Vincent Carruthers has spent his entire adult life living and working in the Magaliesberg. He led the campaign to have the region proclaimed a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve in 2015 and worked with the teams that nominated the World Heritage Site. An award-winning, influential environmentalist, he has written and contributed to a wide range of publications, among them The Magaliesberg, Wildlife of Southern Africa, and A Complete Guide to the Frogs Southern Africa (with Louis du Preez).

  • Cradle of Life

    The Cradle of Humankind World Heritage Site situated in the heart of the Magaliesberg Biosphere Reserve is the jewel in South Africa’s evolutionary crown: an area ‘of outstanding universal value’, it has attracted world-wide interest and furnished key evidence about where, when and how we came to be. The greater Magaliesberg area is peppered with some 200 caves and has a unique geology, history and biodiversity. For decades now, specialists have been combing the area to uncover evidence of our heritage.

    In his spectacular new title, Vincent Carruthers guides readers along a timeline, from the birth of our planet through to developments of the twenty first century. Along the way he documents the formation of our landscapes and the emergence of life, the rise of hominins, the stone and iron ages, early settlement, migrations, wars and modern developments in the Magaliesberg – the entire evolution of life up to the present, as we know it.

    Vividly illustrated with photographs, maps and diagrams, Cradle of Life portrays the intrigue and importance of the site, taking readers on a magical journey of discovery.

    R400.00
  • Frogs of Southern Africa: A Complete Guide

    Frogs of Southern Africa: A Complete Guide remains the most authoritative and comprehensive treatment of the frogs of the region ever produced, covering all aspects of frog and tadpole biology and behaviour.

    This new edition (with a slight name change) has been thoroughly updated to reflect taxonomic changes based on the most recent research and DNA studies, and includes 12 new species and more than 130 new images. All 169 southern African frog species, and their tadpole stages, are fully described, along with their conservation status, calls, habitat and habits. Identification is made easy with the aid of over 1000 large, full-colour images, keys to species and summary panels on ‘Key ID points’ and ‘Distinctive characters’.

    Calls for most species can be accessed instantly via QR codes in the book or downloaded from a dedicated website. Spectrograms of the calls are also included in the book.

    Written by respected authorities in the field, this timely updated edition will be of benefit to all nature lovers, amateur ‘froggers’, students and professional scientists.

    R660.00
  • Natuurlewe van Suider-Afrika

    Hierdie gewilde veldgids tot die natuurlewe van Suider-Afrika, jare lank al ’n vertroude metgesel van natuurliefhebbers, is nou omvattend bygewerk. Dit bied beskrywings en akkurate illustrasies in volle kleur van meer as 2,000 plante en diere asook verspreidingskaarte vir die meeste groepe. Elke hoofstuk het sy eie kleurkode om naslaan te vergemaklik en uitkenmerke in die beskrywings is in vetdruk. Elke hoofstuk is geskryf deur ’n kenner op sy gebied.

    Al die vernaamste plant- en diergroepe is ingesluit:

    • Laer ongewerweldes
    • Spinnekoppe en ander spinagtiges
    • Insekte
    • Varswatervisse
    • Paddas
    • Reptiele
    • Voëls
    • Soogdiere
    • Grasse, biesies, varings en swamme
    • Veldblomme
    • Bome
    R450.00
  • Wildlife of Southern Africa

    This long-standing, trusted field guide to the wildlife of southern Africa has been comprehensively updated and now includes distribution maps. It describes over 2,000 plants and animals, each accompanied by accurate illustrations in full colour. This book has been a trusted field companion for many years. Comprehensively updated, it now features range maps for most groups. The chapters are colour-coded for easy reference, and diagnostic features appear in bold type within the descriptions. Each chapter is written by a leading expert in the field.

    All the main plant and animal groups are covered:

    • Lower invertebrates
    • Spiders and other arachnids
    • Insects
    • Freshwater fishes
    • Frogs
    • Reptiles
    • Birds
    • Mammals
    • Grasses, hedges, ferns and fungi
    • Wild flowers
    • Trees
    R450.00
  • Frogs and Frogging in Southern Africa

    Frogs & Frogging in South Africa offers amateur froggers an accessible and practical introduction to frog identification. This second edition of the highly popular guide has been expertly revised and fully updated to reflect the latest advances in taxonomy and nomenclature. It is now also available in Afrikaans as Paddas en Paddajolyt. It offers:

    all of the species in Africa south of latitude 22 °S;
    a section on frog biology and behaviour;
    how to photograph frogs and record their calls;
    how to attract frogs to your garden, and ideas for projects such as building a pond;
    the range of frog species to be found in different environmental niches;
    maps and colourful photographs with the updated accounts;
    a new key to the identification of tadpole genera;
    a CDwith all 115 frog calls, which offer one of the best ways to find.

     

    R300.00
  • Fauna und Flora im Sudlichen Afrika

    Published for the first time in German, this is the first local field guide to cover all the commonly encountered plants and animals of the southern African region in one compact and easy-to-use volume. More than 2 000 species (1 200 of them illustrated)

    R450.00