The Book of Naturalists: An Anthology of the Best Natural History

by William Beebe (Editor)

Overview

Anyone curious about animals, nature, or the history of biology will find much of interest in this ample and varied collection. Reflecting his infectious enthusiasm for "the best natural history," Beebe's personal assortment of favorites includes excerpts from massive sources, such as Audubon and Darwin, and intriguing pieces from lesser known authors most of us would not normally encounter. Arranged in chronological order, the small masterpieces here range from Aristotle to Rachel Carson. Each of them is introduced by an incisive and sometimes humorous description of its author.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780691024080
Publisher:	Princeton University Press
Publication date:	04/21/1988
Series:	Princeton Paperbacks Series
Pages:	520
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x (d)

Table of Contents

Part I
	Introduction	3
	Cave Paintings from the Stone Age	11
	Fishing-Frogs, Cuckoos, and Other Things	12
	Disagreements between Elephants and Dragons; The Birth of Pearls	19
	The Whale	24
	The Migration of Birds	26
	The Rhinoceros and the Mouse	30
	"Little Animals"	35
	Why Ants Have Wings	39
	From Bats and Manatees to Cats and Camels	45
	Concerning Birds, Bats, and a Tortoise	47
	The Rattle Snake	54
	Jungle River	59
	The Sloth	62
	The Wild Turkey	68
	The Pond	73
Part II
	Introduction	87
	From Bahia and the Galapagos to the Origin of Species	94
	Mimicry, and Other Protective Resemblances among Animals	106
	The Aims of an Expedition	122
	On a Piece of Chalk	131
	Driver Ants	151
	Patagonian Memories	160
	The Water Ouzel	187
	The Swarm	197
	Tribulations of a Naturalist and The Courtship of the Scorpion	213
	Foreword to A Book-Lover's Holidays in the Open, and On an East African Ranch	234
	About Tadpoles	243
	The Termitodoxa, or Biology and Society	250
	Penguins	263
	Old Friends in New Places	283
	Chagola	291
	Foxes, Owls, and Polar Bears	308
	Elephant Friends and Foes	314
	The Migration of Elephants	334
	Mammoths in the Flesh	335
	The Sea Otter	341
	The Tomb of the Pearl	345
	Two Lives	355
	The Emergence of the Half-Men	363
	Looking Forward	375
	The Uniqueness of Man	395
	The Big Almendro	417
	The Ties that Bind	427
	The Seeds of Life and The Sleep of the Seed	441
	Playboys of the Western World	455
	In Defense of Octopuses	465
	Odyssey of the Eel	478
	Selected Biographical Material	497

What People are Saying About This

Horn

Good anthologies of natural history are rare. This one is unique, in my experience, for the uniform excellence of the chosen pieces. There are no undisciplined reveries, and nature is reported directly, rather than as a setting for personal introspection. This excellence is no accident, for Beebe himself was a keen observer and a master of the finest expeditionary prose.
— Henry S. Horn, Princeton University

From the Publisher

"Good anthologies of natural history are rare. This one is unique, in my experience, for the uniform excellence of the chosen pieces. There are no undisciplined reveries, and nature is reported directly, rather than as a setting for personal introspection. This excellence is no accident, for Beebe himself was a keen observer and a master of the finest expeditionary prose."—Henry S. Horn, Princeton University

Editorial Reviews

"This is an anthology with a fine sense of history.... there is a timelessness to many of its selections."

Washington Post Book World

"Good anthologies of natural history are rare. This one is unique, in my experience, for the uniform excellence of the chosen pieces. There are no undisciplined reveries, and nature is reported directly, rather than as a setting for personal introspection. This excellence is no accident, for Beebe himself was a keen observer and a master of the finest expeditionary prose."—Henry S. Horn, Princeton University

From the Publisher