Wildlife, Forests and Forestry: Principles of Managing Forests for Biological Diversity

This is an excellent textbook that has aged well and belongs close to the desk of anyone who is involved in managing forests and their contents. Hunter does an excellent job of pulling together ideas of landscape ecology, traditional wildlife management, and forestry techniques with a strong emphasis on the practical. The book is well written & I often find myself "coming to" seven or eight pages later after having pulled it off the shelf to look up one thing & then being drawn in to read more and more. My only complaint is that it IS a textbook, which affects the structure somewhat & more importantly affects the price. It is a lot to ask some of Hunter's audience to pay, but another way of looking at this is that it is cheaper in money, time and shelf space to get one good book than several bad ones, and this is certainly that one good book.

Malcolm Hunter's "Wildlife, Forests, and Forestry" is a gem of a book and an absolute must for every forest manager. This was the first synthesis of landscape ecology, wildlife biology, and forest management that I encountered, and I still refer to it today. Unlike many scholarly works, Hunter's treatment easily lends itself to operational, on the ground applications. Likewise, the prose is straightforward and suitable for those new to the field. I also strongly recommend his subsequent synthesis, "Maintaining Biodiversity in Forest Ecosystems," which is even better.