John C. KricherCríticas

Very enjoyable lecture series about dinosaurs. While it is 10 years out of date (see the new information that's come to light recently about T-Rex's cousin for instance), the information is still fascinating and relevant.

I will keep an eye out for more Modern Scholars to listen to in the future.

I like the Peterson Forest field guides like this one because rather than helping you identify a full range of endemic species of plants or animals, it tries to encapsulate the key characteristics of the region's ecological zones. So in this guide you learn about the dominant or indicator species of various areas of the west (from Sonoran desert to boreal forest), why going up a mountain ends up being like an ecological trip hundreds of miles northward, and what effects climate and rainfall have on the species found. I felt like in a short period of reading that I could understand what's going on in a redwood forests compared to a giant sequioa grove, or why certain areas of oregon have douglas firs and others have oak-pine forests.

An entertaining and informative discourse on dinosaurs

Interesting and easy to listen to. Coolest thing I learned is why the huge plant eaters actually had enough food without depleting the entire continent is because they were actually mesothermic and therefore only needed about the same amount of food as a bison! Valuable information I'm sure!

Old Children's Book. Liked it as a kid, but haven't read it in years.

This is a great book for anyone taking a tourist trip to the Neotropics and who wants a better understanding of what they'll be seeing. While the illustrations are beautiful, they lack examples of commonly mentioned plants. Included photographic plates would be a definite plus. Although it's probably the best example I've seen of scientific writing for the layman, at times it seems to try too hard to walk the line between the average traveler and someone with an advanced education in the ecological sciences. In other words, it is probably too detailed for one and not sufficiently detailed for the other. Still, a fun read.

Excellent, quick reference for the lay forester.

A Neotropical Companion is a sort of travel guide, textbook and scientific monograph all rolled into one. It's very serious when weighing differing opinions on, for instance, the formation and persistence of savannah. Every twenty pages or so, however, the author throws in a little pun or strange animal sighting to keep you smiling (e.g. "hamburgers on the halfshell" p. 211 or "Bullet ants tend to be rather solitary, but one is quite enough" p. 328). Great read for travelers, naturalists or anyone interested in tropical ecosystems.

Informative readings on the ecology of Latin America. I learned a lot.

The Modern Scholar Series is an Imprint of Recorded Books, the world leader in everything in audiobooks. Professor Kricher sheds his expertise in a short 7 hour course on the these "fearfully great reptiles". This Wheaton College Professor is a delight to listen to. The only reason that I didn't give it the coveted 5 stars is that on a few occasions I caught the Professor reading his notes, instead of lecturing them. This is a barely worth mentioning, because I enjoyed the course fully, and respect this man, and the way he conveys his knowledge to Modern Scholar's, such as myself. I highly recommend this lecture, and all other lectures in the Modern Scholar series from Recorded Books. Talk about a free education from the worlds most reknown Professor's in all the land, take advantage. Go to your local library, and ask for the Modern Scholar from Recorded Books, if they don't have them, I'm sure they know about them. If your library does not have any, I would be glad to send you a copy of a course. I'm lucky to work for Recorded Books. Contact me, and let's have a chat.½

A great reference and a must-read before your first eco-trip to Central or South America.½

Josh and Katie

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English