RaySocietyBooks

And if you would like to learn more about the founding of the British Museum, and how the books got separated from the collections (or not) might I suggest… www.cambridge.org/core/books/h...

Rotifers - very popular with Victorian amateur microscopists - as illustrated in John Clegg's Freshwater Life (1974)

Monograph of the Paradiseidae, or birds of paradise and Ptilonorhynchidae, or bower-birds. London: H. Sotheran & Co., 1891-98. https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/48735356

Monograph of the Paradiseidae, or birds of paradise and Ptilonorhynchidae, or bower-birds. London: H. Sotheran & Co., 1891-98. (source: https://biodiversitylibrary.org/page/48735356) #nature #illustration #art

Marine Biologists Must Reads… 1️⃣ Ocean: Earth’s Last Wilderness – David Attenborough 2️⃣ Shark: The Illustrated Biography – Daniel C. Abel & Sophie A. Maycock 3️⃣ The Seaweed Revolution – Vincent Doumeizel ✨ Members get discounts with affiliate publishers. #MustReads #MarineScience #OceanLovers

Marine Biologists Must Reads…

1️⃣ Ocean: Earth’s Last Wilderness – David Attenborough

2️⃣ Shark: The Illustrated Biography – Daniel C. Abel & Sophie A. Maycock

3️⃣ The Seaweed Revolution – Vincent Doumeizel

✨ Members get discounts with affiliate publishers. #MustReads #MarineScience #OceanLovers

As one who has long been interested in both the literary as well as the natural history works of Beatrix Potter, I'm very much looking forward to the publication of this new book by @drpennybradshaw.bsky.social from @bloomsburyacad.bsky.social. #Booksky

It's been a long wait but an advance copy of 'Grasshoppers' has finally arrived. It's been worth the wait with excellent printing

A view of the Linnean Society Library. It is warmly lit, with two stories of books held aloft by pillars.

Today's #EYA item is the blissful #silence in our reading room. Open to all for research, you don't need to be a member of the Society. Email library@linnean.org to book a space. #EYASilence

Please consider supporting Biodiveristy Heritage Library, which preserves so many key historical publications you can't find anywhere else online!

The new Habitats of the World series volumes @princetonupress.bsky.social should be considered essential reading for all naturalists.

All set for tonight’s talk and book launch with @hopkinspress.bsky.social’s author, Simon Pooley, who will be talking about his new book, DISCOVERING THE OKAPI, at London Zoo.
@zslofficial.bsky.social @zslscience.bsky.social

Discover the rare species found only in Britain with Endemic by James Harding-Morris.

Order from the Bloomsbury website by midnight on Sunday to get 30% off.

A must-read for nature lovers this Christmas!

Life history plate for Duke of Burgundy (see last repost) & Grizzled Skipper from F W Frohawk's Natural History of British Butterflies (1925)

Climate Change and Human Responses This book contributes to the current discussion on climate change by presenting selected studies on the ways in which past human groups responded to climatic and environmental change. In particular, t...

New publication from wonderful archaeology colleagues @uos-artshumanities.bsky.social:

"edited by Greg Monks [and] illustrates the contribution of zooarchaeology to the research on the human response to climate change. It includes chapters from different parts of the world."

tinyurl.com/5axadynd

YouTube video by Natural History Museum The Inside Out of Flies | Live Talk with NHM Scientist

Finally if you want more fly chat from @flygirlnhm.bsky.social there's a longer talk: www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pmvc... and/or you can buy one of her wonderful books! www.nhmshop.co.uk/metamorphosi... OR www.nhbs.com/the-secret-l... OR www.nhbs.com/the-inside-o...

When the Earth Was Green: Plants, Animals, and Evolution's Greatest Romance Plants, Animals, and Evolution's Greatest Romance

Word of mouth makes all the difference for books. If you've enjoyed When the Earth Was Green, tell someone who might like it, ask for it at your library if they don't have a copy, or just give this post a boost.🌱

Historical scientific illustration depicting detailed anatomical views of five crustacean species: Leucosia neocaledonica, L. elata, L. margaritata, Philyra longimana, and Nucia tuberculosa. The page features full dorsal views of crabs with variations in claw size and body texture, close-ups of claws and carapace sections, and ventral plates. Each species is numbered with separate focus on specific body parts, highlighting distinctions in exoskeleton shape, claw structure, and segmentation. The delicate pencil or ink drawings emphasize morphological details for taxonomic study, typical of 19th-century marine fauna research from New Caledonia.

🦞 Recherches sur la faune carcinologique de la Nouvelle-Calédonie
Paris, Masson et Cie.1872-74?

[Source]

This @linneansociety.bsky.social presentation by @sbilston.bsky.social of her new book "The Lost Orchid; A Story of Victorian Plunder and Obsession" (@harvardpress.bsky.social) is very interesting and well worth your time to view. #Booksky

Historical scientific illustration displaying eight detailed black-and-white drawings of various marine crabs and their anatomical features. The crabs are shown in top and front views, highlighting their segmented legs, claws, body shapes, and eyes. Each specimen is numbered and labeled with scientific names such as Dromidia kendalli and Arcania quinquespinosa. The plate is titled "Crustacea Plate XXIV," from the zoological studies aboard the H.M. Indian Marine Surveying steamer Investigator, dated 1892-1909. The image emphasizes morphological distinctions among crab species collected during marine surveys off India. The paper shows visible creases and slight discoloration, reflecting its historical age.

