# New Naturalist

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The **New Naturalist Library** (also known as **The New Naturalists**) is a series of books published by [Collins](/source/HarperCollins) in the [United Kingdom](/source/United_Kingdom), on a variety of [natural history](/source/Natural_history) topics relevant to the [British Isles](/source/British_Isles). The aim of the series at the start was: "To interest the general reader in the wild life of Britain by recapturing the inquiring spirit of the old naturalists."[1] An editors' preface to a 1952 monograph says: "An object of the *New Naturalist* series is the recognition of the many-sidedness of British natural history, and the encouragement of unusual and original developments of its forgotten or neglected facets."[2]

## History

The first volume to appear was [E. B. Ford](/source/E._B._Ford)'s *Butterflies* in 1945. The authors of this series are usually eminent experts, often professional scientists. This gives the series authority, and many are or have been authoritative introductory textbooks on a subject for some years. The books are written in scientific style, but are intended to be readable by the non-specialist, and are an early example of [popular science](/source/Popular_science) in the media.

The books of the series have had considerable influence on many students who later became professional biologists, such as [W. D. Hamilton](/source/W._D._Hamilton) and [Mike Majerus](/source/Mike_Majerus).[3] The latter was inspired by Ford's *Butterflies* and *Moths*,[4] and has since added two volumes of his own to the series.

A parallel series known as the *New Naturalist Monograph Library* (and often referred to as *The New Naturalist Special Volumes*) was also published. Its aim was to cover "in greater detail... a single species or group of species".[1] There have been no additions to the *Monograph Library* since 1971.

Volume 82 of the main series, *The New Naturalists*,[5] described the series to date, with authors' biographies and a guide to collecting the books.

The original editorial board consisted of [Julian Huxley](/source/Julian_Huxley), [James Fisher](/source/James_Fisher_(naturalist)), [Dudley Stamp](/source/Dudley_Stamp), [John Gilmour](/source/John_Gilmour_(botanist)) and [Eric Hosking](/source/Eric_Hosking).[6] Until 1985, the highly characteristic [dust jacket](/source/Dust_jacket) illustrations were by [Rosemary](/source/Rosemary_Ellis) and [Clifford Ellis](/source/Clifford_Ellis); since then they have been by [Robert Gillmor](/source/Robert_Gillmor).

Being a numbered series, with a very low [print run](/source/Print_run) for some volumes, the books are highly [collectable](/source/Collecting). [Second-hand](/source/Second-hand) copies of the rarer volumes, in good condition, can command high prices. The 100th volume, *Woodlands* by [Oliver Rackham](/source/Oliver_Rackham) was published in 2006. *Woodlands* (volume 100) was also published in 2006 as a "[leatherbound](/source/Leather)" edition, limited to 100 copies. In fact it was fake leather.[citation needed] The second "leatherbound" *New Naturalist* - *Dragonflies* by [Philip Corbet](/source/Philip_S._Corbet) and [Stephen Brooks](/source/Steve_Brooks_(entomologist)) - was published in 2008. The (fake) leather edition of *Dragonflies* (volume 106) was initially limited to 400 copies, which was subsequently limited to 303, and finally to 250. According to the New Naturalist website[citation needed] only 217 were actually sold and the remaining unsold stock is being kept secure at HarperCollins's offices. HarperCollins continue to produce limited numbers of "leatherbound" editions of all volumes published since *Dragonflies*, but only from *Islands* (volume 109) was real leather actually used. All recent volumes have only 50 leatherbound copies.

The series won the 2007 British Book Design and Production Award for "brand or series identity",[7] and in 2008 the [official website](http://www.newnaturalists.com) was launched, with features including the latest news, a members only area with access to exclusive content and downloads, and a forum.

In around 1990, Bloomsbury produced a series of facsimile editions, as hardbacks with new dustjacket designs, and with all plates in black and white, including those which were originally in colour.

## Main series

(B) refers to the Bloomsbury reprints.

