Now in an extensively revised 3rd edition, Mammals of the Great Lakes Region has been an essential reference for countless amateur and professional naturalists since 1957. Easily tucked into a backpack and carried into the field, this heavily illustrated guidebook offers detailed information on 83 species, including each mammal's appearance, behaviour, and natural history, along with an explanation of its scientific name. Species accounts are accompanied by new colour photographs plus fully updated distribution maps showing the geographic range in the Great Lakes region and in North America.
A thorough introduction outlines the environmental factors that affect the distribution and abundance of mammals in Great Lakes ecosystems and discusses the impacts of current human activities, including introduction of diseases and climate change. There is also a section on preparing captured specimens for research or teaching, as well as user-friendly keys and quick reference tables to physical measurements and life history data. Brand new in this edition, Mammals of the Great Lakes Region also features detailed illustrations of the tracks of commonly found mammals to assist with year-round identification. Providing the most up-to-date information on mammals in the Great Lakes basin, Mammals of the Great Lakes Region belongs on the shelves of teachers, students, naturalists, and professional biologists throughout the region.
Allen Kurta is Professor of Biology, Eastern Michigan University. His research for the past 40 years has focused on the ecology and behaviour of bats, with an emphasis on the Indiana bat and northern long-eared bat.
"[Kurta has written] a smooth-flowing book suitable for both occasional consultation and longer stretches of continuous reading, with well-spaced interjections of humor, anecdote, or interesting trivia [...] Academic, professional, and armchair naturalists alike with any ties to or interest in the Great Lakes Region would be well served to invest in this book."
– Journal of Mammalogy
"Al Kurta's third edition of the Mammals of the Great Lakes Region has entered the realm of a classic natural history reference source. It is a perfect hybrid of an amateur naturalist's field guide and a professional biologist's textbook. The latest iteration builds on the wealth of biological information compiled from the past century with the addition of recent scientific research that is all nicely repackaged in a newly color-illustrated publication."
– Burton Lim, Royal Ontario Museum
" [...] the 3rd edition of a book that has long been an essential resource for amateur naturalists and professional biologists alike, this beautifully written field guide provides updated descriptions, current range maps, and high-quality color photographs for the 83 mammal species of the Great Lakes basin [...] the author has skillfully combined tools for identification with a concise overview of significant, often astonishing, aspects of each species ecology and behavior, making for an enjoyable read."
– Barbara Lundrigan, Michigan State University