National Audubon Society Field Guide To North American Seashells Download Free (EPUB, PDF)
The essential book for beach-combers and divers, this guide explores more than 705 seashells, living mollusks, abalone, periwinkles, conchs, limpets, oysters, clams, mussels, and cockles found on the Atlantic, Pacific, and Gulf coasts of North America and the West Indies. The photographs are arranged by shape and color, making identification quick and easy.
Paperback: 896 pages
Publisher: Knopf; Reprint edition (August 12, 1981)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0394519132
ISBN-13: 978-0394519135
Product Dimensions: 4.1 x 1.4 x 7.7 inches
Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (72 customer reviews)
Best Sellers Rank: #51,080 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #6 in Books > Science & Math > Biological Sciences > Animals > Seashells #57 in Books > Science & Math > Nature & Ecology > Oceans & Seas #245 in Books > Science & Math > Nature & Ecology > Fauna
This excellent guide has unique detailed information on seashells found on the Pacific, Atlantic and Gulf coasts of North America as well as well as the West Indies. A picture paints a thousand words, not to mention a fully coloured photograph of each of the 705 different species of seashells or living mollusk. In addition to these detailed photographs, the author of the book managed to include original and useful information on every seashell, revealing how each seashell is unique. Some of these information cannot be found in any other book, making this book essential to every seashell collector. 671 seashells are covered in full detail with notes provided on 200 others. This amazing book consists of 896 pages of detailed photographs and extensive text showing the great diversity of American seashells. To be a qualified seashell collector, you have got to get this book! Don't wait any longer, purchase the book from !
The Audubon Guide to Seashells is one of the best known and most reliable field references. Whether beachcombing, snorkeling over a reef, or searching a tidepool, this guide will come in handy for all those locations. Many seashells are listed in this guide, coming out at more than 600 in all. The shells are a feast for the eyes, coming in all shapes, colors, and patterns. The best and most admirable family covered are the Limpets. From dull green to stunning black and white striped, this is the most detailed and beautiful family listed in the book. Cone snails are also covered very well. The main question here is: Why does the book have negative ratings? Flipping to the back for details may be tiresome for lazy readers. There is nothing unprofessional about the book in any way. It VERY professional and a good recommendation.
This book does an unusually fine job of including lots of info without becoming too bulky and cumbersome to carry in the field. Photos of the 700+ specimens measure a compact 3.5 X 2 inches. Most show front and back of the shell, a big help since they differ so much. Sometimes if a species varies a lot there are multiple specimens. Write-ups of species are on much thinner paper than the photos, helping to keep the book's size down. They include 1) detailed descriptions pointing out both variations and consistencies from one shell to another of that species, 2) a short note on habitat, 3) another on range 4) and sometimes added info that doesn't fit into those categories. I bought this book to identify three shells I saw in California. Two of them were in it. This is a great little book that I wouldn't want to be without.
As with all the Audubon Field Guides, so too with this one. The color plates are the best in the "field" of field guides; these photos are indispensable for any beachcomber or shell collector.The durable leatherette cover and heavy duty book binding make this a book that can stand up to alot of wear and tear.The descriptive information is generally good; where the text starts to show deficiencies is in the range, habitat, and summary sections of each shell. The information is vague and merely glosses over critical facts that should be included. I can only assume it's the usual story of not enough space for the editors to include more relevant information.The index is cross referenced to the color plates; this is a big plus when in the field trying to do identifications. Pretty straight forward as far as using this as a tool to increase one's knowledge.All in all, this book is very helpful and deserves a place in any beachcomber's library.The Cloud ReckonerExtracts: A Field Guide for Iconoclasts
I like to photograph beach objects and was looking for a book to identify them. This is an excellent source. It is well organized and the photographs are excellent.
The National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Seashells is very much along the lines of Audubon's guides to the birds. It is small and pocketable. It is also a comprehensive guide to not only North American species but of Mollusks, Abalones, periwinkles, conchs, cockels and includes species covering the Atlantic, Pacific and from the West Indies. 705 photographs are presented covering 671 seashells.This book contains nearly 900 pages of information. The first half of the book is composed of color plates with very clear photos of the creature's shells, presenting both the top and bottom sides of the shells. They are photographed on attractive sand or rock backgrounds. The second part of the book gives a description of the various species including size, range and habitat. Both the common and scientific names are included in the text. The descriptions are brief but sufficient for anyone except marine biologists who might require a more detailed account. There is also a very nice glossary that defines some of the biological terms used in the various descriptions.My collection consists largely of specimens collected in the Philippines, nevertheless, I was able to identify most of my collection, although some varieties were not exactly like those shown in the book. So the range of species appears to be greater than stated.This is an excellent comprehensive quide for anyone who likes to search the beaches for seashells and would like to know a little more about them.
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