Among the Islands

Bol Partner

A fabulous account of hunting, trapping and recording mammal species in the Pacific Islands. Twenty-five years ago, a zoologist from the Australian Museum in Sydney set off to research the mammals of the Pacific Islands. Starting with a survey of one of the most inaccessible islands in Melanesia—Woodlark in the Trobriands Group—that young scientist found himself ghost-whispering, snake wrestling, quadoi hunting and plunging waist-deep into a sludge of maggot-infested faeces in search of a small bat that turned out not to be earth-shatteringly interesting. Now one of Australia’s greatest scientists, Tim Flannery looks back on his ground-breaking fieldwork. With accounts of discovering, naming and sometimes eating animal species new to science, and stories of historic expeditions and colourful local customs, he takes us on an enthralling journey through some of the most diverse and spectacular environments on Earth. ‘A rollicking adventure story...surprisingly funny.’ Bookseller & Publisher ‘Think Indiana Jones crossed with Charles Darwin.’ Financial Times

Bol

Tim Flannery is one of the world's most influential scientists, credited with discovering more species than Darwin. In Among the Islands Flannery recounts a series of expeditions he made at the dawn of his career to the strange tropical islands of the South Pacific, a great arc stretching nearly 4,000 miles from the postcard perfection of Polynesia to some of the largest, highest, ancient, and most rugged islands on earth. Flannery was traveling in search of rare and undiscovered mammal species, but he found much more: wild, weird places where local taboos, foul weather, dense jungle, and sheer remoteness made for difficult and dramatic exploration. Among the Islands is full of fascinating creatures--monkey faced bats, giant rats, gazelle-faced black wallabies, and more--and the adventure of discovery. This is an idea read for anyone who has ever imagined voyaging to the ends of the earth to uncover and study the rare and the wonderful.