This volume is an illustrated guide to 2,000 plants and animals. Every species is presented in full color; this reference contains thousands of identification capsules, range maps, and habitat symbols and a special 32 page guide to wildlife communities. Spanning the land from Florida to Alaska, it embraces field, forest, pond, prairie -- all the natural communities that make our North American flora and fauna so splendidly diverse. This book is really two in one -- both a valuable at-home reference and an extraordinary usable guide to the most common and conspicuous wild plants and animals of our continent. It is specially planned for quick and easy identification.

Includes index.

1. Wildlife Communities -- 2. Mammals. Introduction -- Land and freshwater mammals -- Marine mammals -- 3. Birds. Introduction -- Birds with distinctive traits -- Aquatic birds -- Land birds -- 4. Reptiles and amphibians. Reptile introduction -- Alligators -- Turtles -- Lizards -- Snakes -- Amphibian introduction -- Salamanders -- Toads -- Frogs -- 5. Fish. Introduction -- Fish -- 6. Invertebrates. Mollusk introduction -- Seashells and other mollusks -- Insect introduction -- Insects and relatives -- Aquatic invertebrates -- 7. Trees and shrubs. Introduction -- Conifers -- Broad-leaved trees -- Broad-leaved shrubs -- 8. Wildflowers. Introduction -- Identification chart -- Wildflowers -- 9. Nonflowering Plants. Introduction -- Ferns and relatives -- Mosses and liverworts -- Seaweeds -- Lichens -- 10. Mushrooms. Introduction -- Gilled mushrooms -- Other fungi.