Mrs Moreaus Warbler

Author : Stephen Moss
Publisher : Faber & Faber
ISBN 13 : 178335092X
Total Pages : 256 pages
Book Rating : 4.26/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Mrs Moreau's Warbler written by Stephen Moss and published by Faber & Faber. This book was released on 2018-05-01 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Swallow and starling, puffin and peregrine, blue tit and blackcap. We use these names so often that few of us ever pause to wonder about their origins. What do they mean? Where did they come from? And who created them? The words we use to name birds are some of the most lyrical and evocative in the English language. They also tell incredible stories: of epic expeditions, fierce battles between rival ornithologists, momentous historical events and touching romantic gestures. Through fascinating encounters with birds, and the rich cast of characters who came up with their names, in Mrs Moreau's Warbler Stephen Moss takes us on a remarkable journey through time. From when humans and birds first shared the earth to our fraught present-day coexistence, Moss shows how these names reveal as much about ourselves and our relationship with the natural world as about the creatures they describe.

Author : Stephen Moss
Publisher : Random House
ISBN 13 : 1473577365
Total Pages : 208 pages
Book Rating : 4.67/5 ( download)

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Download or read book The Swallow written by Stephen Moss and published by Random House. This book was released on 2020-10-29 with total page 208 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: From the bestselling author of The Robin, The Wren and The Twelve Birds of Christmas. With around 700,000 breeding pairs, the swallow is one of the most familiar birds in Britain. Though we consider the swallow to be 'our' bird, we also share this beloved creature with millions of others across the globe. Whilst we see it on a daily basis for half the year, the swallow then flies south to Africa, living on only in our memory in the long, dark winter. In The Swallow Stephen Moss documents a year of observing the swallow close to home and in the field to shed light on the secret life of this extraordinary bird. We trace the swallow's life cycle and journey, including the epic 12,000-mile round trip it takes every year, to enable it to enjoy a life of almost eternal sunshine, and the key part the swallow plays in our traditional and popular culture. With beautiful illustrations throughout, this captivating year-in-the-life biography reveals the hidden secrets of this charismatic and beautiful bird. PRAISE FOR STEPHEN MOSS: 'A superb naturalist and writer' Chris Packham 'Inspired, friendly and blessed with apparently limitless knowledge' Peter Marren 'Moss has carved out an enviable niche as a chronicler of the natural world' Daily Mail

Author : Stephen Moss
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN 13 : 1472932366
Total Pages : 241 pages
Book Rating : 4.65/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Do Birds Have Knees? written by Stephen Moss and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2016-05-19 with total page 241 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This RSPB-endorsed book answers all those burning questions about birds that beginners and experts alike may ask themselves as they go about their birding. How do ducks keep their feet from freezing in winter? Why don't swallows stay in Africa? Are birds really dinosaurs, or were dinosaurs really birds? And do birds have knees? Taking a 'questions and answers' approach, each specific question leads to an answer which expands the theme under discussion, so that all aspects of bird life and the hobby of birding are covered. The scientifically rigorous answers together form an impressive and fascinating body of bird-related information. This highly readable book will intrigue anyone with an interest in birds.

Author : Stephen Moss
Publisher : Random House
ISBN 13 : 1473569834
Total Pages : 224 pages
Book Rating : 4.36/5 ( download)

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Download or read book The Twelve Birds of Christmas written by Stephen Moss and published by Random House. This book was released on 2019-10-31 with total page 224 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Naturalist Stephen Moss digs beneath the surface of some of our most popular Christmas carols in an ornithological celebration of the Festive Season. Using the structure of the carol as a jumping off point, he explores the place of twelve fascinating British birds in our history, culture and landscape. Some of the birds are obvious, there's the swan and of course the partridge. Other chapters are loose interpretations of a verse: for drummers drumming he delves into the woodpecker's distinctive drumming tap. Woodpeckers, he explains, have special padded skulls to mitigate against using its head like hammer drills. They carefully select dead trees for the most hollow, sonorous sound. With brilliant anecdotes and insights, Stephen Moss weaves history, culture, bird behaviour and folklore into a compelling narrative for each species, tracing its fortunes over the past two centuries. 'A superb naturalist and writer' Chris Packham 'Moss has carved out an enviable niche as a chronicler of the natural world' Daily Mail

Author : Elizabeth Knowles
Publisher : OUP Oxford
ISBN 13 : 0191650560
Total Pages : 208 pages
Book Rating : 4.67/5 ( download)

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Download or read book How to Read a Word written by Elizabeth Knowles and published by OUP Oxford. This book was released on 2010-10-28 with total page 208 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Have you ever wondered how you can find out more about a word: Where did it come from? How has its meaning altered? How can it be pronounced? What is its relationship to other words? Language is not fixed, but is an evolutionary process: words develop and change, in meaning, association, and pronunciation, as well as in many other ways. Exploring the routes taken by the words we choose to investigate leads us on fascinating journeys. How to Read a Word, written by the noted lexicographer Elizabeth Knowles, shows us how we might delve into the origins, associations, and evolution of words, and is primarily concerned with the following two points: what questions can be asked about a word? And how can they be answered? Utilising the unrivalled resources and the language-monitoring programs of the Oxford English Dictionary, the book leads you through the various stages of investigation into the myriad aspects of individual words, from etymology to date of first use and regional distribution, and from spelling and pronunciation to shifts in meaning. Supported by many examples of investigation into specific words, and featuring a full index, a wide selection of useful online resources, and reams of useful tips for avoiding common pitfalls, it is both a thought-provoking and practical handbook, providing readers with the essential tools to confidently interrogate the words by which they are surrounded. How to Read a Word is the perfect gift for anyone who is fascinated by the development and intricacies of the English language.

