This book describes the major plant and animal components of Spring Creek Prairie Audubon Center, an 850-acre National Audubon Society tallgrass prairie in Lancaster County, southeastern Nebraska. In addition to providing a species list of the area's plants (368 species), there are comprehensive annotated lists of its birds (240), mammals (43), reptiles (23), and amphibians (10). There are also variably complete annotated lists of the area's butterflies (76), sphinx moths (30), silk moths (7), dragonflies (24), damselflies (11), grasshoppers (9), katydids (11), mantids (2), and walkingsticks (2). Brief profiles of life histories and ecologies of 55 animal and 7 plant species are included, as well as information on nearly 100 public-access native grasslands in eastern Nebraska. The text comprises more than 68,000 words, 400 references, and a glossary of 125 biological/scientific terms as well as more than 40 line drawings by the author.

In Wildlife of Nebraska: A Natural History, Paul A. Johnsgard surveys the variety and biology of more than six hundred Nebraska species. Narrative accounts describe the ecology and biology of the state’s birds, its mammals, and its reptiles and amphibians, summarizing the abundance, distributions, and habitats of this wildlife. To provide an introduction to the state’s major ecosystems, climate, and topography, Johnsgard examines major public-access natural areas, including national monuments, wildlife refuges and grasslands, state parks and wildlife management areas, and nature preserves. Including more than thirty-five line drawings by the author along with physiographic, ecological, and historical maps, Wildlife of Nebraska is an essential guide to the wildlife of the Cornhusker State.

Among birds, swans are relatively long-lived species and are also among the most strongly monogamous, having prolonged pair and family bonds that strongly influence their reproductive and general social behavior, which, in combination with their beauty and elegance, contribute to the overall high degree of worldwide human interest in them. This volume of more than 59,000 words describes the distributions, ecology, social behavior, and breeding biologies of the four species of swans that breed or have historically bred in North America, including the native trumpeter and tundra swans, the introduced mute swan, and the marginally occurring whooper swan. Also included are 5 distribution maps, 15 drawings, 27 photographs by the author, and a reference section of nearly 1,000 literature citations.

This book surveys Wyoming's mammal, bird, reptile, and amphibian faunas. In addition to introducing the state's geography, geology, climate, and major ecosystems, it provides 65 biological profiles of 72 mammal species, 195 profiles of 196 birds, 9 profiles of 12 reptiles, and 6 profiles of 9 amphibians. There are also species lists of Wyoming's 117 mammals, 445 birds, 22 reptiles, and 12 amphibians. Also included are descriptions of nearly 50 national and state properties, including parks, forests, preserves, and other public-access natural areas in Wyoming. The book includes a text of more than 150,000 words, nearly 700 references, a glossary of 115 biological terms, nearly 50 maps and line drawings by the author, and 33 color photographs by Thomas D. Mangelsen.

Over a century ago, tall-grass prairie stretched over the most of what is now Iowa, Illinois, southern Minnesota, northern Missouri, the Dakotas, Nebraska, Kansas and Oklahoma. Today only a few scattered patches remain. The author traces the history of the prairie and examines grassland ecology.

"Description: The tallgrass prairie once stretched from Indiana to Kansas to Minnesota. Most of this land is now growing corn and soybeans. In To Find a Pasqueflower, Greg Hoch shows us that the tallgrass prairie is the most endangered ecosystem on the continent, but it's also an ecosystem that people can play an active role in and help restore. This book is written in the same style and voice as Hoch's three previous books on bird species. He blends history, culture, and science into a unified narrative of the tallgrass prairie, with an emphasis on humans' participation in its development and destruction. Over the last century and a half, people have driven the tallgrass prairie toward extinction. However, for millennia before that, the tallgrass prairie was largely maintained and expanded by people, primarily through their use of fire. Without fire and people, the tallgrass prairie would be forest. Indeed, because the ecosystem is so young, there never was a time when people weren't playing a strong role in managing both the vegetation and wildlife. There is no such thing as a "presettlement" prairie, Hoch reminds us. Tomorrow's prairies, both restorations and native remnants, will depend on the care and nurturing of conservationists and laypeople. The audience for this book is anyone who is interested in prairies, prairie restoration, or the history of science and ecology in the context of the tallgrass prairie. Hoch's is the book you read on winter evenings to get some perspective on and historical/scientific context for plans for the upcoming growing season. It gives the reader background and philosophical principles to think about before they decide on their next land management actions. Between each chapter is a short vignette that gives a more personal account of Hoch's experiences with the prairie and prairie conservation efforts. He reminds us that people and the prairie have always been intertwined, and helps us reimagine the role humans play in the natural world"--

This publication includes 36 refereed research papers and a keynote paper on prairie related topics that include: management, restoration and reconstruction, flora and fauna, invasive species, energy, seed and soil ecology, education and cultural studies.