50 books match the query 'Plants & Animals' and 3 start with i

cover of In the Arms of Saguaros: Iconography of the Giant Cactus

In the Arms of Saguaros

Iconography of the Giant Cactus

William L. Bird Jr.

University of Arizona Press, 2023

An essential—and monumental—member of the Sonoran Desert ecosystem, the saguaro cactus has become the quintessential icon of the American West.

In the Arms of the Saguaros shows how, from the botanical explorers of the nineteenth century to the tourism boosters in our own time, saguaros and their images have fulfilled attention-getting needs and expectations. Through text and lavish images, this work explores the saguaro’s growth into a western icon from the early days of the American railroad to the years bracketing World War II, when Sun Belt boosterism hit its zenith and proponents of tourism succeed in moving the saguaro to the center of the promotional frame.

This book explores how the growth of tourism brought the saguaro to ever-larger audiences through the proliferation of western-themed imagery on the American roadside. The history of the saguaro’s popular and highly imaginative range points to the current moment in which the saguaro touches us as a global icon in art, fashion, and entertainment.
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cover of In the Spirit of Wetlands: Reviving Habitat in the Illinois River Watershed

In the Spirit of Wetlands

Reviving Habitat in the Illinois River Watershed

Text by Clare Howard. Photographs by David Zalaznik

University of Illinois Press, 2022

Individuals from all walks of life have devoted their time, energy, and money to restoring the state's lost wetlands. Clare Howard and David Zalaznik take readers into the marshes, bogs, waterways, and swamps brought back to life by these wetland pioneers. Howard’s storytelling introduces grassroots conservators dedicated to learning through trial and error, persistence, and listening to the lessons taught by wetlands. They undertake hard work inspired by ever-increasing floods and nutrient runoff, and they reconnect the Earth’s natural rhythms. Zalaznik's stunning black and white photos illuminate changes in the land and the people themselves. Seeds sprout after lying dormant for one hundred years. Water winds through ancient channels. Animals and native plants return. As the forgiving spirit of a wetland emerges, it nurtures a renewed landscape that alters our view of the environment and the planet.

An inspiring document of passion and advocacy, In the Spirit of Wetlands reveals the transformative power of restoration.

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cover of Iowa's Wild Places

Iowa's Wild Places

Carl Kurtz

University of Iowa Press, 1996

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