The illustrated story of the history and groundbreaking discovery of an important historical site, fully updated on the 30th anniversary of its first publicationMore than 300 years ago, enslaved people of African descent risked their lives to escape from slavery on English plantations in South Carolina. Hearing that Spaniards in Florida promised religious sanctuary, they made their way south to St. Augustine, Florida. The Spanish established the fort and town of Gr...

A journey into the history and cultural traditions of the Calusa people of south FloridaThe Calusa were a powerful native people on the Gulf coast, their influence spanning south Florida and lasting well into the European invasion. The Calusa and Their Legacy tells the story of the Calusa in relation to the unique environment that sustained them with abundance. This fascinating history is enhanced with illustrations created by artists at the Florida Museum...

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLERThe "masterful chronicle" of the discovery of the legendary lost civilization of the Maya and the quest to unlock their secrets.Featuring a history and description of the major Maya sites, including **Chichen Itza, Tulum,**Palenque, Uxmal, Copan, and more. Illustrated with a map and more than 100 images.In 1839, rumors of extraordinary yet baffling ...

Renowned naturalist Kenn Kaufman examines the scientific discoveries of John James Audubon and his artistic and ornithologist peers in this fascinating “blend of history, science, art, biography, and memoir” (Booklist, starred review).Raging ambition. Towering egos. Competition under a veneer of courtesy. Heroic effort combined with plagiarism, theft, exaggeration, and fraud. This was the state of bird study in eastern North America during the early 1800s,...

A sweeping saga of the Spanish history and influence in North America over five centuries, from the acclaimed author of Empire's Crossroads.Because of our shared English language, as well as the celebrated origin tales of the Mayflower and the rebellion of the British colonies, the United States has prized its Anglo heritage above all others. However, as Carrie Gibson explains with great depth and clarity in El Norte, the nation has much ...

Migratory songbirds are disappearing at a frightening rate. By some estimates, we may have already lost almost half the songbirds that filled the skies only 40 years ago. Following the birds on their 10,000-kilometre migratory journey, Bridget Stutchbury looks at the most threatening factors in their extinction, from pesticides, still a major concern decades after Rachel Carson first raised the alarm, to the destruction of vital habitat; from the bright lights and structures in our cities—...

Formed of dramatic volcanic scenery and home to marvellous beasts, it is little wonder that the first name for the Galápagos archipelago was Las Encantadas: the enchanted islands. In this captivating natural history, Henry Nicholls builds up the ecology of these famous islands, from their explosive origins to the arrival of the archipelago's celebrated reptiles and ultimately humans. It's a story of change, as the islands are transformed from lava-strewn wilderness into a vital sc...

"Hiram Bingham and the Machu Picchu saga deserve no less than Cradle of Gold, Christopher Heaney's thorough, engrossing portrait." ― The Wall Street JournalIn 1911, a young Peruvian boy led an American explorer and Yale historian named Hiram Bingham into the ancient Incan citadel of Machu Picchu. Hidden amidst the breathtaking heights of the Andes, this settlement of temples, tombs and palaces was the Incas' greatest achievement. Tall, handsome, a...

Equal parts nature guide, adventure story, and coffee table book!People are captivated by wild animals—by their strength and their size and by the things they do to stay alive. In Wildlife Spectacles zoologist Vladimir Dinets dives deep into this wonder, allowing curious readers to discover just how spectacular wild animals can be. In the rich, fully illustrated pages you’ll discover the migration of gray whales along the Pacific coast, the dancing alligat...

A visually stunning, comprehensive resource on North America's birds of prey, from the award-winning birder and author of Gulls Simplified.Always a popular group of birds, raptors symbolize freedom and fierceness, and in Pete Dunne's definitive guide, these traits are portrayed in hundreds of stunning color photographs showing raptors up close, in flight, and in action—fighting, hunting, and nesting.These gorgeous photographs enhance the comprehensi...

This book explores the links among ecology, disease, and international politics in the context of the Greater Caribbean - the landscapes lying between Surinam and the Chesapeake - in the seventeenth through early twentieth centuries. Ecological changes made these landscapes especially suitable for the vector mosquitoes of yellow fever and malaria, and these diseases wrought systematic havoc among armies and would-be settlers. Because yellow fever confers immunity on survivors of the diseas...

**A Science Friday Best Science Book of the YearA Kirkus Reviews Best Nonfiction Book of the YearA Library Journal Best Science and Technology Book of the YearA Tampa Bay Times Best Book of the YearA stunning history of seashells and the animals that make them that "will have you marveling at nature…Barnett’s account remarkably spirals out, appropriately, to become a much larger story about the sea, about global history and a...