New books in stock 

The best of the new arrivals:

Snails on Rocky Sea Shores

John Crothers

Number 30 in the Naturalists’ Handbooks series. The British and Irish coastlines are covered in this key to the common species. Habitats and ecology are considered along with accessible techniques useful to anyone interested in the study of these fascinating invertebrates. Clearly illustrated throughout with photographs, maps and diagrams.

Extinct Birds

Julian P. Hume and Michael Walters

This Poyser monograph detailing the avian extinctions of the last 700 years is a vital resource for the serious ornithologist as well as the interested amateur. The historical range is fascinating; in the Plovers section, for instance, the Madagascar Lapwing – which disappeared around the 14th century due to habitat aridification, and is known only from subfossil records – rubs shoulders with the Javan Lapwing, which is assumed extinct having not been recorded since 1940 – although an unconfirmed report is given from 2002. Thorough and informative.

RSPB Birds: Their Hidden World

Peter Holden

Handy compact guide to the intricacies of avian behaviour, focusing on the usual categorisations of territory, breeding, songs, migration, feeding etc. but incorporating the lesser-known facts and interesting discoveries made through recent scientific investigations. Peter Holden worked for the RSPB for over 40 years and is the author of 9 books, including the RSPB Handbook of British Birds – a bestseller now in its third edition, and the acclaimed RSPB Handbook of Garden Wildlife.

77 Years: The History and Evolution of the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums 1935-2012

Laura Penn, Markus Gusset and Gerald Dick

Of interest to anyone associated or involved with zoos and aquariums, or the history of wildlife conservation in general. Tells the story of WAZA, and the key individuals and events involved since its establishment in 1935, through archival material that goes back to the 1930s, giving insight into the various historical contingencies and political and industrial factors that have affected the development of the organisation.

Wildlife Equipment Highlights 

Our recommendations to help you get kitted out for conservation field work, wildlife watching, travel and photography, are selected from our range of over 2,000 equipment items.

NHBS are now selling high quality affordable spotting scopes. The first addition to our new range is the Hawke Nature spotting scope with fully multi-coated optics providing crisp, bright images and available with either 20-60x or 24-72x magnification. The Nature family of spotting scopes is designed to deliver years of functional use for the budget-minded consumer. Both Nature spotting scopes are waterproof and come as a complete kit with a hard storage case, soft carry pouch and fully adjustable aluminium tripod.

The Gowlland range of Hand Lenses are another great new addition to our range. With a standard lens and plastic body these affordable lenses are perfect for school groups.

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New books in stock this week

The best of the new arrivals from the last seven days:

Avian Architecture: How Birds Design, Engineer and Build

Peter Goodfellow

A beautifully designed and fascinating book which documents in clear detail many examples of bird nesting styles, with full-colour illustrations and text describing technical details about construction means and methods, and further detail about such things as the purposes of adornment, and defence structures built into nests. Case studies illustrate the nest-building process, and the chapters are ordered around different nest types, eg Aquatic, Domed, Hanging etc.

The Ecology of Snow and Ice Environments

Johanna Laybourn-Parry, Martyn Tranter and Andrew J Hodson

New volume summarizing the state of research into these environments, looking at their function as indicators of climate change, their biological and ecological importance, and the service provided by glacial systems as an environmental analogue for astrobiologists studying eg. the evidence of life on Mars or the moons of Jupiter. As such the material is presented in terms accessible to the environmental scientist getting to grips with the biology, and vice versa.

Two reprints of essential conservation handbooks:

Herpetofauna Workers Manual

Edited by Tony Gent and Steve Gibson

Bird Monitoring Methods: A Manual of Techniques for Key UK Species

Gillian Gilbert, David W Gibbons and Julianne Evans

Wildlife Equipment Highlights 

Our weekly suggestions to help you get kitted out for conservation field work, wildlife watching, travel and photography, selected from our range of over 2,000 equipment items.

eTrex 10

Garmin’s long awaited replacement for the eTrex H, the eTrex 10 retains the core functionality, rugged construction, affordability and long battery life that made eTrex H the most dependable GPS device available. The perfect tool for most basic GIS projects, from mapping nature reserves to geocaching.

