Costa Rica: The Ecotraveller's Wildlife Guide (Ecotravellers Wildlife Guides) [Paperback]

Les Beletsky (Author)

Book Description

Series: Ecotravellers Wildlife Guides | Publication Date: September 15, 1998

With Costa Rica: The Ecotravelers Wildlife Guide, Les Beletsky provides the tourist to Central America with an invaluable handbook to natural history, ecology, and wildlife habitats. The readable, informative text along with photos and drawings will help the ecotourist to identify animals encountered on their visit. Also included are lists of wildlife reserves and other ecologically significant sites with up-to-date conservation techniques in Costa Rica. It is the only book that gives the reader a mix of natural history, ecology, conservation, species identification and site guide all in one volume.

Key Features
* The only guide to Costa Rica to combine general ecological information with basic species identification
* Readable, informative text
* Plates of species with photos of typical habitats and drawings of common plants
* Lists of Reserves and sites to visit
* Up-to-date text on conservation in Costa Rica

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

As ecotourism booms, it's only natural that eco-themed guidebooks would boom alongside it. The Ecotravellers' Wildlife Guides series, endorsed by the Wildlife Conservation Society and researched by professional biologists, is one of the more credible brands to have surfaced in the swelling ecotravel ranks. The series provides an encyclopedic introduction to Central America's flora and fauna, as well as a friendly primer on the principles of ecotourism. These rich ecological contexts are accompanied by hundreds of pictures and photographs. Miraculously, the guides deliver solid science without growing stilted or boring--as evinced by sections with such titles as "Avian Mating Systems and Birds That Cheat" and "Frugivory: Animals That Eat Fruit and the Trees That Want Them To." The one element in surprisingly short supply is ecologically sound travel tips, from general do's and don'ts to a list of ecologically responsible tour operators and other eco-friendly establishments in Costa Rica. This is somewhat discouraging--learning how to travel responsibly is as important as knowing what you're going to see. Though the book isn't quite a one-stop information source for the ecologically minded, it's an excellent guide to the natural wonders that make Costa Rica such a rewarding destination. --Andrew Nieland

Review

"This book is a very fine purchase. ...this is a must for the first time visitor to Costa Rica, a good buy for visitors to central America and entertaining reading for newcomers to natural history study."
—Roy John in THE CANADIAN FIELD-NATURALIST (March 2000)
"a well-illustrated and comprehensive travel book to accompany you... It contains information about the most frequently encountered animals of Costa Rica and a guide to the best way of seeing them. ...There is information about the current conservation status of many species and general conservation throughout Costa Rica; making this an interesting read rather than just a travel book."
—Nicola Lace in ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION AND INFORMATION (September 1999)
"...for anyone planning to travel to this easily accessible country, I would recommend it highly... The plates and illustrations are very good, and the text both readable and informative."
—NORTH AMERICAN BIRD BANDER (July/September 1999)
"The illustrations are superb, the text simple and direct... If you go, take this book."
—BIRDS (Summer 1999)
"The information this superb book provides about Costa Rica's land vertebrates will enhance the enjoyment of the tropics by enviromentally conscious readers who travel to those areas. This is the perfect field book for the general tourist who has an interest in exploring tropical environs."
—William R. Teska in SCIENCE BOOKS AND FILMS (June 1999)
"There are so many bad guides on the market trying to do what this book does so simply and so well. ...few are written with the same authority and attention to detail that wildlife biologist and zoology lecturer Les Beletsky has brought to bear in this volume. ...It could be the best (money) you spend all trip."
—Nick Baker in BBC WILDLIFE (June 1999)
"I certainly would recommend this book to anyone travelling to Costa Rica, whether serious birder or general naturalist."
—Paul Donald in BTO NEWS (May/June 1999)
"The information this superb book provides about Costa Rica's land vertebrates will enhance the enjoyment of the tropics by environmentally conscious readers who travel to those areas. ...This is the perfect field book for the general tourist who has an interest in exploring tropical environs..."
—William R. Teska, Furman University, in SCIENCE BOOKS AND FILMS (May/June 1999)
"...designed for the traveler who has an all-round interest in natural history but doesn't want to be weighed down by half-a-dozen field guides. ...These are books I would certainly want to read before a visit..."
—Gordon Hamlett in BIRDWATCHING (May 1999)
"You could empty a forest's worth of trees, what with all the books being printed about Costa Rica. Pity that so few guides so fully focus on the country's ecological treasures as this one does. ...About half of its 426 slick pages are devoted to identification plates, those colorful drawings that, for instance, help you differentiate between the mealy parrott and the red-lored parrot. Joining the multitude of bird species are equally fine drawings of reptiles, monkeys, and wild cats."
—Toni Stroud in CHICAGO TRIBUNE (1999)
"This book is exactly what you want to be reading on a plane headed for Costa Rica for the first time."
—THE CONDOR (1999)
"...any visitor to Costa Rica should find this an attractive and useful guide."
—Ray Waters in HABITAT (1999)
"The text is accurate and well-researched. ...This excellent book can be thoroughly recommended to those eco-travellers who have yet to indulge themselves in Costa Rica's wildlife, or for those who already have most of the comprehensive field guides, but for whom this book covers some previously poorly covered subjects, such as amphibians and reptiles and ecotourism in Costa Rica. If you have not yet had the pleasure of visiting Costa Rica, buying this book may well persuade you to go."
—Nick Smith in IBIS (1999)
"This book is likely to be very useful to first-time visitors to Costa Rica, both casual tourists and scientists contemplating serious research on tropical organisms."
—COPEIA (1999)
"Without doubt those travelling to Costa Rica who are interested in wildlife, other than just that which flies, will find The Ecotraveller's Wildlife Guide to Costa Rica by Les Beletsky is a must. ...As an introduction to the wildlife of Costa Rica it is an excellent guide for those on package holidays with set destinations and is likely to be the only guide that is needed. ...Without doubt it is the best wildlife guide covering this Central American country."
—Dave Coles in AGRICULTURAL MAGAZINE (1998)
"...this convenient field guide-sized book is absolutely packed with information for the visitor. This book provides excellent background and field information for a trip to Costa Rica and is strongly recommended."
—Steve Gantlett in BIRDING WORLD (1998)

