Category: conservation

Sunday, April 26th, marks the birth date of Frederick Law Olmsted. No short list of the most important and influential Americans of the nineteenth century would omit the name of Frederick Law Olmsted: mid-century agricultural reformer; sharp-eyed observer of slavery and slave society before the Civil War; mainstay of the United States Sanitary Commission; and…

In honor of Arbor Day, we share two poems from Over the River and Through the Wood: An Anthology of Nineteenth-Century American Children's Poetry, edited by Karen L. Kilcup and Angela Sorby.   PLANT A TREE by Lucy Larcom He who plants a tree, Plants a hope. Rootlets up through fibers blindly grope; Leaves unfold into horizons free.…

Guest post by Bryan MacKay With a cautious nod to what seems to be (let's hope) the arrival of Spring in Maryland, we offer the following April excerpt from Bryan MacKay's A Year across Maryland, his week-by-week guide to enjoying the natural world in JHUP's home state. Rockfish (Striped Bass) Fishing Season Opens Rockfish, that…

Guest post by Bryan MacKay With a cautious nod to what seems to be (let's hope) the arrival of Spring in Maryland, we offer the following April excerpt from Bryan MacKay's A Year across Maryland, his week-by-week guide to enjoying the natural world in JHUP's home state. Rockfish (Striped Bass) Fishing Season Opens Rockfish, that…

Guest post by William Kerrigan March 11th is National Johnny Appleseed Day, the 170th anniversary of the death of John Chapman, the real life Johnny Appleseed.  By the time of Chapman's death in March 1845,  he had already earned a reputation as an eccentric in the central Ohio and Northeastern Indiana communities where he spent most…

Guest post by William Kerrigan March 11th is National Johnny Appleseed Day, the 170th anniversary of the death of John Chapman, the real life Johnny Appleseed.  By the time of Chapman's death in March 1845,  he had already earned a reputation as an eccentric in the central Ohio and Northeastern Indiana communities where he spent most…

The JHU Press has a beautiful selection of books on the natural world, from the amazing new edition of Ducks, Geese, and Swans of North America, to our popular Animal Answer Guide series, to family-friendly guide books, to handsomely illustrated volumes on owls, polar bears, and mountain gorillas. Read more or place an order by…

Guest post by Vince Burke It was one of those days that every editor dreams of having. Just as I was beginning to plan my trip to The Wildlife Society annual conference in Pittsburgh, I received word. The two big book awards for 2014 had been announced and Johns Hopkins University Press had published both…

Guest post by Vince Burke It was one of those days that every editor dreams of having. Just as I was beginning to plan my trip to The Wildlife Society annual conference in Pittsburgh, I received word. The two big book awards for 2014 had been announced and Johns Hopkins University Press had published both…

By Vincent J. Burke, executive editor A hawk went aloft, stealing everyone’s attention. It was a familiar scene for the speaker, a wildlife manager whose back was turned to the soaring bird. You could see the slight smile form on his face as he recognized the failed attempts of the rows of seated listeners to conceal their interest.…