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The Complete Guide to Finding the Mammals of Australia

Discussion in 'TV, Movies, Books about Zoos & Wildlife' started by Chlidonias, 27 Aug 2015.

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  1. LaughingDove

    LaughingDove Well-Known Member

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    Sounds good, thanks for the advice. I've just ordered it. :)

    (Now I'm not ordering any more books! :p My total spend on books since Saturday just crossed £100 with this!)
     
    LaughingDove, 14 Apr 2016
    #21
  2. Chlidonias

    Chlidonias Moderator Staff Member 15+ year member

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    I got one as well. Should arrive the end of next week hopefully.
     
    Chlidonias, 14 Apr 2016
    #22
  3. Hix

    Hix Wildlife Enthusiast and Lover of Islands 15+ year member Premium Member

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    The week before last I got carried away and spent over £500 on books.

    :eek:

    Hix
     
    Hix, 15 Apr 2016
    #23
  4. Chlidonias

    Chlidonias Moderator Staff Member 15+ year member

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    my copy arrived today. It was thicker and heavier than I expected (I don't have a scale so I just looked it up on Amazon which says it weighs 1.8 pounds, or 0.8kg).

    I browsed through it, especially the places I have been, and it seems very good indeed. A lot of the info is rather generalised but that is to be expected. I like that it has part of the book devoted to sites (state by state) and part as a species guide - so if you're going to be just in Melbourne you can just look up for sites there, but if you are going to lots of places and really want to see a wombat you can figure out your best options using the species guide.

    Every Australian mammal is featured in the species guide, and the mammals which became extinct post-European are also included (just in case, I guess). I was pleased to see long-beaked echidna mentioned at least twice. (See this thread on that: http://www.zoochat.com/65/long-beaked-echidna-australia-303335/).

    As for marsupial moles (from earlier in this thread), the book really gives no useful advice, simply saying "rarely seen", "if you are lucky enough to see one", and that if seen it is usually after heavy rain.

    My verdict: if you are in Australia or are going to be visiting for an animal-watching trip, then definitely buy this book.
     
    Chlidonias, 2 May 2016
    #24
  5. Hix

    Hix Wildlife Enthusiast and Lover of Islands 15+ year member Premium Member

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    I actually typed something similar in my previous post, but thought it might put you or others off purchasing the book, so I reworded it in the last paragraph.

    An excellent book.

    :p

    Hix
     
    Hix, 2 May 2016
    #25
  6. Chlidonias

    Chlidonias Moderator Staff Member 15+ year member

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    it wouldn't have put me off buying it. My strategy is still going to be "sit down in the desert and wait for one to swim past". And then I'll go look for that long-beaked echidna.
     
    Chlidonias, 2 May 2016
    #26
  7. LaughingDove

    LaughingDove Well-Known Member

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    My copy finally arrived today. (the need to order it from the US and a Polish public holiday shutting the postal service down delayed it).

    It seems to be really good. I've had a look through all of the places that I will be visiting when I visit Australia (in under one month now! :D) and Lamington National Park seems particularly tantalising for mammals.

    Some parts of the mammal finding guide at the back do seem rather pointless though (as said above). For example the entry for the Thylacine: "Sorry, folks, it's gone."
    (I can't help but wonder how much lighter it would be without the useless bits, my stack of six books to take to Australia is looking rather large and weighs 5.2 kg according to the bathroom scales! Good thing I'm flying with Emirates and their large baggage allowance).
     
    LaughingDove, 9 May 2016
    #27
  8. zooboy28

    zooboy28 Well-Known Member

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    I bought the book today, and have had a quick look through. It looks good, but to see many more mammal species than I have already seen will clearly require a bit of work. There is apparently only one relatively easy to spot species I haven't seen in my area (Southern Brown Bandicoot), but there are others around Melbourne and Victoria that are possibilities. To see many new species I'll have to hit Tasmania, Queensland or SW Western Australia, none of which are likely this year.
     
    zooboy28, 15 May 2016
    #28
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