environmental sociology, forestry, nature conservation and landscape architecture.
Urban Wildlife Habitats
Author: Lowell W. Adams
Publisher: U of Minnesota Press
ISBN: 0816622132
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 210
Book Description
Urban Wildlife Habitats was first published in 1994. Minnesota Archive Editions uses digital technology to make long-unavailable books once again accessible, and are published unaltered from the original University of Minnesota Press editions. In cities, towns, and villages, between buildings and parking lots, streets and sidewalks, and polluted streams and rivers, there is ever less space for the "natural," the plants and animals that once were at home across North America. In this first book-length study of the subject, Lowell W. Adams reviews the impact of urban and suburban growth on natural plant and animal communities and reveals how, with appropriate landscape planning and urban development, cities and towns can be made more accommodating for a wide diversity of species, including our own. Soils and ground surface, air, water, and noise pollution, space and demographics are among the urban characteristics Adams considers in relation to wildlife. He describes changes in the composition and structure of vegetation, as native species are replaced by exotic ones, and shows how, with spreading urbanization of natural habitats, the diversity of species of plants and animals almost always declines, although the density of a few species increases. Adams contends, however, that it is possible for a wide variety of species to coexist in the metropolitan environment, and he cites a growing interest in the practice of "natural landscaping," which emphasizes the use of native species and considers the structure, pattern, and species composition of vegetation as it relates to wildlife needs. Urban habitats vary from small city parks in densely built downtowns to suburbs with large yards and considerable open space. Adams discusses the opportunities these areas--along with school yards, hospital grounds, cemeteries, individual residences, and vacant lots--provide for judicious wildlife management and for the salutary interaction of people with nature. Lowell W. Adams is vice president of the National Institute for Urban Wildlife in Columbia, Maryland.
Publisher: U of Minnesota Press
ISBN: 0816622132
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 210
Book Description
Urban Wildlife Habitats was first published in 1994. Minnesota Archive Editions uses digital technology to make long-unavailable books once again accessible, and are published unaltered from the original University of Minnesota Press editions. In cities, towns, and villages, between buildings and parking lots, streets and sidewalks, and polluted streams and rivers, there is ever less space for the "natural," the plants and animals that once were at home across North America. In this first book-length study of the subject, Lowell W. Adams reviews the impact of urban and suburban growth on natural plant and animal communities and reveals how, with appropriate landscape planning and urban development, cities and towns can be made more accommodating for a wide diversity of species, including our own. Soils and ground surface, air, water, and noise pollution, space and demographics are among the urban characteristics Adams considers in relation to wildlife. He describes changes in the composition and structure of vegetation, as native species are replaced by exotic ones, and shows how, with spreading urbanization of natural habitats, the diversity of species of plants and animals almost always declines, although the density of a few species increases. Adams contends, however, that it is possible for a wide variety of species to coexist in the metropolitan environment, and he cites a growing interest in the practice of "natural landscaping," which emphasizes the use of native species and considers the structure, pattern, and species composition of vegetation as it relates to wildlife needs. Urban habitats vary from small city parks in densely built downtowns to suburbs with large yards and considerable open space. Adams discusses the opportunities these areas--along with school yards, hospital grounds, cemeteries, individual residences, and vacant lots--provide for judicious wildlife management and for the salutary interaction of people with nature. Lowell W. Adams is vice president of the National Institute for Urban Wildlife in Columbia, Maryland.
The Way of Coyote
Author: Gavin Van Horn
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
ISBN: 022644158X
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 241
Book Description
A hiking trail through majestic mountains. A raw, unpeopled wilderness stretching as far as the eye can see. These are the settings we associate with our most famous books about nature. But Gavin Van Horn isn’t most nature writers. He lives and works not in some perfectly remote cabin in the woods but in a city—a big city. And that city has offered him something even more valuable than solitude: a window onto the surprising attractiveness of cities to animals. What was once in his mind essentially a nature-free blank slate turns out to actually be a bustling place where millions of wild things roam. He came to realize that our own paths are crisscrossed by the tracks and flyways of endangered black-crowned night herons, Cooper’s hawks, brown bats, coyotes, opossums, white-tailed deer, and many others who thread their lives ably through our own. With The Way of Coyote, Gavin Van Horn reveals the stupendous diversity of species that can flourish in urban landscapes like Chicago. That isn’t to say city living is without its challenges. Chicago has been altered dramatically over a relatively short timespan—its soils covered by concrete, its wetlands drained and refilled, its river diverted and made to flow in the opposite direction. The stories in The Way of Coyote occasionally lament lost abundance, but they also point toward incredible adaptability and resilience, such as that displayed by beavers plying the waters of human-constructed canals or peregrine falcons raising their young atop towering skyscrapers. Van Horn populates his stories with a remarkable range of urban wildlife and probes the philosophical and religious dimensions of what it means to coexist, drawing frequently from the wisdom of three unconventional guides—wildlife ecologist Aldo Leopold, Taoist philosopher Lao Tzu, and the North American trickster figure Coyote. Ultimately, Van Horn sees vast potential for a more vibrant collective of ecological citizens as we take our cues from landscapes past and present. Part urban nature travelogue, part philosophical reflection on the role wildlife can play in waking us to a shared sense of place and fate, The Way of Coyote is a deeply personal journey that questions how we might best reconcile our own needs with the needs of other creatures in our shared urban habitats.
