If you're going to Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, or Colorado (or live there already), chances are you have an affinity for nature, in which case the National Audubon Society Field Guide to the Rocky Mountain States is a book you'll want to keep close at all times. A durable book meant to be consulted in the field and on the mountain, it starts off with a map of the region, and then launches into an overview of the topography and geology, the habitats and ecology, the weather patterns and cloud formations common to the Rocky Mountain region.

Part Two is the field guide proper, with brilliant photographs and pithily informative descriptions of over 1,000 of the flora and fauna to be found there, covering lichens and conifers, wildflowers and ferns, spiders and insects, fishes, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals. There are vivid pictures of feral horses and mule deer, an elk cow nuzzling her calf and a male elk strutting with his antlers, and there are photos and write-ups for wolverines and mountain lions, moose, caribou, and bison. There are also wonderful pages full of whirligig beetles and margined burying beetles, hairy rove beetles and spotted tiger beetles, not to mention the jagged ambush bug and meadow spittlebug. The flora section is appealing, as well, with delicate western bog laurel and orange honeysuckle close-ups, cliff fendlerbush flowers and Pacific red elderberry, water smartweed and purple western monkshood. There's also an appendix of parks and preserves, and pages full of the constellations you can see at night with no city lights to mar the view. With a century of nature preservation under its belt, Audubon does justice to the field-guide genre. --Stephanie Gold


From Book News, Inc.
An authoritative pocket guide to the living creatures of Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, and Colorado, from the lichen and insects to the birds and trees. Also covers geology, habitats, the night sky, weather, and other features of the natural landscape. 4X8. Book News, Inc.®, Portland, OR


Book Description
Filled with concise descriptions and stunning photographs, the National Audubon Society Field Guide to the Rocky Mountain States belongs in the home of every Rocky Mountain
resident and in the suitcase or backpack of every visitor. This compact volume contains:

An easy-to-use field guide for identifying 1,000 of the state's wildflowers, trees, mushrooms, mosses, fishes, amphibians, reptiles, birds, butterflies, mammals, and much more;

A complete overview of the Rocky Mountain region's natural history, covering geology, wildlife habitats, ecology, fossils, rocks and minerals, clouds and weather patterns, and the night sky;

An extensive sampling of the area's best parks, preserves, mountains, forests, and wildlife sanctuaries, with detailed descriptions and visitor information for 50 sites and notes on dozens of others.

The guide is packed with visual information -- the 1,500 full-color images include more than 1,300 photographs, 11 maps, and 16 night-sky charts, as well as more than 100 drawings explaining everything from geological processes to the basic features of different plants and animals.

For everyone who lives or spends time in Colorado, Idaho, Montana, or Wyoming, there can be no finer guide to the area's natural surroundings than the National Audubon Society Field Guide to the Rocky Mountain States.


From the Inside Flap
Filled with concise descriptions and stunning photographs, the National Audubon Society Field Guide to the Rocky Mountain States belongs in the home of every Rocky Mountain
resident and in the suitcase or backpack of every visitor.  This compact volume contains:

An easy-to-use field guide for identifying 1,000 of the state's wildflowers, trees, mushrooms, mosses, fishes, amphibians, reptiles, birds, butterflies, mammals, and much more;

A complete overview of the Rocky Mountain region's natural history, covering geology, wildlife habitats, ecology, fossils, rocks and minerals, clouds and weather patterns, and the night sky;

An extensive sampling of the area's best parks, preserves, mountains, forests, and wildlife sanctuaries, with detailed descriptions and visitor information for 50 sites and notes on dozens of others.

The guide is packed with visual information -- the 1,500 full-color images include more than 1,300 photographs, 11 maps, and 16 night-sky charts, as well as more than 100 drawings explaining everything from geological processes to the basic features of different plants and animals.  

For everyone who lives or spends time in Colorado, Idaho, Montana, or Wyoming, there can be no finer guide to the area's natural surroundings than the National Audubon Society Field Guide to the Rocky Mountain States.


From the back cover
For every resident of and visitor to the Rocky Mountain states, this uniquely compact yet comprehensive volume is the essential guide to the Rocky Mountain region's natural world. Whether you're at home or on the road, the National Audubon Society Field Guide to the Rocky Mountain States tells you: what you'll see in the heavens on crystalline Rocky Mountain nights; the wildflowers that flourish in different Rocky Mountain habitats; the birds you'll encounter in the mountains, on the plains, and everywhere in between; the region's best natural sites--how to reach them, when to visit, and what you'll see.

Here, too, is complete information on the geology, fossils, wildlife habitats, weather, and ecology of the Rocky Mountain states, as well as the region's trees, mushrooms, mammals, insects, reptiles, fishes, and other life-forms--all beautifully illustrated in 1,500 photographs, drawings, and maps.


About the Author
Peter Alden, principal author of this series, is a birder, naturalist, author, and lecturer. He has led nature tours to more than 100 countries for the Massachusetts Audubon Society, Lindblad Travel, Friends of the Harvard Musum of Natural History, and cruises on all the world's oceans. Author of books on North American, Latin American, and African wildlife, Peter organized an event called Biodiversity Day in his hometown of Concord, Massachusetts.

John Grassy, author of the habitats, conservation and ecology, and parks and preserves section of this guide, is an educator, conservationist, and writer. He lives with his family in Three Forks, Montana.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Filled with concise descriptions and stunning photographs, the National Audubon Society Field Guide to the Rocky Mountain States belongs in the home of every Rocky Mountain
resident and in the suitcase or backpack of every visitor. This compact volume contains:

An easy-to-use field guide for identifying 1,000 of the state's wildflowers, trees, mushrooms, mosses, fishes, amphibians, reptiles, birds, butterflies, mammals, and much more;

A complete overview of the Rocky Mountain region's natural history, covering geology, wildlife habitats, ecology, fossils, rocks and minerals, clouds and weather patterns, and the night sky;

An extensive sampling of the area's best parks, preserves, mountains, forests, and wildlife sanctuaries, with detailed descriptions and visitor information for 50 sites and notes on dozens of others.

The guide is packed with visual information — the 1,500 full-color images include more than 1,300 photographs, 11 maps, and 16 night-sky charts, as well as more than 100 drawings explaining everything from geological processes to the basic features of different plants and animals.

For everyone who lives or spends time in Colorado, Idaho, Montana, or Wyoming, there can be no finer guide to the area's natural surroundings than the National Audubon Society Field Guide to the Rocky Mountain States.

FROM THE CRITICS

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