View Full Version : Flower, Plant and Bird Reading Recs
I'm interested in learning about some of the plants, flowers, and birds I'll come across during my upcoming hike. Any good text recommendations for use on the trail? Ideally I'm looking for a balance between content and size/weight since I'm considering packing this text with me. Thanks!
Good for you Avatar. When I get out of that gotta go go go have to be somewhere else speed/miles are king mindset that thru-hikers often adopt I really enjoy slowing down and adding to the scope of my hikes by doing exactly what you are planning. That's why some will tell you that they don't or you will not have the time to read while on a hike! They never learn to slow down, decompress, and have a deep desire to learn about the environment in which they are traveling.
I'm a landscape designer and horticulturalist with a specific interest in wildflowers. On the AT I sometimes carried 3 small handbooks just on this subject. I'm an UL hiker but I didn't regret it. If you are fortunate to by on the AT on a thru-hike the variety and masses of wildflowers you will experience are simply amazing! The same can be said for other plants, trees , birds, and wildlife. Smokey Mountains NP alone, has been described as one of the most biodiverse areas of the world, containing a vast array of both flora and fauna!
There are lots of small lighter wt handbooks specific to various regions of the AT on varying topics. I really like the Audobon handbooks for this purpose because they have decent color plates, descriptions, and are aimed at specific regions. Many books however exists on your interests. Sometimes, I've carried WP phamplets w/ some of the things you mention. Being in Atlanta I suggest you visit a large bookstore like Borders or Barnes and Noble to get suggestions and find what is appropriate for you. You will also come across appropriate info in small light wt books and pamphlets at state Visitor's/Travelers Information Centers, State Parks, National Parks, and the ocassional outfitter. You might also want to PM Emerald(here on WB) asking him about specific books because I know he has several of the same interests that you do. Sorry, I couldn't be more helpful w/ titles or authors. Those books on the AT I have are now in storage.
Enjoy your hike!
Mrs Baggins
01-05-2010, 16:33
Wildflowers of the Appalachian Trail, 2nd (Paperback)
~ Leonard Adkins (http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=ntt_athr_dp_sr_1?_encoding=UTF8&sort=relevancerank&search-alias=books&field-author=Leonard%20Adkins) (Author), Joe and Monica Cook (http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=ntt_athr_dp_sr_2?_encoding=UTF8&sort=relevancerank&search-alias=books&field-author=Joe%20and%20Monica%20Cook) (Photographer)
warraghiyagey
01-05-2010, 17:02
Roger Tory Petersen's Field Guide to North American Birds. . . it is the bird bible. . . . :sun:sun
You might also want to PM emerald (here on WB) asking him about specific books because I know he has several of the same interests that you do.
Avatar, what's your hike's approximate start date, direction and intended duration? Given that information, we'd have a better idea what you might expect to see and could make more specific recommendations.
If you haven't already read any of the threads I started, you may enjoy them. Most aren't more than a page or two and include links.
Avatar, what's your hike's approximate start date, direction and intended duration? Given that information, we'd have a better idea what you might expect to see and could make more specific recommendations.
If you haven't already read any of the threads I started, you may enjoy them. Most aren't more than a page or two and include links.
Emerald,
My plan is NOBO, starting from Springer the first week of April (2010). Barring the unforeseen, I imagine I should arrive in Maine sometime in September. I've only just joined the Whiteblaze community and there is a LOT to digest. Thanks for pointing out your threads -- I'll certainly take a look.
And thanks to the other recs so far. Good stuff!
You're welcome. It warms my heart to learn what I've written has been useful to another person.
I'll post links to some of the more common spring ephemerals as I have time.
Watch AT State Bird Challenge. I expect to assemble a list one way or another before you depart.
Graywolf
01-06-2010, 17:48
I too would like a fieldguide on the plants.. When I did my section back in August, I was amazed..Even though the wildflower season was over, there was still a lot to see....
Little purple flowers lining the trail, and mushrooms as big as your head in all shades of colors..It was beautifull..Also a centipede almost a foot and a half long..See my video on youtube for some of the pictures..
www.youtube.com/watch?v=4js-BAMpVHA (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4js-BAMpVHA)
I am only puting this in here to show you these mushrooms and centipede..Awsome...I have got to get a book..
Graywolf
warraghiyagey
01-06-2010, 18:03
I too would like a fieldguide on the plants...
... mushrooms as big as your head in all shades of colors..It was beautifull..Also a centipede almost a foot and a half long..
I am only puting this in here to show you these mushrooms and centipede..Awsome...I have got to get a book..
Graywolf
You likely won't find these in a field guide on plants. . . .
Graywolf
01-06-2010, 20:32
You likely won't find these in a field guide on plants. . . .
