Marianne Taylor

This beautifully crafted gift book celebrates some of the world’s most admired and mysterious birds – owls. With their wide-eyed, often endearing faces, secretive ways, haunting voices and astonishing super-senses, owls have captivated humankind for centuries. The RSPB Pocket Book series celebrates iconic British wildlife and is produced in collaboration with the RSPB. In this beautifully illustrated book, wildlife writer and illustrator Marianne Taylor weaves together biology, mythology and cultural history to explore how owls live – and why they intrigue us so deeply. Marianne combines her accessible, engaging text and elegant line illustrations, inviting you to explore the fascinating world of owls with her. With Marianne's help, you'll explore the prehistory, habits, life stories, and traditional and modern stories of owls from around the world, with a particular focus on the species of owl found in the British countryside. With its blend of captivating content, exquisite artwork and an inspiring conservation message, this is ideal for nature lovers, gift buyers, and anyone enchanted by the quiet beauty – and formidable ferocity – of owls.

Find it! British Minbeasts contains 25 common British insects and bugs for children to search for, along with amazing facts and mind-bending puzzles. Perfect for minimising screen time, Find it! books keep children entertained, engaged and curious about the world around them. - Search for the Peacock Butterfly, Buff-tailed Bumblebee or a Black Garden Ant amongst many other British minibeasts. - Learn fascinating facts about the things you are searching for. - Play wordsearches, mazes, spot the differences, and various other quizzes and games. The back of the book contains a certificate to award when everything has been successfully found!

A photo-packed celebration of British raptors, following their fortunes as British breeding birds from historical times to the present day.RSPB British Birds of Prey is the ideal introduction to the raptors – hawks, eagles, harriers, buzzards and falcons – plus the owls that breed in or regularly visit the British Isles. Despite centuries of persecution, changing attitudes, improved legal protections and the astounding efforts of conservationists mean that many species are faring better in the UK than they have for decades.With incredible colour photography throughout, this book provides fascinating insights into the lives of these birds. Each chapter showcases an individual species, providing an engaging and informative account of their hunting habits, breeding behaviour, the migrations they undertake, and above all the challenges they continue to face as they forge their lives alongside humanity in Britain.

This accessible hardback guide expertly distils the fundamentals of genetic science through digestible text, full-color diagrams and useful infographics. Explore the blueprint of life with this essential introduction to genetics, covering everything from genes and chromosomes to inheritance, evolution, artificial selection, genetic engineering, and much more besides. Written in easy-to-understand language with short and accessible chapters designed to be absorbed in a single sitting, this book will provide you with the perfect starting point in this fascinating subject. Includes: - Real-world examples- Glossaries of key vocabulary and definitions- Summaries of famous experiments- Feature boxes on pioneering geneticists Filled with attractive diagrams and infographics, this book is the perfect starting point for getting to grips with this far-reaching topic.

Find it! British birds contains 25 common birds for children to search for, along with amazing facts and mind-bending puzzles. Perfect for minimising screen time, Find it! books keep children entertained, engaged and curious about the world around them. Search for robins, swans and kestrels amongst many other British birds.Discover fascinating facts about the birds you are searching for.Play wordsearches, mazes, spot the differences, and various other quizzes and games.Award a certificate from the back of the book when everything has been successfully found!

RSPB ID Spotlight Birds of Towns and Cities is a reliable fold-out chart that presents illustrations of 50 of our most widespread and familiar urban birds by renowned artist Stephen Message. Whether you’re spending time in a city centre, walking your usual route to the office or enjoying your local park, a rich variety of birds inhabit the UK’s towns and cities. Our urban green spaces offer us easy access to nature in our neighbourhoods, and even the most built-up areas can present exciting and surprising birdwatching opportunities.Observant urban birdwatchers might spy Peregrines nesting high on city buildings or witness thousands of Starlings gathering in impressive murmurations.The species in the chart are grouped by family and helpfully labelled to assist with identification, while artworks are shown side by side for quick comparison and easy reference at home or in the field. The reverse of the chart provides information on the habitats, behaviour, life cycles and diets of our urban birds, as well as the conservation issues they are facing and how the RSPB is working to support them.The ID Spotlight charts help wildlife enthusiasts identify and learn more about our most common species using accurate colour illustrations and informative, accessible text.

Whether you’re out hiking and spot a kestrel soaring over the mountains or chance upon a ground-nesting warbler, a rich variety of birds inhabit the UK’s heaths, moors and mountains. But do you know a Stonechat from a Wheatear? And can you distinguish between a Woodcock and a Common Snipe when they’re scrambling across the heathland? RSPB ID Spotlight Birds of Heath, Moor and Mountain is a laminated fold-out chart that presents beautiful illustrations of 46 of our most widespread and familiar birds by renowned artist Stephen Message. - Species are grouped by family and helpfully labelled to assist with identification- Artworks are shown side by side for quick comparison and easy reference at home or in the field- The reverse of the chart provides information on the habitats, behaviour, life cycles and diets of our birds, as well as the conservation issues they are facing and how the RSPB is working to support them- Information on research and conservation projects aimed at improving habitats for vulnerable birds is also included- The chart can be displayed on the wall artwork-side out, or folded away to be stored on the bookshelfThe ID Spotlight charts help wildlife enthusiasts identify and learn more about our most common species using accurate colour illustrations and informative, accessible text.

