Nic Bishop

I have been waiting for this book forever! I have always been interested in hyenas, partly because they are just cool and partly from reading Tamora Pierce's Emperor Mage. This book celebrates the weirdness and awesomeness that is hyenas in a way that only Scientists in the Field can.

The main scientist featured in the book is Kay Holekamp, a zoologist from the University of Michigan, who has been studying hyenas for over 30 years. Montgomery plunges right into the story, acknowledging and show more discrediting the many legends and negative press around hyenas and then using some of Kay's quotes and her own observation to introduce readers to this amazing animal.

Interspersed with an account of the fascinating biology, habits, and behavior of hyenas is the story of Kay Holekamp's studies and the people who are involved. Kay's story follows her from an internship at the Saint Louis zoo, travels around the world with her husband, divorce, a doctorate, and finally taking over the hyena study in Masai Mara. She acknowledges the work done by Laurence Frank, but also is open about the issues with the way field study was done in his time and how she changed the methods used. Kay reflects on the changes she's seen, both in the landscape, the hyenas, and in her own life. She married her assistant and partner, who works in neuroscience in the states, she teaches at the university in the school year and works in the hyena study in the summer; and her new assistant is her old supervisor from the zoo!

Montgomery profiles everyone involved in the camp, from the graduate students to the staff who keep the camp running. One of the most interesting profiles is of a local, Benson Ole Pion, who started working in the camp as an assistant cook but became interested in the hyenas, eventually became an assistant researcher, and is now preparing to move his family to the states to further his education and become more involved in the hyena studies.

The animals themselves are not neglected, with chapters on their complicated behavior, hierarchy, and how they differ from other mammalian species. There are exciting accounts of targeting and testing hyenas, the aftermath of a flood in the camp, and funny accounts of taking a shower in the camp.

The book ends with a series of quick facts about spotted hyenas, bibliography and online resources, and index.

Verdict: A strong addition to the Scientists in the Field series, this is a great book to give kids interested in animals and science. It will inspire them to think about their future careers as well as foster diversity. Strongly recommended.

ISBN: 9780544635111; Published May 2018 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt; Purchased for the library show less

While I still love the Scientists in the Field series and religiously purchase and recommend them, I must admit that I've really only skimmed the last few volumes. However, this latest addition to the series brings back the team of Sy Montgomery and Nic Bishop and that was all I needed to see to know this would be a great read.

One of the things I like about this author/photographer combination is that they always do something a little different, even when writing in the confines of a series. show more The focus of the text is never quite what you expect, the photographs catch you unawares with their beauty and subject matter.

In this book, the authors introduce us to a team of scientists and local activities working to study tapirs and save them and their habitat. The particular focus of this group is a trip that focuses on tagging and tracking tapirs on a ranch in Brazil. While this book includes a lot of information about tapirs and the current efforts to save them, it had a more intimate feel, a focus on the scientists and everyday people involved that I feel has been missing from some of the latest Scientists in the Field titles. One of the things I really appreciate about the SitF series is that they talk not just about the important scientists, but the local people who are also involved in the project. So they profile not just the team leader and other scientists but also the field assistant, a local who had to quit school at 8th grade but uses his trapping skills learned as a child to help trap the animals, the darting specialist, who doesn't like to hunt and darts animals instead and the ranchers who own the ranch where the tapirs and many other wildlife live.

As always, Nic Bishop's photographs are marvelous. They capture not only the tapirs and the scientific expedition in all it's dirt, wonder, and exhaustion, but also the beauty of the Pantanal area. From the exquisite detail of the hairs inside a marsh deer's ears to a troop of coatis, tails held high, the wildlife and landscape is awesomely pictured.

Verdict: I'm excited all over again about distributing this to my patrons, not least because they will recognize some of the animals from our live animal program every summer, featuring Diego the coati! It's warm and human with hope and beauty - and lots of information about tapirs and their habitat. Highly recommended.

ISBN: 9780547815480; Published 2013 by Houghton Mifflin; Purchased for and borrowed from the library show less

Holy cow is this book amazing! The photographs are outstanding in their clarity and detail and all-around coolness - the picture of the glass frog on page 10 is a particular standout (you can see its insides!!). The captions clearly identify each frog while also providing interesting bits that add to or expand on the main text. The text hits kids right where they live; my favorite example: "Frogs...do not have rib bones. That is one reason they are so good at squeezing through small gaps, show more like between your fingers when you are trying to hold them." Each page has one sentence highlighted which could be used with minor alteration as a read-aloud text for audiences who don't have the attention to listen to the full-length text or are too young to browse the book themselves. All the basic report information, like habitat and diet, is here, but Bishop adds fascinating tidbits that make learning about frogs so much fun. While reading this, I kept turning to the people in the room with me and going "Did you know frogs' ears are like drums? And that indigenous Australians learned how to squeeze desert frogs to get a drink and then let the frogs go?! And the gastric brooding frog of Australia swallows her eggs so the tadpoles can grow in the safety of her stomach for about two months and then hiccups them out?!?" Bishop ends with an author's note about where the photographs of the frogs were taken and his enthusiasm for his subjects just shines off the page. A glossary of the more difficult terms, such as "indigenous peoples" and an index are also included. I love, love, love this book. show less

The Hyena Scientist is a book written with 10-12 year old's in mind. However, I'm sure most adults can get something out of it as well. In this book Montgomery and Bishop take a tour through the Hyena research station in Kenya lead by zoologist Kay Holecamp. The book reads like a travelogue with intersting bits about the spotted hyenas that this group studies, along with a nail-biting episode of floods and getting stuck in mud. There are also short biographical sections for the scientists show more and assistants that operate this particular research station. The main attraction of this book are the numerous (every single page!) colour photographs of spotted hyenas (fascinating creatures!) and other wildlife. This is a good inspirational and educational book for children. show less