Browse our range of landscape survey equipment 

Paramo Unisex Torres Jacket

Ethically produced, with a lifetime warranty, and designed by outdoors people, the Paramo Torres Jacket provides fast block insulation and water repellency in extreme or prolonged cold and wet. Packs down small when not needed.

Browse our range of Paramo clothing

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Popularity: 4% [?]

New books in stock this week

Looking at the very best of the new arrivals from the last seven days:

Bird Sense: What it’s Like to be a Bird

Tim Birkhead

The author of The Wisdom of Birds returns with this thought-provoking exploration of the subjective sense experience of birds. The premise is that there is much more to being inside a bird’s head than at first we may assume. The chapters journey through the different senses, revealing the fascinating insights that surround each through generous reference to the history of avian scientific investigation. Birkhead shows by implication that the sensory life of birds has a rich diversity and specificity which may make many readers revisit the question of what it’s like to be a bird.

Atlas of Highland Land Mammals

Edited by Ro Scott

The second publication that we have stocked from the Highland Biological Recording Group, the previous being Highland Bumblebees. The area in question corresponds to the administrative area covered by the Highland Council and accounts for one third of the land mass of Scotland. Drawing upon data from previous surveys by HBRC of specific species, plus the results of mammal recording over the last 12 years from 1999 to 2010, this is a summary of the appearance, behaviour and location, ecology and conservation status and history/management history  of 37 species. Illustrated with clear distribution maps and four colour plates.

Survival of the Beautiful

David Rothenberg

Explores the evolutionary nature of beauty, and beauty in nature, taking on the challenge that led to Darwin’s pronouncement that “The peacock’s tail makes me sick!” Rothenberg’s investigations roam through a world of natural and artistic phenomena, from Bowerbirds and their elaborate nest-building to attract a mate, to abstract art and its demolition of the traditional pursuit and exaltation of beauty in art – and his observations about the interplay of beauty, art and culture interrogate the capacity of Darwin’s concept of sexual selection to fully explain the sense of the aesthetic and its appearance in the evolutionary history of animals and humans. Rothenberg is currently collaborating with researchers from CUNY, NYU, and the Netherlands Institute of Ecology on the quantification of the musicality of nightingale songs.

Ecological and Environmental Physiology of Insects

Jon F Harrison, Arthur H Woods and Stephen P Roberts

Volume 3 in the Ecological and Environmental Physiology Series from Oxford University Press.
From the publisher’s description:
“Ecological and Environmental Physiology of Insects presents a current and comprehensive overview of how the key physiological traits of insects respond to environmental variation. It forges conceptual links from molecular biology through organismal function to population and community ecology. As with other books in the Series, the emphasis is on the unique physiological characteristics of the insects, but with applications to questions of broad relevance in physiological ecology. As an aid to new researchers on insects, it also includes introductory chapters on the basics and techniques of insect physiology ecology.”

The Sounding of the Whale

D. Graham Burnett

A majestic and sweeping history of the development of the relationship between science and the whale in the twentieth century, drawing in the implications and side-stories from the whaling trade, politics, environmental activism and cultural perceptions. The author is professor of history and history of science at Princeton University, joint editor of Cabinet magazine, and author of four books, including Trying Leviathan, which won the New York City Book Award in 2007.

Wildlife Equipment Highlights 

Our weekly suggestions to help you get kitted out for conservation field work, wildlife watching, travel and photography, selected from our range of over 2,000 equipment items.

Elekon Bat Scanner Bat Detector

The most advanced heterodyne-only detector on the market. Just turn on the device and listen. The ultrasonic sounds are automatically transformed into the audible range without the need for any adjustments, whilst the large LCD screen provides an immediate display of the peak frequency.

Browse our range of bat detection equipment

Cluson CB2 Clubman Deluxe Li-Ion 9.2Ah High-Power Lamp/Torch

All the great features of the CB2 combined with the reduced size and weight but increased battery life of a Lithium Ion battery. The 12V 9.2Ah version can now produce the high beam for 2.25 hours continuously on a single charge whilst the 12V 18.4Ah version will run for 4 hours. The total weight of the CB2 has also been reduced considerably with the 12V 9.2Ah version now at 1.65kg and the 12V 18.4Ah version at 2.2kg whilst the size of the units has been reduced by approximately 30%.