Nature author Marianne Taylor’s The Animal Mind is a fascinating exploration of animal intelligence and emotion, with thought-provoking essays, surprising insights, and breathtaking images by leading photographers Joel Sartore, Melissa Groo, Peter Delaney, and others. We are only beginning to understand the ways in which the animal mind is as complex as our own. A prairie dog’s vocal language is now the most sophisticated ever decoded, but their unique jump-yip poses as many questions as answers. Gorillas use sign language to describe past events to researchers, so does this mean they ruminate and relive their lives? When an ant looks in a mirror to see a dab of blue paint on its head, they try to clean it off, proving the ant is self-aware like us.The Animal Mind profiles 60 animals as it explores instances of remarkable cognition, communication, consciousness, and culture in the animal kingdom. Full of beautiful portraits and in-depth studies showing these behaviors in action, The Animal Mind offers an illuminating roadmap to animal intelligence.

The perfect photographic guide to the amazing avifauna of Italy.From the Alps and Dolomites in the north to the coastlines of the Mediterranean Sea, Italy has a diverse range of natural habitats. The country is also a migration path across Europe and Africa, making it an exciting place to spot both endemic and migrant birds.This fully revised and updated guide to the birds of Italy by naturalist Marianne Taylor and Italian photographer Daniele Occhiato covers more than 320 birds most likely to be seen on any visit to the country. Portable and reliable, the concise text for each species includes information on identification, songs and calls, behaviour, distribution, and habitat, with each photo carefully selected to aid identification. A guide to the best birdwatching sites in Italy is also included. This is the go-to guide for travellers and wildlife-watchers visiting this spectacular and bird-rich country.

Renowned natural history author, Marianne Taylor, reveals mysteries of the ancient Earth, from the origins of life to the reign of the dinosaurs and the ice age, in a fascinating 3.8 billion year history. This beautiful, full-color hardback guide explores the diversity of life on Earth in the time before humans came to dominate the planet. Learn how species rose, fell, and evolved as they adapted to a changing climate and the varied ecosystems that arose. Discover the five mass extinction events and how life rose again despite the challenges. Explore the majesty of the dinosaurs and the fascinating ancestors of the many animals that we know and love today. Includes: - Paleozoic: marine life, the first plants, coral reefs, trilobites- Mesozoic: dinosaurs and other reptiles, the first birds, the breakup of Pangaea- Cenozoic: new mammals, the first horses, ice ages The text is brought to life by superb full-color photos, charts, maps and infographics to reveal the early history of the planet in all its splendor. A fascinating guide to the world which can be enjoyed by the whole family. ABOUT THE SERIES: Sirius' Discovering... series brings together spectacular hardback guides which explore the science behind our world, brought to life by eye-catching photography.

Marvel at the wonders of the miniature world and its complex lifeforms in this fascinating hardback guide, illustrated throughout with spectacular full-color photography. With the latest developments in scanning electron microscopy, the miniature world has now been revealed to us in never-before-seen detail. With accomplished science writer Marianne Taylor as your guide, you will learn about the microbes that are at the heart of the world's ecosystems, the composition of minerals, the structure of cells in the human body, and much more besides. Includes: - Microorganisms - Mineral structures- Nanotechnology The text is brought to life by superb full-color photos, charts, maps and infographics to reveal the miniature world in all its splendor. A fascinating guide to the world which can be enjoyed by the whole family. ABOUT THE SERIES: Sirius' Discovering... series brings together spectacular hardback guides which explore the science behind our world, brought to life by eye-catching photography.

RSPB ID Spotlight Ladybirds is a reliable fold-out chart that presents illustrations of 27 of our most widespread and familiar ladybirds by renowned artist Richard Lewington. - Species are grouped by family and helpfully labelled to assist with identification - Artworks are shown side by side for quick comparison and easy reference at home or in the field, or the chart can be fixed to the wall as a beautiful poster - The reverse of the chart provides information on the habitats, behaviour, life cycles and diets of our ladybirds, as well as the conservation issues they are facing and how we can support them The ID Spotlight charts help wildlife enthusiasts identify and learn more about our most common species using accurate colour illustrations and informative, accessible text.

RSPB ID Spotlight Birds of Farmland and Open Countryside is a reliable fold-out chart that presents illustrations of 57 of the UK's most familiar birds of farmland and open countryside by renowned artist Stephen Message. - Species are grouped by family and helpfully labelled to assist with identification - Artworks are shown side-by-side for quick comparison and easy reference at home or in the field, or the chart can be fixed to the wall as a beautiful poster - The reverse of the chart provides information on the habitats, behaviour, life cycles and diets of our birds commonly found on farmland and in open countryside, as well as the conservation issues they are facing and how the RSPB is working to support them The ID Spotlight charts help wildlife enthusiasts identify and learn more about our most common species using accurate colour illustrations and informative, accessible text.