Hoopoe – A blog by nhbs

First of many blogs on floras – huge info updating exercise underway in advance of NHBS attending the botanical congress in Vienna, July 05, e.g. Flora of Somalia, Flora of Tropical East Africa, Flora of Ecuador…. floras are one of the great achievements of scientists, but often underused, we think!! There’ll be a new page soon on www.nhbs.com listing all the floras we’ve updated

“The warm glow of the corn buttercup and the scarlet dazzle of the prickly poppy, which have illuminated the British countryside since Roman times, could be in danger of fading for ever”- Guardian

The Vascular Plant Red Data List for Great Britain – Species Status No 7 has been widely reviewed in print and broadcast media. It’s nice to wake up and hear BBC Radio 4 talking about a title we distribute!

Read reviews:

• BBC
• Guardian
• Times
• Telegraph
• English Nature

New from Kew Royal Botanic Gardens World Checklist of Palms . This is a unique resource that lists all validly published names of palms, providing the source of their publication and indication of which names are currently accepted and which are synonyms.

Illustrations of Alien Plants of the British Isles is a new BSBI volume on alien plants of the British Isles which fills a long-standing gap. The full page black and white illustrations will be indispensable to naturalists, ecologists and conservationists who need to identify alien plants.

Nature and Culture in the Democratic Republic of Congo didn’t get catalogued by us in 2004 when it was published, it slipped the net and was catalogued just last month. It’s a really thought provoking introduction to the ways that nature and development interact in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Birds and Mammals of Ladakh represents the first ever attempt to describe and illustrate all the bird and mammal species ever recorded in the Ladakh region (India). It offers practical and specific views on how to conserve and enjoy the region’s beauty without destroying it. This is an invaluable companion to anyone with an interest in Ladakh, or in the Himalaya generally.

Birds of Dartmoor has just arrived into stock. Author Roger Smaldon has compiled the first comprehensive history and the most complete status report to date of birds on Dartmoor. Mike Langman has provided the superb line illustrations – This is a must for birdwatchers interested in Devon’s Ornithology!

We now have copies in stock of Bob McMillan’s great book – Skye Birds. Primarily an illustrated site guide it also provides information on status, distribution and conservation issues.

Coastal Fishes of Southern Africa is now in stock and ready to ship. This stunning book features over 400 incredibly detailed paintings of adult and juvenile individuals. There is also an excellent general introduction to fish biology, ecology and taxonomy. A must have for the fish biologist!

The authors, Elaine and Phil Heemstra are based at the South African Institute for Aquatic Biodiversity (SAIAB) in Grahamstown, and they have collaborated on numerous scientific publications. They have co-written the text and all paintings in the book are by Elaine. Phil is a leading international authority on marine fishes and was co-editor (with Margaret Smith) of the comprehensive Smiths’ Sea Fishes.

After many weeks of trying we have managed to source copies of Directory of Important Bird Areas in the Kingdom of Thailand published by BCST. This is an excellent IBA providing details of the 62 IBAs in Thailand, of which 22 are unprotected or only partially protected. A number of IBAs in Thailand are facing threats as they are being badly affected by development. It is hoped that this directory will be used for education, policy making and in implementing action plans for the conservation of birds and biodiversity in Thailand.