🌊 Illustrations of the zoology of H.M. Indian Marine Surveying steamer Investigator
Calcutta: Printed and sold by the Superintendent of Government Printing, 1892-1909.

[Source]

The SciFri Book Club January/February and March/April reads: "The Kissing Bug" by Daisy Herndández and "Life On A Little-Known Planet" by Elizabeth Kolbert

✨ Announcing the first two SciFri Book Club reads of 2026 ✨

Learn more and join the discussion: buff.ly/iGsXVnI

We've put together a 25-day advent calendar showcasing Library and Archives collections. Enjoy! 1. 'Snowy Owls’, John James Audubon (publ. 1827-1838). Did you know... #adventcalendar #Christmas #SpecialCollections #Art #NaturalHistoryMuseum #BirdsInArt
Alt text: an advent calendar, with 2 white owls

Psilocybin Mushrooms in Their Natural Habitats By PAUL STAMETS A Guide to the History, Identification, and Use of Psychoactive Fungi

Nature book challenge. A book per day in no particular order, until you've shared ALL of the best nature books in your personal library. No explanations, no reviews.
#Books #Nature #Naturewriting #naturebooks #conservation #naturebookchallenge #booksky #MycoBookClub

I'm giving a talk for @bsbibotany.bsky.social on Wednesday evening next week (3rd December) all about our endemic plants.

It's fun (and free) and you can book tickets here: share.google/xVbMPUkmaPCS...

Following up that last repost with some Clouded Yellow varieties from A D A Russwurm's Aberrations of British Butterflies (1978)

Illustration from 1853 showing detailed black-and-white line drawings of four mollusk shells from the British Mollusca collection. Two larger shells numbered 1 and 2 display distinct concentric ridges and curved shapes, labeled as Thracia convexa and T. pubescens. Two smaller shells numbered 3 and 4 show different views, with number 4 depicted open, revealing the interior hinge structure. The drawing emphasizes texture and structural features of each shell for scientific identification. The plate is titled "PLATE XVI" and includes publication details at the bottom.

🦪 A history of British Mollusca and their shells
London: John Van Voorst, 1853.

[Source]

Front cover of The Princeton Field Guide to Mesozoic Plants by Nan Crystal Arens.

Page inside The Princeton Field Guide to Mesozoic Plants by Nan Crystal Arens.

Page inside The Princeton Field Guide to Mesozoic Plants by Nan Crystal Arens.

Spine of The Princeton Field Guide to Mesozoic Plants by Nan Crystal Arens.

The Princeton Field Guide to Mesozoic Plants is now available worldwide!

Discover a dazzlingly illustrated guide to the plant life of the dinosaur age, from intricate ferns to the most majestic megaflora:

press.princeton.edu/books/hardco...

#Nature #FieldGuide #Plants #Mesozoic #Paleontology

An event advert. The image is a mash up of five images including artwork, a photograph and sketch. The wording reads: Library & Archives Open Day, free, 5 December 2025 10.00 - 16.00. Location: Lasting Impressions Gallery (Red Zone).

Visitors to the Museum will have the exciting opportunity to enter our beautiful Earth Sciences Library.

A rare occasion to see treasures from the collection and learn about the Museum’s work as shown through the collections we care for.

#NaturalHistoryMuseum #SpecialCollections #MuseumArchives

Opening Lines - On the Origin of Species - BBC Sounds John Yorke investigates Charles Darwin’s world-changing book On The Origin of Species.

On the Origin of Species was published on this day in 1859.

It really did change the world, and the way much of humanity views our place in nature.

I spoke to Radio 4's Opening Lines about it's importance -- both to science, and to me on a personal level

www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...

On the Origin of Species (Natural History Museum Facsimile Edition) If you're like me, you may very well have more than one copy of some of your favorite books. Perhaps they are different editions, perhaps one is a loaner and the other your prized copy. In the case of...

On this date in 1859, the first edition of Charles Darwin's "On the Origin of Species" was published by John Murray. All 1,250 copies sold immediately.

There are many options today for reading its eventual six editions. I prefer this one published by the @nhm-london.bsky.social. #Booksky

On the Origin of Species: landmark work published #OTD 1859 by Charles Darwin, influential English naturalist, geologist and pioneer of evolutionary theory.
Portrait 1830’s by George Richmond
Bodleian Library @bodleian.ox.ac.uk
@tomgauld.bsky.social | @newscientist.com

Darwin’s publisher, John Murray, was usually quite generous about paying for maps, plates, and in-text images for D’s books, and D attended closely to his illustrations, so it’s surprising that the Origin featured only 1, a diagrammatic model of change through time.

🌱🐋🧪 #histSTM #evobio 🐡