For the last three-quarters of a century, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service has made concentrated researches into the food habits of American birds, mammals, and fish, collecting thousands of contributions from workers throughout the nation. This tremendous amount of material has been collected, correlated, and condensed into a 500-page volume which, as one reviewer has commented, "should prove a classic in its field and a must for every naturalist." (Harold E. Anthony, Natural History).
Here you will learn of the food and feeding habits of more than 1,000 species of birds and mammals, together with their distribution in America, their migratory habits, and the most important plant-animal relationships. Not only naturalists but also sportsmen, farmers, botanists, birdwatchers, foresters, Boy Scouts, and anyone with a general interest in American wildlife will find it a useful reference book.
After a general statement of purposes, definitions, and procedures, the authors cover the food habits and range of more than 300 common species of American birds, divided into five major units: waterbirds, marshbirds and shorebirds, upland gamebirds, songbirds, and birds of prey. They go on to cover fur and game animals, small mammals, hoofed browsers, and fish, amphibians, and reptiles.
The third part of the book is devoted to all the genera of plants that furnish food to our wildlife — woody plants, upland weeds and herbs, marsh and aquatic plants, and cultivated plants. The authors give the distribution of each of the more than 300 species listed together with all the different species of birds and animals that use the plant for nourishment. The final chapter ranks wildlife plants according to their value.
"Supplies a long-felt need for a comprehensive reference on wildlife food habits." — Journal of Forestry. "Wealth of knowledge . . . of immense value." — Nature Magazine. "Will undoubtedly be an essential handbook for wildlife specialists." — Scientific Monthly.
