Book Review: The Wildlife of Southern Africa

Today I have a book review for you of one of my favourite books:

The Wildlife of Southern Africa: A Field Guide to the Animals and Plants of the Region

This illustrated field guide to the animals and plants of southern Africa is updated with all the latest taxonomy and common names. It features over 2000 carefully selected plants and animals, large and small, that are likely to be encountered during a visit to any part of the region. More than 1200 species are illustrated and many more are identifiable from the text through reference to similar species. Each group is colour coded for easy reference; for quick identification, diagnostic features are in bold text within the concise descriptions. It would be hard to find a more useful field guide that covers all the major groups of plants and animals in the southern African region.

Each chapter has been written by a leading expert in the field, most of whom have published major works in their own right. Each group is colour-coded for easy reference:

• Lower invertebrates
• Spiders and other arachnids
• Insects
• Freshwater fishes
• Frogs
• Reptiles
• Birds
• Mammals
• Grasses, sedges, ferns and fungi
• Wild flowers
• Trees

This is the ideal companion for all who venture outdoors - visitors to game parks, hikers, holiday-makers, birders, game viewers and gardeners.

About the author:

Vincent Carruthers is a well-known environmentalist and author. In 1998 he was awarded the prestigious Stevenson-Hamilton Medal by the Zoological Society of southern Africa for his contribution as an amateur zoologist.

He co-authored South African Frogs - A complete Guide and was compiling editor of the highly successful The Wildlife of Southern Africa.

He is a Director of the North West Parks and Tourism Board, Delta Environmental Centre and the Sustainable Tourism Research Institute. He is a past Executive Director of the Wildlife and Environment Society and Chairman of BirdLife South Africa.