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
ISBN: 022644158X
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 241
Book Description
A hiking trail through majestic mountains. A raw, unpeopled wilderness stretching as far as the eye can see. These are the settings we associate with our most famous books about nature. But Gavin Van Horn isn’t most nature writers. He lives and works not in some perfectly remote cabin in the woods but in a city—a big city. And that city has offered him something even more valuable than solitude: a window onto the surprising attractiveness of cities to animals. What was once in his mind essentially a nature-free blank slate turns out to actually be a bustling place where millions of wild things roam. He came to realize that our own paths are crisscrossed by the tracks and flyways of endangered black-crowned night herons, Cooper’s hawks, brown bats, coyotes, opossums, white-tailed deer, and many others who thread their lives ably through our own. With The Way of Coyote, Gavin Van Horn reveals the stupendous diversity of species that can flourish in urban landscapes like Chicago. That isn’t to say city living is without its challenges. Chicago has been altered dramatically over a relatively short timespan—its soils covered by concrete, its wetlands drained and refilled, its river diverted and made to flow in the opposite direction. The stories in The Way of Coyote occasionally lament lost abundance, but they also point toward incredible adaptability and resilience, such as that displayed by beavers plying the waters of human-constructed canals or peregrine falcons raising their young atop towering skyscrapers. Van Horn populates his stories with a remarkable range of urban wildlife and probes the philosophical and religious dimensions of what it means to coexist, drawing frequently from the wisdom of three unconventional guides—wildlife ecologist Aldo Leopold, Taoist philosopher Lao Tzu, and the North American trickster figure Coyote. Ultimately, Van Horn sees vast potential for a more vibrant collective of ecological citizens as we take our cues from landscapes past and present. Part urban nature travelogue, part philosophical reflection on the role wildlife can play in waking us to a shared sense of place and fate, The Way of Coyote is a deeply personal journey that questions how we might best reconcile our own needs with the needs of other creatures in our shared urban habitats.
Never Home Alone
Author: Rob Dunn
Publisher: Basic Books
ISBN: 154164574X
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 343
Book Description
A natural history of the wilderness in our homes, from the microbes in our showers to the crickets in our basements Even when the floors are sparkling clean and the house seems silent, our domestic domain is wild beyond imagination. In Never Home Alone, biologist Rob Dunn introduces us to the nearly 200,000 species living with us in our own homes, from the Egyptian meal moths in our cupboards and camel crickets in our basements to the lactobacillus lounging on our kitchen counters. You are not alone. Yet, as we obsess over sterilizing our homes and separating our spaces from nature, we are unwittingly cultivating an entirely new playground for evolution. These changes are reshaping the organisms that live with us -- prompting some to become more dangerous, while undermining those species that benefit our bodies or help us keep more threatening organisms at bay. No one who reads this engrossing, revelatory book will look at their homes in the same way again.
Publisher: Basic Books
ISBN: 154164574X
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 343
Book Description
A natural history of the wilderness in our homes, from the microbes in our showers to the crickets in our basements Even when the floors are sparkling clean and the house seems silent, our domestic domain is wild beyond imagination. In Never Home Alone, biologist Rob Dunn introduces us to the nearly 200,000 species living with us in our own homes, from the Egyptian meal moths in our cupboards and camel crickets in our basements to the lactobacillus lounging on our kitchen counters. You are not alone. Yet, as we obsess over sterilizing our homes and separating our spaces from nature, we are unwittingly cultivating an entirely new playground for evolution. These changes are reshaping the organisms that live with us -- prompting some to become more dangerous, while undermining those species that benefit our bodies or help us keep more threatening organisms at bay. No one who reads this engrossing, revelatory book will look at their homes in the same way again.
