Synopses & Reviews
Since the 1950s, eminent field biologist George Schaller has roamed through many lands observing wild animals and conducting landmark long-term studies that have deepened our understanding of these creatures. He has reported and reflected on his work in classic, much-acclaimed books, including
The Last Panda and National Book Award winner
The Serengeti Lion, but much of his best writing has been ephemeral, published in magazines, only to drop out of sight. This collection features 19 short pieces brought together in book form to offer a unique overview of his life in the field.
Chapters describe stalking tigers in India and jaguars in Braziland#8217;s Pantanal swamps, studying mountain gorillas in Central Africa and predator-prey relations in the Serengeti, tracking newfound species on the wild border of Vietnam and Laos, searching for snow leopards in the Hindu Kush, and Schallerand#8217;s groundbreaking work with giant pandas in Sichuan. Later accounts broaden the focus from individual creatures to whole ecosystems. and#147;The careless rapture of my early studies has been replaced more and more by efforts to protect animals and their habitats,and#8221; he writes.
New to this book are Schallerand#8217;s introductions for each chapter, which add and update information, and an overall introduction that looks back on his remarkable career.
Synopsis
"Full of fascinating observations and eminently dependable information--terrific!"--Peter Matthiessen
"George Schaller is one of those rather rare human beings--a painstaking and meticulous scientist who has also the spirit of the early naturalist-explorer. He is a brilliant conservationist."--Jane Goodall
"[P]olitics and science are only two of Schaller's realms--the other is the transcendent connection between humans and other animals."--Bill McKibben
"George Schaller is one of the great explorer-naturalists, and he would so rank in whatever era he lived. It is a pleasure to read this account from his own pen of his many adventures and scientific discoveries."--Edward O. Wilson