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Recommended Reading

Here’s a collection of some of our favorite books to inspire and help prepare visitors for a visit to the Vermilion Sea Field Station. And for those of you who can’t visit us in person, diving into the pages of these books written by authors with a connection to this special place will surely transport you here! 

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The Plastics Project Handbook

The Plastics Project Handbook

This handbook offers general guidance and inspiration for informal and formal educators looking to engage youth in participatory forms of environmental science (e.g., marine debris and climate justice) education, research, and action. The primary goals of the handbook are to:

  • Support youth in conducting participatory environmental science education around an environmental justice issue;
  • Provide guiding principles and lab practices for educators interested in taking up community and/or youth participatory science methods;
  • Offer a variety of activities designed using the Guiding Learning Principles that can be modified so youth engage youth in consequential and critical thinking;
  • Emphasize justice-oriented scientific sensemaking and show how this might be taken up through learning.

Handbook Authors and Editors: Kelsie Fowler, Lyda Harris, Meghann McDonald, & Claire Fenkia Cordero Romero

Vermilion Sea: A Naturalist's Journey in Baja California

Vermilion Sea: A Naturalist's Journey in Baja California

Janovy (biology, Univ. of Nebraska) describes a journey to Baja California in search of the landscape described in John Steinbeck’s Sea of Cortez . Along the way he muses on the changing nature of scientific research in the 1990s, noting that most of it has become a scramble for bio-tech dollars conducted in areas chosen to garner grant money and patents rather than based on personal interest. Besides describing Baja’s natural history, Janovy explores topics ranging from a biologist’s place in society to the effects of population and information explosions. This work transcends the traditional “field study” by examining how modern pressures have changed scientists and their research. Recommended for science, natural history, and travel collections.

Tim Markus, Evergreen State Coll. Lib., Olympia, Wash.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Telling Our Way to the Sea

Telling Our Way to the Sea

When biologists Aaron Hirsh and Veronica Volny lead twelve college students to a remote fishing village on the Sea of Cortez, they encounter a bay of dazzling beauty and richness. But as the group begins its investigations―conducting ecological and evolutionary studies of the area and its natural inhabitants; listening to the stories of local villagers; and examining the journals of conquistadors and explorers―they realize that the sea is but a ghost of what it once was. And yet there is redemption in their difficult realization: as they find their places in a profoundly altered environment, they also recognize their roles in the path ahead, and ultimately come to see themselves in a new light. By turns epic and intimate, Telling Our Way to the Sea is a profound meditation on our changing relationships with nature―and with one another.

Tidepool Wonders of the Sea of Cortez

Tidepool Wonders of the Sea of Cortez

Beautifully drawn specimens using classic scientific drawing techniques. This collection was carefully crafted by Dr. Farmer, whose paintings can also be found on the walls in select corners of the Vermilion Sea Field Station.

Between Pacific Tides

Between Pacific Tides

One of the classic works of marine biology, a favorite for generations, has now been completely revised and expanded. “Between Pacific Tides” is a book for all who find the shore a place of excitement, wonder, and beauty, and an unsurpassed introductory text for both students and professionals.
This book describes the habits and habitats of the animals that live in one of the most prolific life zones of the world the rocky shores and tide pools of the Pacific Coast of the United States. The intricate and fascinating life processes of these creatures are described with affectionate care. The animals are grouped according to their most characteristic habitat, whether rocky shore, sandy beach, mud flat, or wharf piling, and the authors discuss their life history, physiology, and community relations, and the influence of wave shock and shifting tide level.
Though the basic purpose and structure and much of the text of the book remain the same, content has been increased by about 20 percent; a multitude of changes and addition s has been made in the text; the Annotated Systematic Index and General Bibliography have been updated and greatly expanded (now almost 2,300 entries); more than 200 new photographs and drawings have been incorporated; and an entirely new chapter has been added a topical presentation of the several factors influencing distribution of organisms along the shore. This edition also includes John Steinbeck’s Foreword to the 1948 edition.

The Forgotten Peninsula: A Naturalist in Baja California

The Forgotten Peninsula: A Naturalist in Baja California

“The author deftly weaves the materials of natural and human history into a radiant, tightly woven fabric. . .  This classic is a book for all seasons to be reread and savored over the years.”
– Latin America in Books

“His superb writing style and the timelessness of his subject (the natural world and the interaction of human beings with it) make this every bit as enjoyable today as it was in the 1960’s.”
– Books of the Southwest

“Well-written and fascinating.” – Journal of Arid Environments

Other Links to Check Out

Header photo by Alex Jordan