Product Description
Over 2 million square miles of the United States is covered in prairie and is the largest ecosystem on the continent; the prairies are the heartland of the continent, a vast, windswept plain that flows from Alberta south to Texas and from the Rockies east to the Mississippi River. This is big sky country, and until recently, one of the richest and most magnificent natural grasslands in the world. Today, however, the North American prairies are among the most altered environments on Earth. Thorough, detailed, and scientifically up-to-date, Prairie: A Natural History provides a comprehensive nontechnical guide to the biology and ecology of this fabled environment, offering a view of the past, a vision for the future, and a clear focus on the present. Sidebars throughout highlight various grasslands species, tell fascinating natural history and conservation stories, and present the traditional Native view of the prairie and its inhabitants.

CUSTOMER REVIEWS (Average Customer Rating: 5.0 based on 5 reviews)

wonderfully written and informative

I found this to be a well written, high quality book that should prove to be a great read for anyone. The language is easy to understand which makes it a good leisure read but at the same time it provides a wealth of information about wildlife, habitats, environments, and interactions that, as a grad student, I still found very interesting and informative.
January 30, 2007

Home on the Range...

I love the prairie, no doubt about that, and I'm proud to have been born and raised in the vast expanse of the middle of the great continent. The prairie brings a unique feeling of solitude, quietude, and openness that can be found not many places else in the world. I fully recommend this book to those that love the prairie, but also to those who are not interested at all in the vast expanse, who, as the book asserts, would rather get across it as quickly as possible. Scientifically and emotionally written, it is a beautiful book, with many illustrations, one that is worthy to be read.
March 23, 2006

Very pleased

The book is very well written, and the many artful photos in the book really make me wish I could spend a whole summer in the prairies. The author knows what she's talking about for certain. I could just keep on reading such educating books.
August 15, 2005

Prairie: NOT the Great American Desert

An excellent book. Well written and scientifically accurate. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is enchanted with the beauty and grandeur of the North American prairie.
August 05, 2005

A Reverant Book On A Little Known Region

The Great Plains of the North America extend from Alberta to Texas and from the Rockies to the Mississippi river. It's the heartland of America.

This book, profusely illustrated and reverantly written is the story of the heartland. While it is the story of people, it's more the story of the land itself. It's the story of ancient seas, of Tyannosaurus Rex, Triceratops, and grass. Grass, seemingly engless miles of grass. Tall grass, short grass, drought resistent grass, food for the buffalo that wandered here in vast herds.

Of course the book talks about man's impact on the land. Farming plants a handful of crop species, where 5,000 wild plants grow in the Great Plains.

The future has to be discussed in a book like this, and for once the news is not all bad. To be sure, there are species at risk, but the overall picture is certainly one of hope.

A fascinating book on an area that is rarely thought about, let along the subject of books.
October 20, 2004

SIMILAR PRODUCTS

Peterson Field Guides: The North American Prairie (Peterson Guides)
by Stephen R. Jones, Ruth Carol Cushman

Where The Sky Began: Land of the Tallgrass Prairie (Bur Oak Book)
by John Madson

Tallgrass Prairie Wildflowers 2: A Field Guide to Common Wildflowers and Plants of the Prairie Midwest (Falcon Guides Wildflowers)
by Doug Ladd

A Practical Guide to Prairie Reconstruction
by Carl Kurtz

Grassland: The History, Biology, Politics and Promise of the American Prairie
by Richard Manning