Our world is far richer than previously conceived, yet so ravaged by human activity that half its species could be gone by the end of the present century. These two contrasting themes--unexpected magnificence and underestimated peril--have originated during the past two decades of research. In this timely and important new book, one of our greatest living scientists describes exactly what treasures of the natural world we are about to lose forever and what we can do right now to save them. Destruction of natural habitats, the rampant spread of invasive species, pollution, uncontrolled population growth and overharvesting are the main threats to our natural world. Wilson explains how each of these elements works to undo the web of life that supports us, and why it is in our best interests to stop it. THE FUTURE OF LIFE is a magisterial accomplishment - both a moving description of the world's astonishing animals and plants and a guidebook for the protection of all its species, including our own.

The sixth "mass extinction event" in the history of planet Earth is currently under way, with over two hundred species dying off every day. The cause of this seismic event is also the source of the single biggest threat to human life: our own inventions.But for all our talk about sea levels and biotechnology, do we really know what our future will actually look like? Will our immune systems be attacked by so-called super bugs, always evolving, and more easily spread than ever? Will the disappearance of numerous species cripple the biosphere? And if it does, what happens then? In this provocative, gripping book, Scientific American editor Fred Guterl explores these and other looming scenarios in vivid detail—the way they might really happen—and then proffers the means to avoid them.We find ourselves in a trap: Technology got us into this mess, and it’s also the only thing that can help us survive it. Guterl’s riveting book is a grand and necessary thought experiment, not merely a scary story, but a fresh perspective on the world we’re remaking, and a route to safe harbor.

"Very funny and moving...The glimpses of rare fauna seem to have enlarged [Adams'] thinking, enlivened his world; and so might the animals do for us all, if we were to help them live."THE WASHINGTON POST BOOK WORLDJoin bestselling author Douglas Adams and zooligist Mark Carwardine as they take off around the world in search of exotic, endangered creatures. Hilarious and poignant--as only Douglas Adams can be--LAST CHANCE TO SEE is an entertaining and arresting odyssey through the Earth's magnificent wildlife galaxy.

Blending elements of science, historical narrative, and travel, the award-winning author of Natural Acts takes a close-up look at island biogeography, the science of the geographic distribution of life on islands, and its significance in terms of evolution and extinction. 50,000 first printing. Tour.

When a few of these photographs first appeared in the National Geographic magazine January 2009 issue, they were hailed as an arresting reminder of the hundreds of species teetering on the brink of final extinction—more than 1,200 animals and plants in all. Now, in Rare, Joel Sartore and National Geographic present 80 iconic images, representing a lifelong commitment to the natural world and a three-year investigation into the Endangered Species Act and the creatures it exists to protect.This book will give readers not only a broader understanding of the history and purpose of the Endangered Species Act, but also an intimate look at the very species it seeks to preserve. With stunning up-close portraits on every page, this important volume evokes sympathetic wonder at the vast and amazing array of plants and animals still in need of protection.Itself a creation of particular beauty, Rare offers eloquent proof that a picture really is worth a thousand words as it shows us, one after another, scores of uniquely remarkable and seriously threatened life-forms. It is a compelling story and a many-faceted, brilliant jewel of a book.

When Lawrence Anthony learned that the northern white rhino, living in the war-ravaged Congo, was on the very brink of extinction, he knew he had to act. If the world lost the sub-species, it would be the largest land mammal since the woolly mammoth to go extinct. In The Last Rhinos, Anthony recounts his attempts to save these remarkable animals.The demand for rhino horns in the Far East has turned poaching into a dangerous black market that threatens the lives of not just these rare beasts, but also the rangers who protect them. The northern white rhino’s last refuge was in an area controlled by the infamous Lord’s Resistance Army, one of the most vicious rebel groups in the world. In the face of unmoving government bureaucracy, Anthony made a perilous journey deep into the jungle to try to find and convince them to help save the rhino. An inspiring story of conservation in the face of brutal war and bureaucratic quagmires, The Last Rhinos will move animal lovers everywhere. 

Defiant and opionated, Rick Bass has written an inspired essay advocating wolf reintroduction and recolonization, in the context of one, small pack's fate. An environmental issue for all, philosophical for some and yet moral for Bass, the wolf and its return have polarized the whole of the West--igniting the passions of both cattle ranchers and environmentalists, wildlife biologists and hunters. The result of years of personal study and scores of interviews with people both for and against the wolf's return to the Northern Rockies, THE NINEMILE WOLVES is not so much a scientific study as one man's' vigorous, emotional inquiry into the proper relationship between man and nature.SELECTED BY THE QUALITY PAPERBACK BOOK CLUB

This book offers a guide to some of the rarest birds in existence, with maps that show where to find them. Focusing on fifty captivating stories of the very rare, it describes remarkable discoveries of species not seen for centuries and brought back from the brink of extinction, successes like the Seychelles Magpie-Robin and the California Condor. The book is organized around key groups of species, with each species the subject of its own mini-chapter; we learn about the five most amazing tales of island endemics, the five most bizarre cases of a bird's becoming threatened, and other astonishing tales of bird life. Atlas of Rare Birds is an accessible, readable, and visually appealing take on the serious subject of threatened birds and possible extinctions--a timely topic because of increasing concerns about climate change and habitat destruction. The atlas format--featuring 200 color photographs and 61 color maps--shows the global nature of the problem and brings together the many strands of the concerted bird conservation effort taking place on every continent. Atlas of Rare Birds is published in association with BirdLife International, the world's largest global alliance of bird conservation organizations.