Hands on: scientific Manatee: save sensitive species by Peter Lourie

Today, it is without wind, sunny, cold and perfect.

Why surveys Manatee in cold wave? During periods of cold in the South of Florida, manatees gather and refuge in hot water 72 degree of natural sources or in the discharge of hot water of large power plants across both coasts.

Seeing manatees of an aircraft is a remarkable experience, explains John Reynolds. "You're only seven hundred feet above the water, and you can see them increase breathing and interact between them." You see moms and calves beside them, many with the boat scars on the back. »

Can be also exciting that flying low, a wing right down, waterways of Florida to prepare an annual census of manatees beloved of Florida, for the protection of threatened species of the planet. It can also be as sad that find the bones of a manatee to Amazon, raised by a bottle calf to see that it has failed to survive when released in an ogapo, a tributary of the water dark Amazon, as did Brazilian naturalist Fernando Rosas in his work difficult to support the manatees shy River of South America.

Or perhaps the most exciting find biological could occur on land, deep in the forests of the Congo, behind the log-cabin of a more seasoned Manatee of the Hunter River. In the hope of buying Harpoon well-worn Hunter recently died to discourage his son to take his trade, marine field scientist Lucy Keith stumbling on a treasure trove of biological information in the heap of large bones Manatee behind the hunter Houseinvaluable sources of cycle of life and genetic information on the African Manatee little known and rarely seen.

Everything is in working a day of a scientific practice of field, such as that documented in the richly illustrated scientific Manatee (SITF): save vulnerable species (scientists in the field series) (Houghton Mifflin, 2011), later in vast and mentioned scientists in the field series. Author Peter Lourie does not hesitate to take the reader "in the weeds", as he follows scientists of his work on their work daily, glamour and not so glamorous - work that involves not only heal and releasing calves injured or abandoned, but also capture specimens healthy to collect blood samples, collection of the faeces of cloudy water deep in the rainforest, or collection found remains of animals deceased to learn as much as possible on this mammal reclus herbivorous water. Knowledge about the life cycle of normal physiology, reproduction, and threats of existence these animals face is essential to their preservation. As a large (up to 3600 pounds) marine mammals with no means of self defense and a need to eat enormous amounts of plant matter every day, the distant cousin of the elephant and aardvark are only one of the mammals of roughly of water nature scientists from around the world have continued to strengthen the work of defenders of the environment.

Author Lourie describes each of these scientists in their regions of the three main varieties Atlantic of the Manatee and safeguard its text with photos in the sumptuous colours of each step of their work, followed by an appendix with notes of the authoran extensive glossary and index complete to help middle school and the high school of reports.

Some of the intriguing titles in this fascinating series are the extreme scientists: mysteries Nature explore the perilous places (scientists in the field series) (see my review here), mysterious universe: Supernovae, dark energy and black holes (scientists in the field series), Diving of a volcano in deep water (scientists in the field series), and warriors of Science: the battle against invasive species (scientists in the field series).

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The great war: the second World War: fighting for freedom by Peter Chrisp

Second World War was the largest and the most murderous history conflict. Many countries took part and fighting take place around the world.

More than 55 million people were killed, most of the civilians.

If any war never earned the dubious title of "great war", this is the 2nd World War. It was so enormous a human folly and human endeavour which seems an act of hubris to try to encapsulate its history in a book. But young people have to start somewhere and later history remarkable writer Peter Chrisp, Fighting For Freedom (Scholastic, 2010) elementary and middle students offer insight absorbent and wide, reinforced by a multitude of photographs, including a great many iconic images of that period on the front in the war and the home front.

The Chrisp book indeed offers a snapshot of the war from several angles. Its text is crisp, but informal, providing an overview of many aspects of the war without overwhelming the reader with facts, dates and figures, with emphasis on the human aspects of the conflict. From chapters such as "the gathering storm" and "War measures", the author carefully resumes the story in war I Europe with the rise of Hitler and the precipitating events that started the war with the invasions of the Austria and the Poland.

Other chapters, such as "Blitzkrieg," "The battle of Britain", "The Blitz" and "Front inside Britain" reveal the Chrisp British roots. It focuses on the events and the great war epic moments, deserted the campaign in North Africa, l ' Operation Barbarossa, the Enigma machine, J, and the Holocaust especially, leaving many excellently reproduced illustrations of this very photographed war tell the story of the European campaign on the faces of veterans and HomeFront participantschildren hiding in the London tube for women on the line for the production of the aircraft to the soldiers in the sands of the d-day invasion of Normandy.

The book gives unfortunately neglected shorter for the causes and events of the war of the Pacific, although it does not cover the highlights of this campaign chapters, such as "The island of campaign", "assault on Japan." and "bomb". Chrisp adds a substantial contribution to the understanding of the results of the war in its chapters "End of the war" and "nuremberg." The students come away even a quick reading of this book without a certain awareness of the extent of this conflict and the significant changes that he forged, not least were new technologies and international organizations, whose effects continue to play in the events of the world today.

Although only a glossary and index are added, many maps integrated with the text, graphics and of course, those telling photos, ration book food family from the rubble of Nagasaki testify in a manner that will lead further reading early history enthusiasts.

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