Number Title Author(s) Editions 1 Butterflies E. B. Ford 1945, 1946, 1957, 1977, 1990 (B) 2 British Game Brian Vesey-Fitzgerald 1946 3 London's Natural History R. S. R. Fitter 1945, 1990 (B) 4 Britain's Structure and Scenery L. Dudley Stamp 1946, 1947, 1949, 1955, 1960, 1967 5 Wild Flowers John Gilmour and Max Walters 1954, 1955, 1962, 1969, 1973, 1990 (B) 6a Natural History in the Highlands and Islands F. Fraser Darling 1947 6b The Highlands and Islands F. Fraser Darling and J. M. Boyd 1964, 1973, 1989 (B) 7 Mushrooms and Toadstools John Ramsbottom 1953, 1989 (B) 8 Insect Natural History A. D. Imms 1947, 1956, 1971, 1990 (B) 9 A Country Parish A. W. Boyd 1951 10 British Plant Life W. B. Turrill 1948, 1958, 1962, 1989 (B) 11 Mountains and Moorlands W. H. Pearsall 1950, 1989 (B) 12 The Sea Shore C. M. Yonge 1949, 1966, 1990 (B) 13 Snowdonia F. J. North, B. Campbell and R. Scott 1949 14 The Art of Botanical Illustration Wilfrid Blunt 1950 15 Life in Lakes and Rivers[8] T. T. Macan and E. B. Worthington 1951, 1968, 1974, 1990 (B) 16 Wild Flowers of Chalk and Limestone J. E. Lousley 1950, 1969, 1989 (B) 17 Birds and Men Max Nicholson 1951, 1990 (B) 18a A Nat. Hist. of Man in Britain H. J. Fleure 1951 18b A Natural History of Man in Britain H. J. Fleure and Margaret Davies 1970, 1989 (B) 19 Wild Orchids of Britain V. S. Summerhayes 1951, 1968 20 The British Amphibians and Reptiles Malcolm Smith 1951, 1954, 1964, 1969, 1972 21 British Mammals L. Harrison Matthews 1952, 1968, 1989 (B) 22 Climate and the British Scene Gordon Manley 1952 23 An Angler's Entomology J. R. Harris 1952, 1956, 1990 (B) 24 Flowers of the Coast Ian Hepburn 1952 25 The Sea Coast J. A. Steers 1953, 1954, 1962, 1969 26 The Weald S. W. Wooldridge and F. Goldring 1953 27 Dartmoor L. A. Harvey and D. St Leger-Gordon 1953, 1962 28 Sea-Birds James Fisher and R. M. Lockley 1954, 1989 (B) 29 The World of the Honeybee Colin G. Butler 1954 30 Moths E. B. Ford 1954, 1967, 1972 31 Man and the Land L. Dudley Stamp 1955, 1964, 1969 32 Trees, Woods and Man H. L. Edlin 1956, 1966, 1970 33 Mountain Flowers John Raven and Max Walters 1956 34 The Open Sea: The World of Plankton Alister Hardy 1956, 1970 35 The World of the Soil Sir E. John Russell 1957, 1959, 1963, 1967, 1971 36 Insect Migration C. B. Williams 1958, 1965 37 The Open Sea: Fish & Fisheries Alister Hardy 1959, 1964, 1970 38 The World of Spiders W. S. Bristowe 1958 39 The Folklore of Birds Edward A. Armstrong 1958 40 Bumblebees John B. Free and C.G. Butler 1959 41 Dragonflies Philip S. Corbet, Cynthia Longfield and N. W. Moore 1960 42 Fossils H. H. Swinnerton 1960, 1989 (B) 43 Weeds and Aliens Sir Edward Salisbury 1961, 1964 44 The Peak District K. C. Edwards 1962, 1974, 1990 (B) 45 The Common Lands of England and Wales W. G. Hoskins and L. Dudley Stamp 1963 46 The Broads A.E. Ellis 1965 47 The Snowdonia National Park W. M. Condry 1966, 1967 48 Grass and Grassland Ian Moore 1966 49 Nature Conservation in Britain L. Dudley Stamp 1969, 1974 50 Pesticides and Pollution Kenneth Mellanby 1967, 1970 51 Man and Birds R. K. Murton 1971 52 Woodland Birds Eric Simms 1971, 1990 (B) 53 The Lake District W. H. Pearsall and W. Pennington 1973, 1989 (B) 54 The Pollination of Flowers Michael Proctor and Peter Yeo 1973 55 Finches Ian Newton 1972 56 Pedigree: Words from Nature Stephen Potter and Laurens Sargent 1973 57 British Seals H. R. Hewer 1974 58 Hedges E. Pollard, M. D. Hooper and Norman W. Moore 1974 59 Ants M. V. Brian 1977 60 British Birds of Prey Leslie H. Brown 1976, 1989 (B) 61 Inheritance and Natural History R. J. Berry 1977, 1990 (B) 62 British Tits Chris Perrins 1979 63 British Thrushes Eric Simms 1978 64 The Natural History