Ok,Ok. let me clear this up in plain english so folks with 10 year college degrees can understand,
I would like a guide book on plants, a guide book on mushrooms, and a guide book on insects....Hmmmm, have to be so technical..
Or I can just take it easy and get the "Guide book to the Flora and fauna of the Appalachian Mountains.", I think that pretty much sums it up..
You do know what flora and fauna mean, right!!!
Did I go past 10 characters??
warraghiyagey
01-06-2010, 20:35
See? Now was that so difficult? . . . :D
Graywolf
01-06-2010, 21:02
See? Now was that so difficult? . . . :D
OUCH!!!! THAT HURT!!!!:p:p
Powder River
01-14-2010, 06:15
If you are also carrying a music player, you might consider the bird, tree, flower and plant apps for the ipod touch. They are about the same price as the paper versions, have the same information, but are more versatile. For example, the bird app I have (iBird Pro) has sound files for the calls, so you can hear what the call sounds like. It is also much easier to search by category, state, zip code, season, etc. You could also carry ALL the guides with no weight penalty.
There are some really great bird books out there now.
I'd suggest one that isn't great, but is a very nice size for hiking: The Golden Field Guide to Eastern Birds by James Coe. Its a fraction of the size of even one of smaller "better" books.
The very best book to read before hiking is Paul Rezendes' book "Tracking and the Art of Seeing". Its very informative and is about a whole lot more than tracks. As a thru hiker your are going to spend a whole lot more time looking at your feet than up in the tree looking at birds.
http://www.amazon.com/Tracking-Art-Seeing-Animal-Tracks/dp/product-description/0062735241
The book is phenomenal.
Thanks everyone for the feedback. Very helpful. In fact I've decided to go with Mrs. Baggins suggestion - Wildflowers of the Appalachian Trail, 2nd (Paperback). This book is awesome - great pics and text, and much thanks to Mrs. Baggins for recommending. A tad larger (and heavier) than I'd prefer but not too bad. Although I'm fond of birding I've decided that I'm only carrying one book besides my trail guide. Wildflower-ing represents a new frontier that I'll be eager to expand on the trail. Thanks!!
Don't burden yourself with a bird field guide. What you need more unless you choose to shlep field glasses is a field guide to birds' songs. Much if not most field ornithology is done by ear anyway.
I suggest you carry an A.T. guide or a handbook and maps instead.
You will be glad should you choose to limit your pack weight to 35 lbs. I can deal with 45, but beyond that the pack becomes burdensome and one becomes more pack animal than hiker.
You can learn the common spring ephemerals and commit them to memory before you depart. Don't forget some of the most attractive wildflowers grow on trees and some of them aren't flowers either.
berkshirebirder
02-14-2010, 19:46
Just discovered this thread. The National Audubon Society publishes a series of general field guides--e.g., Field Guide to New England; Field Guide to the Mid-Atlantic.
While long-distance hikers might not want to lug the weight of a small book, these field guides are very good for anyone who'd like to learn more about the plants and wildlife along the AT.
The guides cover rocks/minerals/fossils; habitats; weather; night sky maps; pictures and text showing many of the plants and animals found in an area.
Mrs Baggins
02-15-2010, 07:10
Thanks everyone for the feedback. Very helpful. In fact I've decided to go with Mrs. Baggins suggestion - Wildflowers of the Appalachian Trail, 2nd (Paperback). This book is awesome - great pics and text, and much thanks to Mrs. Baggins for recommending. A tad larger (and heavier) than I'd prefer but not too bad. Although I'm fond of birding I've decided that I'm only carrying one book besides my trail guide. Wildflower-ing represents a new frontier that I'll be eager to expand on the trail. Thanks!!
I'm so pleased! After doing the Smokies in early May of 2008 and seeing all of the beautiful flowers I just had to know their names! I knew a few of them but I love being able to look at a plant and know it's name and that book covered everything I had seen up there. Enjoy!
Mrs Baggins
02-15-2010, 07:11
Just discovered this thread. The National Audubon Society publishes a series of general field guides--e.g., Field Guide to New England; Field Guide to the Mid-Atlantic.
While long-distance hikers might not want to lug the weight of a small book, these field guides are very good for anyone who'd like to learn more about the plants and wildlife along the AT.
The guides cover rocks/minerals/fossils; habitats; weather; night sky maps; pictures and text showing many of the plants and animals found in an area.
These are wonderful books (but kinda heavy to carry around in a pack every day) and I usually buy the Field Guides that pertain to the region we're living in at the time. Having lived in all 4 corners of the US and places in the middle, I have quite a nice collection!