Browse our range of lamps and torches

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New books in stock this week

Looking at the very best of the new arrivals from the last seven days:

Fern Fever: The Story of Pteridomania

Sarah Whittingham

This wonderful book tells the story of the nineteenth century obsession with ferns, the infinitely various manifestations of which – in the ferneries, the pottery, sculpture and paintings, albums and frontispieces and other curiosities of the day – are amply illustrated throughout.

An unmissable addition to the literature on botanical history.

The Tiger: A True Story of Vengeance and Survival 

John Vaillant

Astonishing true story about a tracker and leader of a tiger conservation unit, Yuri Trush, who discovers that the tiger which has been creating terror in a remote Russian village is attacking not at random but seemingly by design. Trush must stop the tiger from pursuing its ‘vendetta’ before anyone else comes to harm.

The narrative of his pursuit takes the reader deep into the Siberian winter, where animals and humans struggle to survive – and through this Vaillant weaves fascinating threads of the history of the natives and settlers, conservationists and poachers who have been at odds over the status of the Siberian tiger.

Butterflies of Europe and the Mediterranean Area

Vadim V Tshikolovets

A classic example of a work born of the passion and dedicated research of a true enthusiast, this volume, which covers 700 species, is the result of contributions from about 100 lepidopterists, combined with the rich knowledge and field experience of the author – known for his book series on the butterflies of Palearctic Asia.

The extensive geographical range should be of interest to butterfly fanatics and entomologists who may wish for a single volume as they travel Europe, North Africa, Asia Minor and the Near East in search of their subjects. The detailed species descriptions are accompanied by full colour photographs of butterflies in situ, collection specimens, and butterfly habitats.

A More Perfect Heaven: How Copernicus Revolutionised the Cosmos

Dava Sobel

Sobel is famous for her international bestseller, Longitude, which was integral to the massive popularisation of the history of science over the last two decades. Her new book tells the story of the historical moment in which humanity found that it was no longer at the centre of the cosmos. In the early 1,500s Copernicus was developing his theory that placed the Sun at the centre of the universe, and the narrative explores the fateful collaboration between Copernicus and a young German mathematician, Georg Joachim Rheticus, which resulted in the publication of the infamous book De revolutionibus orbium coelestium (On the Revolutions of the Celestial Spheres).

Wildlife Equipment Highlights 

Our weekly suggestions to help you get kitted out for conservation field work, wildlife watching, travel and photography, selected from our range of over 2,000 equipment items.

Stealth Gear Two Man Chair Hide

Spacious enough for two photographers with tripods to work comfortably together, this is one of our most popular chair hides. The Camo-Tree camouflage pattern is designed for the UK countryside and is effective all year round.

Browse our range of hides and camouflage

BirdMIKE

With spring fast approaching, it’s time to start learning or refreshing your bird call identification skills before the summer migrants start to arrive. The BirdMIKE  pack contains all you need to develop a sound knowledge of common British birdsong, without the use of a computer.

Browse our range of sound recording equipment

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Nick Baker, NHBS Ambassador, has been trying out the Bushnell XLT Trophy Cam Trail Camera. Here are his initial impressions:

These Bushnell trail cameras are about as good as you can get for the money, and using them is rather addictive too!

The XLT (right)  was the model I tested – the camera comes as an all-in-one small weatherproof box, which is both lightweight and easy to carry around and position. I’ve used mine for professional survey work such as attempting to identify bird nest predators as part of an RSPB Ring Ouzel survey, identifying the occupancy of Badger setts as well as simply leaving it up in the garden to find out who has been defecating on my lawn and messing up my flower beds (in the process identifying which of my neighbours cats use my garden – all six, it turns out!).

The camera shoots both still pictures (eg. left) and moving images(eg. below) and has a screen which allows reviewing of the images in the unit. All the image data is stored on an SD card and the unit is powered by 4-8 AA batteries.

Sensitivity and trigger delay are the only issues: making the camera less sensitive stops it being triggered by small movements – moths, mice, wind-blown vegetation etc. – but if the camera is triggered by an animal walking past quite close, then the one second delay means that by the time the trigger kicks in you might just get the tail end of the moment! This is easily overcome if you are setting it along paths or trails by making sure the camera looks down the likely pathway rather than across it.