Author : Bill Oddie
Publisher : Random House
ISBN 13 : 1849903085
Total Pages : 226 pages
Book Rating : 4.80/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Birding with Bill Oddie written by Bill Oddie and published by Random House. This book was released on 2011 with total page 226 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "There is a great deal more to birding than simply identifying species and ticking them off a list... The places, the experiences, the feelings, the fun, even the frustrations. Those are the joys."In this enjoyable and accessible practical guide, self-confessed birdwatching fanatic Bill Oddie teams up with experienced nature broadcaster and author Stephen Moss to impart a lifetime of knowledge and handy tips. Guiding you through your first steps into the world of birding with useful information on equipment, techniques and important insider hints, Bill's warm and friendly advice will help you on your very first birding trip, and his priceless knowledge of what to look out for will aid you as you develop to track the rarest birds and most treasured spectacles.Peppered with humorous anecdotes and musings, and illustrated throughout with useful colour photographs and Bill's own sketches and diagrams, Birding with Bill Oddie is the essential birding field guide, clearing the way for you to fully enjoy this most thrilling and fulfilling of pastimes.

Author : Fiona Sampson
Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9781908213518
Total Pages : 0 pages
Book Rating : 4.15/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Limestone Country written by Fiona Sampson and published by . This book was released on 2017 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A book about farming, wildlife, culture and the personal experience of living in limestone country.

Author : Stephen Moss
Publisher : Random House
ISBN 13 : 1473560616
Total Pages : 208 pages
Book Rating : 4.11/5 ( download)

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Download or read book The Wren written by Stephen Moss and published by Random House. This book was released on 2018-10-25 with total page 208 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: 'This fascinating biography . . . A perfect Christmas present for any birder' Birdwatching From the BESTSELLING AUTHOR of The Robin: A Biography, STEPHEN MOSS: The wren is a paradox of a bird. They are Britain's most common bird, with 8.5 million breeding pairs and have by far the loudest song in proportion to their size. They also thrive up and down Britain and Ireland: from the smallest city garden to remote offshore islands, blustery moors to chilly mountains.Yet many people are not sure if they have ever seen a wren. Perhaps because the wren is so tiny, weighing just as much as two A4 sheets of paper, and so busy, always on the move, more mouse than bird. However if we cast our eyes back to recent history wrens were a mainstay of literary, cultural and popular history. The wren was on postage stamps and the farthing, it featured in nursery rhymes and greetings cards, poems and rural 'wren hunts', still a recent memory in Ireland particularly. With beautiful illustrations throughout, this captivating year-in-the-life biography reveals the hidden secrets of this fascinating bird that lives right on our doorstep.

Author : Stephen Moss
Publisher : Random House
ISBN 13 : 1473546109
Total Pages : 208 pages
Book Rating : 4.03/5 ( download)

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Download or read book The Robin written by Stephen Moss and published by Random House. This book was released on 2017-11-02 with total page 208 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Acclaimed naturalist and birdwatcher Stephen Moss brings us this year's perfect Christmas gift: a year in the life of Britain's favourite bird - the robin. In The Robin Moss records a year of observing the robin both close to home and in the field to shed light on the hidden life of this apparently familiar bird. We follow its lifecycle from the time it enters the world as an egg, through its time as a nestling and juvenile, to the adult bird; via courtship, song, breeding, feeding, migration - and ultimately, death. At the same time, we trace the robin's relationship with us: how did this bird - one of more than 300 species in its huge and diverse family - find its way so deeply and permanently into our nation's heart and its social and cultural history? It's a story that tells us as much about ourselves as it does about the robin itself. No other bird is quite so ever-present and familiar, so embedded in our culture, as the robin. But how much do we really know about this bird? 'There is no doubt that Moss's book, with its charming cover and quaint illustrations, will make it into many a stocking this year' The Times

Author : Stephen Moss
Publisher : Random House
ISBN 13 : 0099552469
Total Pages : 323 pages
Book Rating : 4.68/5 ( download)

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Download or read book Wild Hares and Hummingbirds written by Stephen Moss and published by Random House. This book was released on 2012 with total page 323 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "The village of Mark on the Somerset Levels is a watery wonderland, rich in wildlife: rooks and roe deer; sparrows and snowdrops; the iconic brown hare and the spectacular hummingbird hawk-moth. As the year unfolds, Stephen Moss witnesses the landscape as it passes from deep snow to spring blosson, through the heat haze of summer to the chill winds of autumn, from the first hazel catkins to the swallows returning from Africa. [This] is both the story of a small corner of the West Country and a celebration of the natural world."--Back cover.