DESERT MUSEUM UPDATES POPULAR BOOK

Tucson, AZ, November 29, 2015 (Newswire.com) - Recognized as the definitive reference source for the Sonoran Desert, the 2nd edition of A Natural History of the Sonoran Desert will be available next week in the Desert Museum’s gift shops. First published by the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum Press in 2000, this classic book is a comprehensive guide to the Sonoran Desert region, the focus of the Desert Museum’s work.

The book examines the Sonoran Desert region’s biodiversity, geology, weather, plants, and animals (from invertebrates to fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals), as well as potential threats to the species and habitats. New to the second edition are chapters on the Sky Islands, Sea of Cortez, desert pollinators, and conservation issues. Other updates include taxonomic nomenclature, new color plates and figures. The text is supplemented throughout with anecdotes, essays, photographs, maps, diagrams, and 450 finely rendered drawings.

More than forty scientists and/or naturalists worked on revising this comprehensive natural history, which is an invaluable companion for nature enthusiasts, birdwatchers, hikers, students, naturalists, and anyone interested in the desert Southwest.

The Sonoran Desert region includes much of southern and central Arizona, part of southeastern part of California, most of Baja California, and the Mexican state of Sonora. This area represents vastly different landscapes from parched desert lowlands to semiarid tropical forests and frigid subalpine meadows.

A great gift for nature enthusiasts, A Natural History of the Sonoran Desert can also be ordered through the ASDM Press catalog at www.desertmuseum.org/books/. Member discount applies.

The Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, solely interpreting the Sonoran Desert region of the United States and Mexico, is primarily an outdoor experience encompassing a zoo, botanical garden, art gallery, natural history museum and aquarium. Set on 98 acres, the Museum is home to 230 animal species, 56,000 individual plant specimens, two miles of walking paths and one of the world’s most comprehensive regional mineral collections. The Desert Museum is actively involved in education, conservation, and research programs to help preserve the Sonoran Desert region. It is open daily year-round and is located 14 miles west of Tucson, adjacent to Saguaro National Park (West).