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List Price: £14.99
Our Price: £6.93
Author:
Desmond Morris
By Ebury Press
 A fantastic cat book, 2008-03-20
I love this book for its photographs and fascinating explanations of cat behaviour. I have bought several copies for friends and family!
List Price: £15.00
Our Price: £7.12
Author:
Ben Hart
By Souvenir Press Ltd
Review of The Art and Science of Clicker Training for Horses, 2008-10-17
Finally a long awaited down to earth book on the successes to be had and the pitfalls to be avoided with clicker training. The book deals in great detail with all the questions you ever wanted to ask, worrying questions such as won't feeding treats make my horse bite too more detailed questions about why we need to view working with equines differently to working with dogs. Ben talks about the importance of the trainer learning how to break down what seem like large problems into small behaviours that are much more easily dealt with and how using shaping plans will help you achieve great results to tackle any problems you may be having in your relationship with your Horse, Donkey or Mule.
The first few chapters talk about the importance of knowing the science behind the training technique .It talks to the reader about how and why a little plastic box can communicate so much to the horse. By teaching the trainer this, not only does the trainer start to understand how the horse learns, but also begins to understand how we ourselves learn. We can then apply this knowledge to all our communications with horses no matter what the problem and help us develop a more thorough understanding of our relationship with them.
Further on Ben goes into details about where people can go wrong with using the clicker and how to avoid falling into these traps by using it very clearly and with specific boundaries right from the start.
Ben comes across as clearly passionate for Horses, Donkeys and Mules but the honesty he has for imparting information without Ego, Showmanship or Self Congratulation is the biggest success of this book. Through his vast experience in working with equines, donkeys and mules and his large experience of teaching others to use clicker training and positive reinforcement he is able to show how much fun can be had as long as it is used in a responsible way with much forethought.
I would highly recommend everyone either starting out on the journey or already using clicker to read the invaluable words in this book.
My only criticism is why we had to wait so long and when is the next one ???
List Price: £9.95
Our Price: £7.19
Author:
Phil Richardson
By The Natural History Museum
Two books on Bats; Jan 2008, 2008-01-21
There are two books on bats by Phil Richardson and both have the same title: "Bats". This has caused a certain amount of confusion and if either of these books are accessed on Amazon, one arrives at the same series of reviews where it is not always clear which book a review refers to. I certainly was confused. Both books are available at present.
The first book was published by Whillet Books in 1985. It was reprinted several times and a revised edition appeared in 2000, which has also been reprinted. It is a very good introduction to bats particularly the 16 species that live in the U.K. The writing is lighthearted and the zany illustrations by Guy Troughton complement the writing excellently. The book is given a very direct feeling by the accounts of the author's hands-on experiences in the field with the Northampton Bat Group. He explains many behaviours but is not afraid to discuss the things that are not understood. If you live in Britain and want an introduction to the bats that live here it is a must.
The second book was published in London in 2002 by the Natural History Museum and reprinted in 2004. This book complements the first excellently but has a completely different feel. Gone is the humour, and the drawings are mainly replaced with excellent photographs. Though British bats have a place, the author looks, mainly, at the differences in behaviour and structure that occur in the 900 odd species that do not occur in the British Isles. Like the first book, echolocation, bat detectors and general construction are considered, but as bats that live in warmer parts of the world do not need to hibernate they can have a very different life style and eat a wider range of food. Almost 1 in 5 of all mammals are bats and if you want an introduction to their diverse world you will not regret buying this book.
List Price: £13.50
Our Price: £6.97
Author:
Frans de Waal
By Princeton University Press
Actions speak louder than words, 2007-03-13
When Charles Darwin published "The Origin of Species", it was greeted equally by widespread acceptance and outrage. The acceptance was due to the realisation that here, at last, was a mechanism explaining the workings of life. The outrage was expressed over what this meant about human beings. Could we be relegated to the status of "mere animals"? Frans de Waal has merged the two views to show that we indeed are closely related to other animals. As a social species we share behaviour traits with other creatures who live in groups. While most of today's objections to "Darwinism" centre on the loss of "morality", the author notes that instead we should rejoice in sharing something so fundamental.
In these exquisitely written essays - the Tanner Lectures - de Waal shows how behaviour in various species, particularly our closest cousins the great apes, exhibits moral issues daily confronted and resolved. His research has led him to challenge one of Western society's most commonly held shibboleths - that morality is limited to human beings and that it lies as a thin layer over our animal instincts. Labelled by de Waal as the Veneer Theory, he attributes its source to Thomas Henry Huxley, also known as "Darwin's Bulldog" for his defence of natural selection. Huxley, along with Alfred Russel Wallace, thought that human reasoning was to ?? mechanism lifting us above the remainder of the animals. The author notes the irony of Darwin's most vocal defender countering the naturalist's own stance that morality in humans is reflected in ape behaviour. De Waal forcibly contests Huxley's view, arguing that moral decisions result from our being a social species. Survival meant cooperation from our earliest evolutionary state, and was strengthened by selection pressures over time.
De Waal cites numerous examples of how chimpanzees reconcile after fights, intercede to stop or prevent conflicts, share resources and console those in pain or stress. Young chimps are guarded away from zoo moats because even adult chimpanzees cannot swim. Individuals with no stake in particular events may intercede because a situation may lead to a threat to the entire troop. One example, the ape rescuing a human child in the Chicago Zoo, is well known. A less celebrated but far more significant event is the rescue and release of an injured bird by a bonobo. Not only is this a striking example of cross-species empathy, but the bonobo went to the effort of climbing a tree as high as she could to provide the bird with the optimum means of escape. In the recent past when such circumstances led to the equating of human and animal behaviour, it was derided as "anthropomorphising" zoology. De Waal notes that the terms many object to equating behaviour not only lack substitutes, but merely reflect the evolutionary realities. Our behaviour equates ape behaviour because our species have a common ancestor.
There are other complaints about de Waal's findings and conclusions. The editors have gathered a few notables to assess the material presented here. At the forefront of the commenters stand philosophers, not primatologists. Robert Wright, Philip Kitcher, Christine Korsgaard and Peter Singer among them. While they accept that ape, particularly chimpanzee, actions seem to indicate cooperation and empathy similar to that of humans, they have doubts about motivation levels. They also spend much ink in dealing with the definition of terms. Lack of understanding of how many generations of natural selection can guide behaviour, most of these critics fall into the trap of contriving isolated thought experiment events without considering the long-term biological roots of those traits. It's a common problem when philosophers attempt to deal with evolutionary questions. As de Waal notes, over a generation ago, Edward O. Wilson suggested that the study of ethics be relocated from philosophy departments and placed in biology. That is a step that remains to be taken, but this book should prompt quicker action. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]
List Price: £23.00
Our Price: £16.50
Author:
Jürgen Tautz
By Springer
Excellence in bee research, 2008-12-29
The Buzz About Bees: Biology of a Superorganism
As a long serving beekeeper ( over 45 years) I think I have probably read over 150 books about bees. Jurgen Tautz's book is by far one of the best books on the subject I have found. His research is not only meticulous and innovative it is also thought provoking. I have to admit I thought I knew a lot about bees but in every chapter of this book something new was found. The book is written in a very readable style even if you know nothing about bees. Helga Heilman has put together a portfolio of photographs that are exceptional.
I can find nothing in the book that I dislike, it was a joy to read and I will be constantly revisiting it in years to come. As a beekeeping teacher this book is at the top of my reading list for my students.
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