of Shetland R. J. Berry and J. Laughton Johnston 1980 65 Waders W. G. Hale 1980 66 The Natural History of Wales William M. Condry 1982, 1990 (B) 67 Farming and Wildlife Kenneth Mellanby 1981 68 Mammals in the British Isles L. Harrison Matthews 1982 69 Reptiles and Amphibians in Britain Deryk Frazer 1983, 1989 (B) 70 The Natural History of Orkney R. J. Berry 1985 71 British Warblers Eric Simms 1985 72 Heathlands Nigel Webb 1986 73 The New Forest Colin R. Tubbs 1986 74 Ferns Christopher N. Page 1988 75 Freshwater Fishes P. S. Maitland and R. N. Campbell 1992 76 The Hebrides J. M. Boyd and I. L. Boyd 1990 77 The Soil B. Davis, N. Walker, D. F. Ball and A. Fitter 1992 78 British Larks, Pipits and Wagtails Eric Simms 1992 79 Caves and Cave Life Philip Chapman 1993 80 Wild and Garden Plants Max Walters 1993 81 Ladybirds Mike Majerus 1994 82 The New Naturalists Peter Marren 1995, 2005 83 The Natural History of Pollination Michael Proctor, Peter Yeo and Andrew Lack 1996 84 Ireland David Cabot 1999 85 Plant Disease David Ingram and Noel Robertson 1999 86 Lichens Oliver Gilbert 2000 87 Amphibians & Reptiles Trevor Beebee and Richard Griffiths 2000 88 Loch Lomondside John Mitchell 2001 89 The Broads Brian Moss 200§ 90 Moths Mike Majerus 2002 91 Nature Conservation Peter Marren 2002 92 Lakeland Derek Ratcliffe 2002 93 British Bats John Altringham 2003 94 A Natural History of the Seashore Peter Hayward 2004 95 Northumberland Angus Lunn 2004 96 Fungi Brian Spooner and Peter Roberts 2005 97 Mosses and Liverworts Ron Porley and Nick Hodgetts 2005 98 Bumblebees Ted Benton 2006 99 Gower Jonathan Mullard 2006 100 Woodlands Oliver Rackham 2006 101 Galloway and the Borders Derek Ratcliffe 2007 102 Garden Natural History Stefan Buczacki 2007 103 The Isles of Scilly Rosemary Parslow 2007 104 A History of Ornithology Peter Bircham 2007 105 Wye Valley George Peterken 2008 106 Dragonflies Philip Corbet and Stephen Brooks 2008 107 Grouse Adam Watson and Robert Moss 2008 108 Southern England Peter Friend 2008 109 Islands R. J. Berry 2009 110 Wildfowl David Cabot 2009 111 Dartmoor Ian Mercer 2009 112 Books and Naturalists David Elliston Allen 2010 113 Bird Migration Ian Newton 2010 114 Badger Timothy J. Roper 2010 115 Climate and Weather John Kington 2010 116 Plant Pests David V. Alford 2011 117 Plant Galls Margaret Redfern 2011 118 Marches Andrew Allott 2011 119 Scotland Peter Friend 2012 120 Grasshoppers and Crickets Ted Benton 2012 121 Partridges: Countryside Barometer G. R. Potts 2012 122 Vegetation of Britain and Ireland Michael Proctor 2013 123 Terns David Cabot and Ian Nisbet 2013 124 Bird Populations Ian Newton 2013 125 Owls Mike Toms 2014 126 Brecon Beacons Jonathan Mullard 2014 127 Nature in Towns and Cities David Goode 2014 128 Lakes, Loughs and Lochs Brian Moss 2015 129 Alien Plants Clive A. Stace and Michael J. Crawley 2015 130 Yorkshire Dales John Lee 2015 131 Shallow Seas Peter Hayward 2016 132 Falcons Richard Sale 2016 133 Slugs and Snails Robert Cameron 2016 134 Early Humans Nicholas Ashton 2017 135 Farming and Birds Ian Newton 2017 136 Beetles Richard Jones 2018 137 Hedgehog Pat Morris 2018 138 The Burren David Cabot & Roger Goodwillie 2019 139 Gulls John Coulson 2019 140 Garden Birds Mike Toms 2019 141 Pembrokeshire Jonathan Mullard 2020 142 Uplands and Birds Ian Newton 2020 143 Ecology and Natural History David M. Wilkinson 2021 144 Peak District Penny Anderson 2021 145 Trees Peter A Thomas 2022 146 Solitary Bees Ted Benton, Nick Owens 2023 147 Shieldbugs Richard Jones 2023 148 Ponds, Pools and Puddles Jeremy Biggs & Penny Williams 2024 149 Stoats, Weasels, Martens and Polecats Jenny MacPherson 2024 150 Exmoor Flemming Ulf-Hansen 2025