All in all this is a fantastic good value entry-level trail camera – if you want to increase the picture quality and eliminate the ‘glow’ of the LEDs (some animals seem to be aware of the red glow produced by the 32 red LEDs) at night then the HD colour version is worth considering.

Roe Buck captured on a Bushnell XLT Trophy Cam Trail Camera by Nick Baker, 2011

Click here to view other Nick’s other Bushnell videos on the NHBS Vimeo channel

Save £54 on the Bushnell XLT Trophy Cam until 31/12/11  

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Popularity: 17% [?]

Beneficial Insect Box - overwintering for ladybirds, lacewings etc.

As the days grow shorter and cooler, many animals are beginning to look for a safe place to spend the winter.

The best way to cater for most hibernating animals is simply not to tidy your garden too much – a pile of leaves at the back of a flower bed provides a great place for many insects as well as some larger animals (including hedgehogs) to bed down for the winter. However, if you would like to go a step further and provide the animals in your garden with tailor-made winter homes then NHBS can help. For insects, including many important pollinators, predators of garden pests, and species that are important food items for bats, frogs, and many small mammals, NHBS offers a range of nesting and overwintering boxes.

Hedgehog Hibernation Box

For popular garden visitors like hedgehogs, and amphibians such as frogs and toads please visit our amphibian and mammal nest box pages.

Bat populations have fallen dramatically in recent decades and one reason for this is the loss of suitable hibernation sites (or hibernacula). NHBS offers a wide range of tailor-made bat hibernation boxes including wooden boxes such as the Double Chamber Bat Box - and the new Triple Chamber Bat Box which we introduced last week here - as well as more durable woodcrete colony hibernation boxes such as the Schwegler 1FW.

Small Bird Nest Box

Finally, spare a thought for those birds that do not migrate south to warmer areas. Although most of us only consider bird boxes as being useful during the summer in fact they are frequently used by roosting birds during the long cold winter nights. Putting bird boxes up in the autumn gives birds plenty of time to find them and increases the chances that your box will be used next spring.

Read our guide to choosing the right nest box for birds

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Popularity: 14% [?]

Introducing the Triple Chamber Bat Box

NHBS’s new Triple Chamber Bat Box is available for the first time this autumn. The new bat box has three large chambers providing its inhabitants with a huge living area (compared with most other wooden bat boxes). Consequently, they are particularly well-suited to large colonies, including maternity colonies. Most crevice-dwelling bat species are likely to be attracted including Pipistrelles, Brown long-eared bats, and Daubentons. Species which may sometimes use these boxes include other Myotis species and Noctules.

The boxes are very deep, providing the bats with a stable draught-free environment and plenty of space for individuals to cluster together or disperse, and for the sexes to mingle or separate. Triple chamber boxes have proved to be a success in the U.S. where it is thought that the extra space provided gives bats the room to interact more normally. The boxes open at the top and are 60 cm high with a small aperture at the base of the box for bats to enter and exit. They are narrow (14 cm) and can easily be hung on both trees and buildings. The Triple Chamber Bat Box is constructed from European Redwood harvested from a sustainably managed forest.

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As recommended for use in Phase 1 Habitat Surveys, Berol Verithin coloured pencils are essential field kit for those carrying out habitat assessments.  NHBS now offer the complete range of Berol Verithin pencils needed to carry out Phase 1 habitat surveys. So whether you’re after our unique Phase 1 Habitat Survey Set of all the colours (see list below), or need to top up a particular individual colour - either singly or in packs of 12 – we’ve got you covered!  Berol Verithin pencils have a special formulation which gives sensitive, controlled colour to the finest of detail.  Their hardwearing nature means they can be sharpened to a needle point, allowing you to accurately shade objects right up to the border.

NHBS Phase 1 Habitat Survey Essentials Kit

We’re also offering a special Phase 1 Habitat Survey Essentials Kit for those new to surveying. The kit features the complete collection of Berol Verithin pencils, the Phase 1 Habitat Survey Handbook and an A4 Weather Writer (choose between Portrait and Landscape).  This kit will provide you with the tools to get out surveying whatever the weather!

