Creepy crawlies fascinate me and this book gave me an insight into a world that we often don’t get to experience. It is only when out in our urban gardens or on a trails walk in the bush that we get to interact with the creatures that inhabit a world that we know very little about. The book was updated and fully revised in 2017, making the contents as current as possible.
Fact: Did you know that when an atomic bomb was tested on Bikini Atoll back in 1946, none of the insects succumbed to the subsequent radiation and fallout?
A brand new 2019 publication. Although I am not personally a fan of mushrooms, it is good to know that if I do collect specimens during a walk, what I can and cannot eat. The authors have gone into a lot of detail about each species with crisp colour images that allow the reader to make the correct identification with confidence. In a recent trails course, this book came in very handy for one of the field guides who was unaware of the fact that the species he had picked was inedible.
This series is great for taking into the field. Not only do they have great photographs, but they also have a checklist so that you can tick off species as you find them. Aimed at the budding naturalist, these books are detailed and informational in an easy to read manner. Published in 1998, they still form a valuable part of my home nature library.
You can NEVER have enough bird books in your bookshelf! Not only do I use this on a regular basis, but I also have the phone App as well as the first three editions to refer to as well. This edition was published in 2011.
This has become my ‘go-to’ reading in the bush lately. I have been on a few tracking courses and I have found this book to be invaluable both in the field and back in camp when I am writing postings. Although printed back in 2000, the information is still relevant today. Aside from tracks, the book also covers droppings as well as feeding signs and types of nests.
When people ask why I am talking crap, I more often than not refer them to this pocketbook. It details a variety of droppings that one would find out in the field when on a walk. I remember interviewing the writer a few years ago and I asked him why there were no Pangolin droppings described. He explained to me that he had photographed ALL the droppings in the book, but had never come across a Pangolin before. The book was published back in 2011.
All these titles are available from Struik Nature: https://www.struiknatureclub.co.za/
