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Where The Animals Go: Tracking Wildlife with Technology in 50 Maps and Graphics by James Cheshire
insertsthwitty's review
4.0
Roughly and very non-scientifically speaking, almost everyone wanted to work for National Geographic when they were kids. And now they are interested in animal conservation, but only recreationally, mostly when animal poaching or killing is given a face and a name (Harambe, Cecil, etc). Because there is just too much, too much dry data and too much violence or effort in a time and place where most are already pretty tired. (I know I am. I'm really tired.)
But this book is great because it is not only visually stunning (ugh, the cover - so precious!), but also because it follows some select animals, taking you on a journey similar to how National Geographic's approach. And I enjoyed the hell out of it.
There is a wealth of data out there that can make you engage with the larger world, not just your own microcosm, and this is a great start to it. If not, it's just a really beautiful coffee table book.
But this book is great because it is not only visually stunning (ugh, the cover - so precious!), but also because it follows some select animals, taking you on a journey similar to how National Geographic's approach. And I enjoyed the hell out of it.
There is a wealth of data out there that can make you engage with the larger world, not just your own microcosm, and this is a great start to it. If not, it's just a really beautiful coffee table book.
lisaybooks's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
informative
reflective
slow-paced
3.5
space_cat's review against another edition
informative
slow-paced
4.0
Gorgeous, detailed, NatGeo-level maps that bring to life the stories of animals — both groups and individuals — and the awe-inspiring paths they travel. A tribute to the scientists who collect the data and the artists who design the maps.
doulicia's review against another edition
3.0
Seems like it should have been more captivating than it was. Conservation stories/studies using all kinds of high-tech systems. But it felt lifeless and hard to easily digest.
luanam's review against another edition
5.0
This is a book, a great big glorious book about stories, the stories that data tells us but also the stories that the author recounts about the history of geoprofiling & the biologging movement and of the animals and the people involved. From bolting zebras, following what seems to be hardwired ancestral memories, to a look into how conservation research and expeditions have evolved, these stories range from snapshots through to extended thoughts about future directions.
With nearly each turn of the page there is an exquisitely detailed, but easy to follow, map that shows the behaviour of a featured animal or group. One of my favourites was the sea turtles map, showing the journey of a rescued turtle -who after 8 years of rehabilitation defied expectations by reorientating himself and completing bypassing the nice easy gulf stream at his release point into the Atlantic, stubbornly ventures off to Cape Verde exactly where he should have been a decade ago. This voyage took him a year.
The book is not only immensely readable but is also extremely well structured into three parts: land, sea and air. Each section is preceded by either a pertinent background history or topic exploration (for instance the sea section looks at how cetology shifted to a less invasive form of observation from its earlier harpooning days and also looks at whales use of echogram and how this affects fish behaviour) before then going on to explore different case studies (including sea otters!!). I read this book over my lunch breaks at work and was able to quickly get absorbed into it each time while also coming away from each reading session feeling fulfilled and interested by something new.
The other thing this book does very well is its links for further exploration. In the further reading section, not only does it provide intriguing sounding titles like Peter Miller's 'The Smart Swarm', but it also gives a reminder on where to go if you have been inspired to create your own graphics and are looking for animal data. Some examples of the links are as follows:
https://www.movebank.org/ (free online animal datatracking repository)
https://zoatrack.org/ (This one I really like - it is an open access site where you can view others tracking results and it provides an online toolkit to create your own project)
https://ebird.org/home (Bird specific tracking where you can go online and "share (boast) about your own birding finds" - Book recommends pairing with Cornell's Merlin Bird ID app.
For the book itself you can go online to well laid out website and click on sample pages for viewing :) http://wheretheanimalsgo.com/
I would also recommend pairing this book with Citizen Science by Caren Cooper http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/citizen-science-salon/2017/05/23/book-review-citizen-science-how-ordinary-people-are-changing-the-face-of-discovery/#.Wva1DyC-lPY
With nearly each turn of the page there is an exquisitely detailed, but easy to follow, map that shows the behaviour of a featured animal or group. One of my favourites was the sea turtles map, showing the journey of a rescued turtle -who after 8 years of rehabilitation defied expectations by reorientating himself and completing bypassing the nice easy gulf stream at his release point into the Atlantic, stubbornly ventures off to Cape Verde exactly where he should have been a decade ago. This voyage took him a year.
The book is not only immensely readable but is also extremely well structured into three parts: land, sea and air. Each section is preceded by either a pertinent background history or topic exploration (for instance the sea section looks at how cetology shifted to a less invasive form of observation from its earlier harpooning days and also looks at whales use of echogram and how this affects fish behaviour) before then going on to explore different case studies (including sea otters!!). I read this book over my lunch breaks at work and was able to quickly get absorbed into it each time while also coming away from each reading session feeling fulfilled and interested by something new.
The other thing this book does very well is its links for further exploration. In the further reading section, not only does it provide intriguing sounding titles like Peter Miller's 'The Smart Swarm', but it also gives a reminder on where to go if you have been inspired to create your own graphics and are looking for animal data. Some examples of the links are as follows:
https://www.movebank.org/ (free online animal datatracking repository)
https://zoatrack.org/ (This one I really like - it is an open access site where you can view others tracking results and it provides an online toolkit to create your own project)
https://ebird.org/home (Bird specific tracking where you can go online and "share (boast) about your own birding finds" - Book recommends pairing with Cornell's Merlin Bird ID app.
For the book itself you can go online to well laid out website and click on sample pages for viewing :) http://wheretheanimalsgo.com/
I would also recommend pairing this book with Citizen Science by Caren Cooper http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/citizen-science-salon/2017/05/23/book-review-citizen-science-how-ordinary-people-are-changing-the-face-of-discovery/#.Wva1DyC-lPY
janakilenin's review against another edition
4.0
https://thewire.in/environment/around-the-world-in-50-maps-the-illustrated-exploits-of-animal-adventurers