Chicago Botanic Garden

Education — Lenhardt Library

Current Books & Book Reviews

PHOTO: bookcover

Jean–Luc E. Cartron, David C. Lightfoot, Jane E Mygatt,
Sandra L Brantley, and Timothy K. Lowrey.
A Field Guide to the Plants and Animals of the Middle Rio Grande Bosque.
Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 2008.
flexible decorated covers, 375 pp., ISBN 978–0–82634–269–0, $21.95.

Located in the southern portion of New Mexico, the Middle Rio Grande Bosque, a cottonwood forest, is part of a complete riverside ecosystem. No longer a free-flowing stream, the water, the cause of the woodland’s existence, supports a wide range of plants and animals in an otherwise arid landscape. This handy guide describes the physical and environmental setting prior to a discussion of the types of habitats that serve as home to more than 700 plants and animals, all depicted within the pages of this work. Extensively illustrated with color photographs, the book is user-friendly with color-coded pages for ease in handling while in the field. A map of the area accompanies directions to the main places to visit and other information about the locale.

— Marilyn K. Alaimo, garden writer and volunteer, Chicago Botanic Garden.