From the classic Observer’s Books and New Naturalists in the U.K. to the Golden Guides and Peterson Field Guides in the U.S., the series format has long been a much respected cornerstone of the literature of natural history. Often covering a wide variety of different topics and spanning dozens, occasionally even hundreds, of individual volumes, naturalists often follow particular series closely as their respective formats, presentation styles, levels of information depth, or other features are found to be particularly amenable or appealing.
The following list presents a number of those series that are still known to be in print.
All About Birds Regional Guide Series – A forthcoming collaboration between the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and Princeton University Press. Further details will be published as they become available.
Bloomsbury / The Wildlife Trusts Concise Guides – Handy little pocket-sized guidebooks to a range of popular U.K. subjects (garden birds, pond wildlife, seashore wildlife, trees, etc.). vividly illustrated with full color illustrations, they are somewhat reminiscent of the original Golden Guides.
The British Wildlife Collection – Published by Bloomsbury Publishing, this series of monographs “comprises a series of books, each covering an individual aspect of British natural history. From the first publication in 2012, they have covered such diverse topics as mushrooms, meadows and mountain flowers, and books have been written by some of Britain’s finest writers and experts in their field. Filled with beautiful images, these wide-ranging and well-researched titles are a joy for any naturalist who is passionate about British wildlife and landscapes.” (citation courtesy of The Natural History Book Store).
California Natural History Guides – This long-standing series published by the University of California Press focuses on the plants, wildlife, geology, and ecology of California. Many volumes are states to include adjacent areas such as the Pacific Northwest or the desert Southwest as well.
Convening Science: Discovery at the Marine Biological Laboratory – “This series highlights the ongoing role MBL [The Marine Biological Laboratory] plays in the creation and dissemination of science, in its broader historic context as well as current practice and future potential. Books in the series will be broadly conceived and defined, but each will be anchored to MBL, originating in workshops and conferences, inspired by MBL collections and archives, or influenced by conversations and creativity that MBL fosters in every scientist or student who convenes at the Woods Hole campus.”
Golden Guides – Reissued paperback editions of the beloved U.S. classic series. “The Golden Guides from St. Martin’s Press are a full-color illustrated series of books offering priceless facts and information on nature and science around the world, under the sea, and among the stars. From insects and fish to trees and weeds and dinosaurs and the weather, these authoritative volumes educate and entertain.”
Helm Field Guides – “A series of comprehensive field guides for a range of spectacular birding regions. Species accounts cover all key identification features, as well as distribution and status. Colour plates and distribution maps are also included.”
Kaufman Field Guides – Developed by noted birder and naturalist Kenn Kaufman, these innovative guidebooks employ color photos of their subject species extracted from backgrounds to provide their readers with a format that is intended to enable more rapid location of the desired species image and information while afield.
The New Naturalist Library – “The Collins New Naturalist series is the longest-running and arguably the most influential natural history series in the world with over 100 volumes published in over 60 years. Key contributors include Fraser Darling, Max Nicholson, Sir Alistair Hardy, W.G.Hoskins, Miriam Rothschild, Richard Fitter, Guy Mountfort and Niko Tinbergen making them a veritable Encylopaedia Britannica of British natural history in its broadest sense.”
Pelagic Identification Guides – Clear, user-friendly field guides that are ideal for anyone interested in learning how to identify the books’ respective title subjects (presently available for raptor prey remains, harlequin ladybirds, mountain flowers and trees of Caucasia, Britain’s rarest plants, and flowers of the Alps). Well suited to a wide range of readers, from beginners to more experienced naturalists, students and professionals.
Pelagic Naturalist’s Handbooks – Originally published by Cambridge University Press, the Pelagic Press Naturalists’ Handbooks “encourage and enable those interested in natural history to undertake field study, make accurate identifications and to make original contributions to research. A typical reader may be studying natural history at undergraduate level, carrying out species/habitat surveys as an ecological consultant, undertaking academic research or just developing a deeper understanding of natural history.”
Peterson Field Guides – “For more than 65 years, Peterson Field Guides have set the standard by which other field guides are measured. Comprehensive and authoritative, they are essential additions to any naturalist’s bookshelf or backpack. Roger Tory Peterson, one of the world’s greatest naturalists, spent his life studying, painting, and photographing birds. The Peterson Identification System has been called the greatest invention since binoculars, and the Peterson Field Guide Series is credited with helping to set the stage for the environmental movement.” (Following the discontinuation of the series under it’s original publisher, this link has been updated to now lead to the HarperCollins website where the remaining volumes in print can still be found.)
Princeton Field Guides – “Princeton’s guides to animals and plants are the authority for professional scientists and amateur naturalists alike. These books present this information in a compact format carefully designed for easy use in the field. The guides illustrate every species in color and provide detailed information on identification, distribution, and biology. They feature succinct text for field identification, color plates depicting every species and many variants, and range maps.”
Princeton Illustrated Checklists – “Princeton Illustrated Checklists provide succinct text, thumbnail maps, and illustrations of all species to be encountered in a specific region. They can be used in conjunction with a more traditional field guide or as a valuable stand-in if no such guide exists.
Princeton Little Books of Nature – “Little Books of Nature are richly illustrated mini references to the world’s animals, plants, insects, and other natural phenomena—with examples drawn from around the globe.”
Princeton Lives of the Natural World – “This is an authoritative new series of richly illustrated natural histories written by world-class experts. Combining lively, engaging text with a wealth of color photographs and illustrations, these inviting and comprehensive introductory guides explore the evolution, behaviors, and ecologies of fascinating organisms, and offer brand-new science and modern insights. The books feature in-depth, essay-led chapters and beautifully illustrated profiles of selected species.”
Princeton Pocket Guides – “Highly portable, inexpensive guides designed for the eco-traveler and naturalist, with an inviting blend of photographs, color illustrations, and succinct text, covering a range of destinations and animal groups.”
RSPB Spotlight Guides – Colorfully illustrated presentations of the biology and behavior of a number of popular British wildlife families. Well suited for teens and beginning naturalists but also enjoyable for reading by those with more experience.
Timber Press Field Guides – Regional field guides to areas of the United States and Canada. Individual volumes take a single category as their subject; thus far covering insects, mushrooms, birds, general wildlife, wildflowers, trees and shrubs, geology, and general natural history respectively. As of April 2021 there are sixteen volumes, all of which are of that tie in print.
WILDGuides – “WILDGuides offers a wide array of award-winning, high-quality, practical titles in natural history. These books range from definitive photographic field guides that cover the wildlife of Britain and Ireland to visitor’s guides and reference works on wildlife regions around the world, all with the imprint’s distinctive attention to detail, design, and utility.”
WILDGuides of Britain & Europe – “Award-winning and highly acclaimed, the Britain’s Wildlife and Europe’s Wildlife series are photographic field guides covering the wildlife of Britain and Europe. Each guide provides exhaustive and up-to-the-minute treatment with the very best photographs, maps, and text. Revised and new editions appear regularly to keep the individual titles completely current, and new books in the series appear regularly. These are the go-to photographic field guides for British and European naturalists—amateur and professional alike.”
Wildlife Explorer Guides – “Wildlife Explorers [from Princeton University Press] are beautifully designed guides to the common and spectacular wildlife of specific nature destinations from the Serengeti to tropical Australia to Madagascar. They focus primarily on the animals and insects most likely to be encountered, and feature stunning imagery and an engaging text in which particular attention is given to insightful descriptions of the full range of behaviors of the creature in question.”