## Monographs

Number Title Author Editions M01 The Badger Ernest Neal 1948 M02 The Redstart John Buxton 1950 M03 The Wren Edward A. Armstrong 1955 M04 The Yellow Wagtail Stuart Smith 1950 M05 The Greenshank Desmond Nethersole-Thompson 1951 M06 The Fulmar James Fisher 1952 M07 Fleas, Flukes and Cuckoos Miriam Rothschild and Theresa Clay 1952 M08 Ants Derek Wragge Morley 1953 M09 The Herring Gull's World Niko Tinbergen 1953 M10 Mumps, Measles and Mosaics Kenneth M. Smith and Roy Markham 1954 M11 The Heron Frank A. Lowe 1954 M12 Squirrels Monica Shorten 1954 M13 The Rabbit Harry V. Thompson and Alastair N. Worden 1956 M14 The Birds of the London Area Since 1900 London Natural History Society[9] 1957 M15 The Hawfinch Guy Mountfort 1957 M16 The Salmon J. W. Jones 1959 M17 Lords and Ladies Cecil T. Prime 1960 M18 Oysters C. M. Yonge 1960 M19 The House Sparrow J. D. Summers-Smith 1963, 1967 M20 The Wood Pigeon R. K. Murton 1965 M21 The Trout W. E. Frost and M. E. Brown 1967 M22 The Mole Kenneth Mellanby 1971

## See also

- Category:New Naturalist writers

## Notes and references

1. Guy Mountfort, *The Hawfinch*. Collins, 1957.

1. Miriam Rothschild and Theresa Clay, *Fleas, Flukes and Cuckoos*. Collins, 1952.

1. ["Series History, New Naturalists Online"](http://www.newnaturalists.com/page/Series+History). Retrieved 2015-08-24.

1. Berry, R. J. (1990). "Industrial melanism and peppered moths (*Biston betularia*)". *Biol. J. Linn. Soc.*. **39** (4): 301–322. [doi:10.1111/j.1095-8312.1990.tb00518.x](https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1095-8312.1990.tb00518.x)

1. Peter Marren, *The New Naturalists*. Collins, 1995. 2nd edition 2005.

1. Mabey, Richard. ["News of birds and blossoming, The Guardian 14 March 2009"](https://www.theguardian.com/books/2009/mar/14/new-naturalist-books-richard-mabey). *[TheGuardian.com](/source/TheGuardian.com)*. Retrieved 2015-08-24.

1. ["British Book Design and Production Awards 2007: Winners"](https://web.archive.org/web/20080704132143/http://www.britishbookawards.org/shortlist.html). Archived from [the original](http://www.britishbookawards.org/shortlist.html) on 2008-07-04. Retrieved 2008-04-22.

1. An edition of *Life in Lakes and Rivers* was published by [Readers Union](/source/Readers_Union) in 1959.

1. The London monograph was authored by an editorial committee chaired by R. C. Homes and including [C. M. Acland](/source/Clemence_Acland), C. B. Ashby, C. L. Collenette, [R. S. R. Fitter](/source/R._S._R._Fitter), E. R. Parrinder and B. A. Richards. *Per:* Parmenter, L. "The Society 1858 to 1957: The years 1927 to 1957". *[The London Naturalist](/source/The_London_Naturalist)*. '***(37): 22.***

## External links

- [Official website for the series](http://www.newnaturalists.com)
- [List of monographs with jacket illustrations](http://www.publishinghistory.com/new-naturalist-monographs.html)

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [New Naturalist](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Naturalist) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Naturalist?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.