List of pencil colours required for Phase 1 Habitat Surveys:

* Black (VT 01)
* Indigo Blue (VT 05)
* Sky Blue (VT 08)
* Peach (the closest equivalent to Flesh [VT 25] which has been discontinued)
* Green (VT 31)
* True Green (VT 32)
* Carmine Red (the closest equivalent to Magenta [VT 45] which has been discontinued)
* Orange (VT 46)
* Pink (VT 49)
* Purple (VT 51)
* Scarlet Red (VT 55)
* Terracotta (VT 66)
* Yellow Ochre (VT 89)
* Canary Yellow (VT 80)

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“I think this hide is great value for money.”

“If, like me, you’ve spent time trying to conceal yourself from your wildlife subjects, then doubtless you will have found yourself wrestling with scrim, and swearing and cursing as it gets caught on tripods, zippers and Velcro. The other extreme – and until now the only solution – would be to buy a ‘blind’ – a wildlife hide with many of the complexities associated with putting up a tent – a puzzle of poles and guy ropes. As well as often confounding the wildlife watcher/photographer, the whole set-up was both expensive and heavy.

I’ve been aware of these Stealth Gear hides for a year or so now and judging by the high demand, they seem to have caught on – and for good reasons.

It’s a robust camping chair design with a fan of hoops that unfurl from behind and over the seat. This in turn drags with it the polyester fabric of the hide itself. There is a little mesh pocket on one of the arms for your beer, which also can function as a lens holder – pity it doesn’t have two of them! The whole caboodle comes in a Camo-Tree design (photo-realistic leaves and bark, and woodland scenes) which in my experience works, pretty much anywhere, to break up the outline of the unit – and, almost as importantly, hides the contraption and the watcher from the unwanted attentions of his own species!

I found it best to sit in the chair with my gear in front of me and simply flip the hide over my head. Once inside it can be a little fiddly, and your personal organisation is tested a little, but so it is in any blind. If you have big elbows, lots of gear, a mate or intend to be waiting a long while, consider the two-seat option, otherwise you might find it a little too cosy for comfort. But the one-man works very well for me.

There are five apertures through which you can peer or shove a telephoto lens, all of which can be opened or closed easily with Velcro attachments, either opening them fully or leaving a printed mesh panel in place which enables the hide user to see out, while nothing can see in. The five windows are adequate enough, but you can’t see behind – which would on occasion be useful. That said, it would be a bit challenging to turn around even if there were a rear-facing window, especially with a hide full of gear. If full, all-round vision is what you require then this is available in the two-seat version.

The hide comes with a bag of ground pegs, also in a Camo-Tree design. Come on guys, you put the bag down in the long grass because you are in a rush to set up, and of course the wind starts to blow and where are your pegs to secure the thing to the ground as it fills up like a balloon and its skirts start to ruffle uncontrollably in the breeze? In a camouflage bag! Which is where? Somewhere in the long grass, doing its best to be not to be seen… I’ve attached a piece of orange baler twine now I’ve recovered it, so hopefully this won’t happen again.

Slight niggles: stitching holes let through pinpricks of daylight, and water does come spattering through in a torrential downpour. Leaving the hide is difficult – keeping your set-up and not totally blowing your cover requires agility and contortional abilities that are beyond most naturalists over 40! But having said that, all these problems can be applied to all but the most expensive hides and blinds I’ve used, so on balance I think this hide is great value for money.

(Note: if you have children and are fed up with the gaudy primary coloured plastic wendy house that jars with your aesthetic sensibilities then there is a hidden bonus to this hide – 4 year olds love them! And being made of camouflage material, you can sit it in the corner near the shrubbery and barely notice it’s there. It kept my daughter occupied for hours!)”

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Popularity: 26% [?]

As usual, the NHBS ornithology list has expanded over the last year to incorporate many fantastic new books for birdwatchers, conservation workers, and ecologists. We hope you enjoy browsing these, alongside featured classics and bestsellers. The Editor’s Choice selections pick out the very best recent and forthcoming titles in each main subject area.

Our wildlife equipment range is always growing – now over 2000 items – and you will find all the best bird-related gear on the Nest Boxes and Wildlife Kit pages of the catalogue.

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Popularity: 6% [?]