I am due to start a Bushcraft Instructor course in the UK a week after I return from the US. I nearly didn't get a place as I have no background in natural history (I made up for it on the expedition side). A fair amount of the course is on tree identification and although there are a lot of trees in the US not found in the UK, it would be beneficial for me to start the practice of tree identification. I've amazoned (is that even a verb?) books but thought I'd try you guys.
I'm looking to identify trees I have no idea about from a book - based on bark, twigs, leaves etc. Any recommendations? (sorry to hijack your thread Avatar but thought the responses may be of interest to you too).
berkshirebirder
02-15-2010, 08:33
Emerald might know of something better, but I think the Audubon Field Guide to Trees is good for entry-level ID. A book that's overly technical might be less useful for your purpose.
Pringles
02-15-2010, 12:42
These are wonderful books (but kinda heavy to carry around in a pack every day) and I usually buy the Field Guides that pertain to the region we're living in at the time. Having lived in all 4 corners of the US and places in the middle, I have quite a nice collection!
I had carried the one for the Mid-Atlantic states during a section hike. As I sat on a bunk in Chestnut Knob Shelter, pooped from the day's climb, I thumbed through the book. As I thumbed through to find information on the flowers that I had seen blooming that day, I passed a few pages with pictures and information about *whales*! No wonder I was pooped, I'd carried four or five whales up that stupid hill. :D
Pringles
I'm looking to identify trees... Any recommendations?
Emerald might know of something ...
Textbook of Dendrology is the standard text for college-level dendrology courses.
Dendrology at Virginia Tech (http://www.cnr.vt.edu/dendro/dendrology/main.htm) may be the best online resource.
Woody Plants in Winter (http://www.amazon.com/Woody-Plants-Winter-EARL-CORE/dp/0937058521) by Core and Ammons is still the best book from which to learn field identification of woody plants.
Mrs Baggins
02-15-2010, 13:23
I had carried the one for the Mid-Atlantic states during a section hike. As I sat on a bunk in Chestnut Knob Shelter, pooped from the day's climb, I thumbed through the book. As I thumbed through to find information on the flowers that I had seen blooming that day, I passed a few pages with pictures and information about *whales*! No wonder I was pooped, I'd carried four or five whales up that stupid hill. :D
Pringles
I love that! :D
photos work wonders for researching later,many weekend hikers are knowledgeable.the trilium in GA.on the steep mtn.sides are amazing,many types.
Many images of plants on the web are misidentified.
The best way to locate plant images which are properly identified is to begin by looking up a plant's binomial. One could find the binomial for bloodroot by googling USDA Plants bloodroot (http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=SACA13) for instance.
Cut or copy the binomial from USDA Plants, then paste it where prompted by Google Images (http://images.google.com) or just click on Sanguinaria canadensis (http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&source=hp&q=Sanguinaria+canadensis&btnG=Search+Images&gbv=2&aq=f&oq=&aqi=) to see the results. Often better images more apt to be identified correctly may be found in this manner.
Common Trees of Pennsylvania (http://www.dcnr.state.pa.us/FORESTRY/commontr/commontrees.pdf) (PDF 2.95mb) is a 70-page online book published by Pennsylvania DCNR for general audiences.
photos work wonders for researching later,many weekend hikers are knowledgeable.the trilium in GA.on the steep mtn.sides are amazing,many types.
Agree. Don't forget a library might have the Audubon guides with the good color plates.
For a head start on tree ID, Google "Trees of Maine." "Trees of Vermont" ...
Those botany taxonomy type guides might try your patience.
Click on Hepatica nobilis L. (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/attachment.php?attachmentid=3656&d=1206450909) to view a WhiteBlaze image by Lobo of one of Appalachia's earliest Spring ephemerals. Hepaticas retain their leaves from the previous season and their flower buds are quite shallow giving them a head start on others needing to produce new leaves from deeper buds.
Flowers, actually bracts, not petals are pale pink, white or the more common blue to almost purple. New leaves are either completely dark, light or mottled. As they mature, mottled leaves reverse their colors, the light portions becoming dark and vice versa. It's an interesting phenomenon to observe, but you won't see it unless you have several days to monitor individual plants.
Spring ephemerals evolved to complete their annual ritual before canopy-forming trees leaf out. Some of these herbaceous plants shoot, flower, set, mature and disperse their seeds and are already dormant before summer arrives.
They spend more time dormant, slumbering underground, where they are unseen by passers-by, than they spend above the leaf litter. Since their period of active growth is so short, it is not surprising some of these plants may take as many 7 years to progress from seed to flowering plant and therefore it takes quite long to establish a sizeable stand.
