Conserving Migratory Pollinators and Nectar Corridors in Western North America . Gary Paul Nabhan, editor

Lesser long-nosed bats (Leptonycteris curasoae), rufous hummingbirds (Selasphorus rufus), western white-winged doves (Zenaida asiatica mearnsii), and monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus) migrate from summering areas in the western United States to wintering areas in Mexico. Each species depends on flowers, fruits, and/or nectar during migration. Likewise, each species serves as a pollinator for the plants it uses. Conserving Migratory Pollinators uniquely blends 4 disparate, featured species and associated plants into a single conservation and management phenomenon. The book has 9 chapters and 25 contributors. Chapter 1 sets the stage by discussing stressors on migratory pollinators, in particular nectar availability at stopovers (areas where migrating animals resupply energy and fat). There are 2 chapters on lesser long-nosed bats, 3 chapters on hummingbirds, 1 chapter on the relation between saguaro cactus (Carnegiea gigantean) and white-winged doves, and 2 chapters on monarchs. The reader who is a biological specialist on any of the 4 featured species or phenomena such as nectar corridors, migration pathways, and associated issues will find the book a useful synopsis of biology and conservation of these migratory animals. The authors point out that much is to be learned but seem to do an adequate job of reviewing what is known or suspected. There are few original data. Chapters in the book provide detailed lists of nectar sources for different species, which is the basic natural history building block for nectar corridor management. And again, placing 4 disparate species under the same cover provides good perspective on common themes in conservation and management. I read the book as an amateur on the subject matter with an amateur’s interest primarily in butterflies and hummingbirds. I was disappointed in some ways. There was a paucity—from an amateur’s perspective—of illustrative material, especially photographs. I found that the individual chapters varied a good deal in quality of prose, and style was somewhat inconsistent among chapters. The presentation was strictly “technical journal,” e.g. scientific names often were used in lieu of common names. This may serve bio-pomposity, but it does not help a lay audience and therefore lessens the impact of the book. Nonetheless, the book has material of interest to the lay reader willing to filter out the technical boilerplate. The chapter (4) by William A. Calder is a brilliant synopsis of the state of knowledge on rufous and broad-tailed hummingbirds (S. platycercus). This chapter shows that technical writing can be good prose. I learned of hummingbird behaviors that explain what I see in the rubythroated hummingbirds (Archilochus colubris) that visit my feeder in central Oklahoma. I came to have greater appreciation for monarchs because knowledge of natural history fosters appreciation of wildlife.