Category: Natural History Publisher: GarryRogers/CreateSpace
ISBN-10: 1496079957
Type: Non-Fiction
Pages: 168
Copyright: Feb 26, 2014
ISBN-13: 9781496079954
The Wildlife Notebook provides current checklists and conservation status for Arizona species.
According a July 2012 report by the Arizona Game and Fish Department, over half (56%) of Arizona's 992 native vertebrate species are in danger of extinction.Almost all species are declining, but for 551 species, the State's wildlife experts have concluded that if habitat loss and environmental degradation continue at their present rate, the species will not survive.
Professional and amateur naturalists use checklists to record and track changes in species distribution.The Wildlife Notebook provides current checklists and conservation status for all of Arizona's vertebrate species.
Excerpt
Chapter 1: Introduction
This notebook contains introductions and checklists for eleven groups of Arizona vertebrates. Included are amphibians, ants, butterflies and moths, birds, dragonflies and damselflies, fish, grasshoppers, lizards, mammals, snakes, and turtles. The introduction to each group covers conservation issues and provides references for printed and online field guides with pictures and descriptions.
I assembled the notebooks to have a single place to gather notes from my journal and from the margins of the field guides I used to identify species. The principle value of the notebooks is in the checklists provided. Checklists are standard field equipment used by professional and amateur naturalists. Compiled from records of previous tours of an area, checklists let their users know what to expect, thereby narrowing the possibilities, and simplifying identification of the species sighted.
Records of species sightings should include at least the location and date. Other details (if known) such as time of day, sex, number, and so forth, are helpful. Photographs should be taken if possible.
Species checklists are most convenient when they cover small areas of interest. Checklists for valleys, mountains, and urban areas are ideal, but very few are available. The checklists in this notebook cover the entire State of Arizona. By recording species sightings in your neighborhood or region, you will be building a valuable resource for other naturalists.