We need to get our wildflower enthusiasts out with their cameras come Spring if we are to have the capacity to illustrate our own wildflower threads or articles.
http://www.nps.gov/grsm/naturescience/wildflowers.htm
Everyone who has broadband should experience the virtual wildflower walk.:)
berkshirebirder
02-24-2010, 01:16
I've been learning about wildflowers the past few years. That way, when birding is slow, there's something else to look for.
One of the many interesting things about these plants is their historical use in medicine and the mythology (fake science, really) that determined which plants should be used to cure what symptoms.
According to the "doctrine of signatures," physical qualities of the plant were the key to an illness and its cure. For example, Emerald mentioned Hepatica nobilis, which has tri-lobed leaves that turn brown and remain attached to the stem. Because of the leaves' liver-like appearance, early herbalists used this plant to treat what they believed were liver ailments.
In some cases, the chosen plants were helpful. In others, well, use your imagination.
One of the early spring ephemerals which may be observed on the A.T. is trout lily. For information including distribution, refer to its USDA Plants page, Erythronium americanum Ker Gawl. (http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=ERAM5)
More images are available at Google Images (http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&source=hp&q=%22Erythronium+americanum%22&btnG=Search+Images&gbv=2&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&oq=).
Don't forget some of the most attractive wildflowers grow on trees and some of them aren't flowers either.
Stay tuned for examples.
One of the most popular trees in Pennsylvania's Dutch County is its tuliptree, also known as tulip poplar.
USDA Plants Liriodendron tulipifera L. (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/Liriodendron tulipifera L.)
Google images (http://images.google.com/images?hl=en&source=hp&q=%22Liriodendron+tulipifera%22&btnG=Search+Images&gbv=2&aq=f&aqi=&aql=&oq=)
Some of the most beautiful ornamental trees of the South, silverbells are likely to be seen from the A.T., but I can't suggest a particular location to watch for them. Can anyone provide a location and flowering time?
One of my favorite trees also known as Juneberry flowers as its leaves expand. A bit over a month later its namesake fruit draws hungry birds which soon devour them all.
[USDA Plants link and infloresence images here]
I hope Avatar and others following this thread are enjoying the show which is just getting under way.
Everyone who has enjoyed what they have seen should visit Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center's image gallery (http://www.wildflower.org/gallery/) and link the best image they can find of their own favorite native A.T plant to share with the rest of us.
One of my favorite plants for use in horticultural, native plant applications is Hexastylis shuttleworthii (http://www.wildflower.org/gallery/species.php?id_plant=HESH2), one of the evergreen gingers native to the southeastern U.S. It's a beautiful plant, but it grows much more slowly than Asarum canadensis, deciduous wild ginger, a runniing plant which makes a better groundcover for shaded beds.
Disclaimer: None of what I write on WhiteBlaze is meant to be construed as encouraging collection of native plants from the wild. Gardeners interested in cultivating natives should seek out information about nurseries specializing in these plants who sell propagated, rather than wild-collected plants.
[Great] Smoky Mountains NP has been described as one of the most biodiverse areas of the world, containing a vast array of both flora and fauna!
It is also our most heavily visited National Park.
http://www.fs.fed.us/wildflowers/aboutus.shtml (http://www.fs.fed.us/wildflowers/aboutus.shtml)
Website created by USFS botanists and other specialists related to plant and pollinator conservation.
Hummingbird moths (http://www.fs.fed.us/wildflowers/pollinators/pollinator-of-the-month/hummingbird_moth.shtml)
http://www.gnps.org/
More information than most would wish to take in at one sitting and all kinds of activites offered by a number of groups with similar objectives.
mweinstone
03-19-2010, 21:26
eulle gibbons .......stalking the wild asparagus. east coast specific. cult classic. spent his years in the pa woods. no one knows the things your wanting to know better. especially love his section in each plant called. indian uses. covers edibillity. companion book , stalking the blue eyed scallop. all about shore environs. my library on this topic is unriveled i belive and you are welcome to share it. also you should ask our formost forrager, kinnikinnik, she is queen of our trails plant knowlage.i am but a pawn alas.
Graywolf
04-06-2010, 00:27
If I am not mistaken, I believe there was a guide book put out by "Wingfoot" severalyear ago, on the AT that also had a section on the floura and Fauna along the trail..
Anyone know if this guide book still exists?/I believe he stopped the updates in 2003 but cant remember..
Nimblewell Nomad had a copy with him on his hike in 1998 and he dscribes a lot of flowers in his journal/book, "Ten Million Steps"..
Graywolf
Graywolf
04-06-2010, 00:34
Just found these on teh ATC website:
Appalachian Trail Wildlife
Underfoot: Geologic guide to the Appalachian Trail
Wildflowers of the Appalachian Trail
Graywolf