The Urban Bestiary
Author: Lyanda Lynn Haupt
Publisher: Little, Brown Spark
ISBN: 0316250783
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 278
Book Description
From the bestselling author of Crow Planet, a compelling journey into the secret lives of the wild animals at our back door. In The Urban Bestiary, acclaimed nature writer Lyanda Lynn Haupt journeys into the heart of the everyday wild, where coyotes, raccoons, chickens, hawks, and humans live in closer proximity than ever before. Haupt's observations bring compelling new questions to light: Whose "home" is this? Where does the wild end and the city begin? And what difference does it make to us as humans living our everyday lives? In this wholly original blend of science, story, myth, and memoir, Haupt draws us into the secret world of the wild creatures that dwell among us in our urban neighborhoods, whether we are aware of them or not. With beautiful illustrations and practical sidebars on everything from animal tracking to opossum removal, The Urban Bestiary is a lyrical book that awakens wonder, delight, and respect for the urban wild, and our place within it.
Publisher: Little, Brown Spark
ISBN: 0316250783
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 278
Book Description
From the bestselling author of Crow Planet, a compelling journey into the secret lives of the wild animals at our back door. In The Urban Bestiary, acclaimed nature writer Lyanda Lynn Haupt journeys into the heart of the everyday wild, where coyotes, raccoons, chickens, hawks, and humans live in closer proximity than ever before. Haupt's observations bring compelling new questions to light: Whose "home" is this? Where does the wild end and the city begin? And what difference does it make to us as humans living our everyday lives? In this wholly original blend of science, story, myth, and memoir, Haupt draws us into the secret world of the wild creatures that dwell among us in our urban neighborhoods, whether we are aware of them or not. With beautiful illustrations and practical sidebars on everything from animal tracking to opossum removal, The Urban Bestiary is a lyrical book that awakens wonder, delight, and respect for the urban wild, and our place within it.
Urban Wildlife Management
Author: Clark E. Adams
Publisher: CRC Press
ISBN: 1439882193
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 448
Book Description
When the first edition of Urban Wildlife Management was published two years ago, it provided conservationists, ecologists, and wildlife professionals with a welcome shift in the way that interactions between humans and wildlife were viewed and managed. Instead of focusing on ways to evict or eradicate wildlife encroached on by urban development, th
Publisher: CRC Press
ISBN: 1439882193
Category : Nature
Languages : en
Pages : 448
Book Description
When the first edition of Urban Wildlife Management was published two years ago, it provided conservationists, ecologists, and wildlife professionals with a welcome shift in the way that interactions between humans and wildlife were viewed and managed. Instead of focusing on ways to evict or eradicate wildlife encroached on by urban development, th
Wild Animal Neighbors
Author: Ann Downer
Publisher: Twenty-First Century Books ™
ISBN: 1512453064
Category : Juvenile Nonfiction
Languages : en
Pages : 68
Book Description
What would you do if you found an alligator in your garage? Or if you spotted a mountain lion downtown? In cities and suburbs around the world, wild creatures are showing up where we least expect them. Not all of them arrive by accident, and some are here to stay. As the human population tops seven billion, animals are running out of space. Their natural habitats are surrounded—and sometimes even replaced—by highways, shopping centers, office parks, and subdivisions. The result? A wildlife invasion of our urban neighborhoods. What kinds of animals are making cities their new home? How can they survive in our ecosystem of concrete, steel, and glass? And what does their presence there mean for their future and ours? Join scientists, activists, and the folks next door on a journey around the globe to track down our newest wild animal neighbors. Discover what is bringing these creatures to our backyards—and how we can create spaces for people and animals to live side by side.
Publisher: Twenty-First Century Books ™
ISBN: 1512453064
Category : Juvenile Nonfiction
Languages : en
Pages : 68
Book Description
What would you do if you found an alligator in your garage? Or if you spotted a mountain lion downtown? In cities and suburbs around the world, wild creatures are showing up where we least expect them. Not all of them arrive by accident, and some are here to stay. As the human population tops seven billion, animals are running out of space. Their natural habitats are surrounded—and sometimes even replaced—by highways, shopping centers, office parks, and subdivisions. The result? A wildlife invasion of our urban neighborhoods. What kinds of animals are making cities their new home? How can they survive in our ecosystem of concrete, steel, and glass? And what does their presence there mean for their future and ours? Join scientists, activists, and the folks next door on a journey around the globe to track down our newest wild animal neighbors. Discover what is bringing these creatures to our backyards—and how we can create spaces for people and animals to live side by side.