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 426 pages
• Publisher: Academic Press (September 15, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0120848104
• ISBN-13: 978-0120848102
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #849,952 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Les Beletsky is a professional wildlife biologist and former university biology teacher. Prior to taking up full-time writing, he conducted many years of field research into the ecology and behavior of birds, publishing many scientific reports and two technical books on birds. An avid global birder and ecotraveler, he has visited numerous sites in the Americas, Africa, Asia and in the Australian region. He currently makes his home in Seattle, Washington.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

33 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars As Goldilocks would say "just right', March 14, 2000

By 

Georgina M Schrock (Spokane, Washington) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Costa Rica: The Ecotraveller's Wildlife Guide (Ecotravellers Wildlife Guides) (Paperback)

Not too big, not too small. Just the right amount of information. This book is exceptionally easy to read. It's well organized, funny and full of good science and interesting lore. Two other qualities makes this book outstanding. First, it describes and illustrates only the birds that you are most likely to see. Other books gave me too many choices. This was my first try at birding and of the 55 different birds I saw, all but one were in this book. Second, this book also covers all the other wildlife that you may be lucky enough to see. Monkeys, lizards, coatis, and red poison- dart frogs - they're all in there. However, if you like being a loner don't buy this book. It's a friend maker - everyone wanted to borrow it. Wherever we went it was "Can I see your book for a minute please? You may want to bring or read more books but...this is the one you'll always carry in your backpack and bring to the breakfast table. Enjoy!

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Resource, February 10, 2002

By 

M. Kirshenbaum (Marblemount, WA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Costa Rica: The Ecotraveller's Wildlife Guide (Ecotravellers Wildlife Guides) (Paperback)

This book provides a fascinating, well-written and often humorous overview of Costa Rican natural history as well as a detailed description of the most often seen wildlife. I cannot overstate how much this book enhanced my trip to Costa Rica and gave me a greater understanding of what I was seeing. It is not exhaustive, but unless you want to carry multiple, subject-specific books with you, this is the one to bring. It had information on virtually every bird and creature I saw there.

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A must-carry reference for the ecotourist in Costa Rica!, January 4, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Costa Rica: The Ecotraveller's Wildlife Guide (Ecotravellers Wildlife Guides) (Paperback)

This is the first really comprehensive, backback-suitable wildlife guide for ecotouring in Costa Rica that I've come across. It combines information from the best possible sources and includes much of what you are likely to encounter in various regions of the country. Well-organized and easy to use, this is a must-carry reference guide! My thanks and congratulations to the author!