Nature writer Marianne Taylor guides readers through the development of life on earth, from the first living cells to the astonishing diversity we see in species today. Journeying from the invertebrates, including spiders, crustaceans and insects, to fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals, this fascinating book explores the animal kingdom is all its oddity and splendour. A numbers of feature spreads give a deeper focus on themes such as coral...

Nature author Marianne Taylor's The Animal Mind is a fascinating exploration of animal intelligence and emotion, with thought-provoking essays, surprising insights, and breathtaking images by leading photographers Joel Sartore, Melissa Groo, Peter Delaney, and others. We are only beginning to understand the ways in which the animal mind is as complex as our own. A prairie dog's vocal language is now the most sophisticated ever decoded, but their...

"Birdwatching Magazine's Book of the Month" "A Birdwatcher's Yearbook Best Bird Book of the Year" Marianne Taylor is a freelance writer, editor, illustrator, and photographer. She has authored more than thirty books on natural history, including The Gull Next Door (Princeton) and The Story of Life in 10 1/2 Species. A beautifully illustrated exploration of the ways birds cohabit Featuring dramatic and delightful wild bird colonies and communities,...

Hummingbirds have always held popular appeal, with their visual brilliance, extraordinary flight dexterity, jewel-like color, and remarkably small size. This is the first book to profile all 338 known species, from the Saw-billed Hermit to the Scintillant Hummingbird. Every bird is shown life-size in glorious full-color photographs. Every species profile includes a flight map and key statistics, as well as information about behavior, plumage, and...