Along the San Marcos River, in and surrounding Palmetto State Park in south central Texas, lie two square miles of relict ecosystem named the Ottine Wetlands. This area of swamps, marshes, and ponds is especially notable for its geographic isolation from other wetlands in southeastern Texas and for its fascinating intermixture of eastern North American plants and animals and western flora and fauna. The scientific importance of the Ottine Wetlands in the surrounding, relatively dry region was first recognized as early as 1928, yet the swamps and marshes have not been thoroughly studied. This is the first examination of the invertebrates--insects, crustaceans, molluscs, and others--that depend directly or indirectly on the abundant moisture of the wetlands. With nearly 290 full-color illustrations, this book describes and illustrates 241 species of flies, beetles, grasshoppers, wasps, ants, bugs, spiders, scorpions, snails, crustaceans, and millipedes that inhabit the Ottine waters, wetlands, and woodlands. In a brief introduction the authors describe the geological formation of the region and discuss the plant life of the area. They also provide a description of Palmetto State Park, with its easily accessed hiking and nature trails. Following the species descriptions, the book concludes with a glossary and a thorough bibliography of other relevant works on invertebrates. Scientifically thorough, yet readable, this book will appeal to nature lovers of all kinds.

This classroom resource provides clear, concise scientific information in an understandable and enjoyable way about water and aquatic life. Spanning the hydrologic cycle from rain to watersheds, aquifers to springs, rivers to estuaries, ample illustrations promote understanding of important concepts and clarify major ideas. Aquatic science is covered comprehensively, with relevant principles of chemistry, physics, geology, geography, ecology, and biology included throughout the text. Emphasizing water sustainability and conservation, the book tells us what we can do personally to conserve for the future and presents job and volunteer opportunities in the hope that some students will pursue careers in aquatic science. Texas Aquatic Science, originally developed as part of a multi-faceted education project for middle and high school students, can also be used at the college level for non-science majors, in the home-school environment, and by anyone who educates kids about nature and water. To learn more about The Meadows Center for Water and the Environment, sponsors of this book's series, please click here.

A comprehensive field guide to Texas’s insects, featuring 1,300 species and over 2,700 photographs. Thanks to its size and geographic position, Texas is home to nearly 30,000 species of insects, likely making its insect population the most diverse in the nation. Ranging from eastern and western to temperate and tropical species, this vast array of insects can be difficult to identify. In Common Insects of Texas and Surrounding States, John and Kendra Abbott have created the state’s most comprehensive field guide to help readers recognize and understand these fascinating creatures. Containing 1,300 species and more than 2,700 photographs, this guide offers a wealth of information about the characteristics and behaviors of Texas’s insects. Each chapter introduces an order with a discussion of general natural history and a description of other qualities helpful in distinguishing its various species, while every species’ entry provides a state map showing where it is most likely to be found, a key displaying its seasonal distribution, information about its habitat, and corresponding photos. Featuring colored tabs for quick reference, a glossary, and information about other arthropods, this guide is the perfect companion for anyone wanting to identify and learn more about the many insects of Texas. “Expertly written and beautifully illustrated, this exceptional book will be of interest to both professional and beginning naturalists.” —Edward O. Wilson, University Research Professor Emeritus, Harvard University

Wetlands are among the world’s most valuable and most threatened habitats, and in these crucially important ecosystems, the invertebrate fauna holds a focal position. Most of the biological diversity in wetlands is found within resident invertebrate assemblages, and those invertebrates are the primary trophic link between lower plants and higher vertebrates (e.g. amphibians, fish, and birds). As such, most scientists, managers, consultants, and students who work in the world’s wetlands should become better informed about the invertebrate components in their habitats of interest. Our book serves to fill this need by assembling the world’s most prominent ecologists working on freshwater wetland invertebrates, and having them provide authoritative perspectives on each the world’s most important freshwater wetland types. The initial chapter of the book provides a primer on freshwater wetland invertebrates, including how they are uniquely adapted for life in wetland environments and how they contribute to important ecological functions in wetland ecosystems. The next 15 chapters deal with invertebrates in the major wetlands across the globe (rock pools, alpine ponds, temperate temporary ponds, Mediterranean temporary ponds, turloughs, peatlands, permanent marshes, Great Lakes marshes, Everglades, springs, beaver ponds, temperate floodplains, neotropical floodplains, created wetlands, waterfowl marshes), each chapter written by groups of prominent scientists intimately knowledgeable about the individual wetland types. Each chapter reviews the relevant literature, provides a synthesis of the most important ecological controls on the resident invertebrate fauna, and highlights important conservation concerns. The final chapter synthesizes the 15 habitat-based chapters, providing a macroscopic perspective on natural variation of invertebrate assemblage structure across the world’s wetlands and a paradigm for understanding how global variation and environmental factors shape wetland invertebrate communities.

The Laguna Madre is the only hypersaline coastal lagoon on the North American continent and only one of five worldwide. The lagoon is renowned for its vast seagrass meadows, huge wintering redhead population, and bountiful fishing grounds. In 2000, the Nature Conservancy, whose mission is the conservation of biodiversity through protection of habitat, recognized the need to amass all known information about the Laguna Madre and implement a science-based conservation agenda. From those efforts came the first edition of this book. Now completely revised and updated, this second edition of The Laguna Madre of Texas and Tamaulipas is the culmination of two decades of additional research and continued conservation efforts in the region. Nearly 100 years of literature on the Laguna Madre and surrounding environments has been synthesized here. With 150 figures and illustrations, the book takes a broad and comprehensive look at both the Texan and Tamaulipan Laguna Madre. The value of this book for scientists, conservationists, resource managers, and policy makers involved in the future of the Texas and Mexico coasts is clear. Coastal residents, birders, anglers, and nature lovers who want to learn about and take care of the Laguna Madre will find this to be an indispensable guide.

This 100,000-word monograph summarizes the distribution, abundance and breeding biology of the 183 species of wetland-adapted birds reliably reported from South Dakota, Nebraska and Kansas through 2011. These include 91 species known to breed or have historically bred in the region, 51 species that migrate through the region but are not yet known to breed or have bred there, and 41 species that are extremely rare, probably extinct, or for which evidence as to their current occurrence is questionable. Brief summaries of the breeding biology of all the regionally nesting species are provided, and information for all species is summarized as to seasonal migrations, habitats, and (in most cases) population status. There is an introductory account of the topography, climate and vegetation of the region insofar as these environmental factors influence wetland birds, six regional maps, and more than 500 references.