#nature identification

Okay, so The Everyday Naturalist is up on the Ten Speed Press and Penguin/Random House's websites (and various other public places), so I can FINALLY show you the cover!!! I have been saying for months that this book is going to be absolutely beautiful (in addition to informative!), and now you get a good taste of that. Ricardo Macia Lalinde is an incredibly skilled artist whose natural history studies will grace not only the cover but the interior of the book; I feel incredibly fortunate to have his work included in this project.

Here's a bit more about the book itself: "If you’ve ever consulted a field guide to identify a new bird at your feeder, you know the process isn’t as easy as it sounds. In fact, it seems like you have to know a lot about that mystery bird to even figure out where to start.

"The Everyday Naturalist fills in the gaps by explaining what traits to pay attention to when encountering a new species; how and when to use field guides, apps, and other resources; what to do if you get stuck; and more. Rather than focusing on one region or continent, these skills and tools are designed to help you classify nature anywhere you are—whether on familiar territory, traveling, or in a new home."

To lift the spirit, here's a video I took today of one of my favorite trees. This one is on my parent's property. His low branches remind me of tusks.

Great example of why generative AI shouldn't be trusted for anything even remotely related to identifying fungi (or anything else):

--Bruisiing (apparently on the substrate).

--Hyper-decurrent gills traveling all the way down the stipe on a...Russula? Amanita caesarea? [insert your best ID guess here]

--Multicolored mycelium that looks like it is also covered in gills. In fact, it's gills all the way down.

--Colour...chaingees? Chamgees?

--What even is that semi-circle of randomly sized and colored blocks? The "drvetenting" label is decidedly unhelpful.

--The upper surface of the largest "mushoomes" cap AND the substrate are both afflicted with what look like pustules of some sort.

--Four unlabeled lines (what do they mean? Should we fill in the blanks with imaginary fungal anatomy?)

This is a great time of year to practice nature identification! Animals are out and about (to include lots of cute baby critters!), plants are blooming and green, and spring fungi flourish. If you're not sure how to get started figuring out who all your nature neighbors are, The Everyday Naturalist walks you through the process step by step. No prior experience is needed, either, and it's not region-specific so you can use it anywhere!

August is just around the corner, and that means August 3 is the next session of The Everyday Naturalist Online Study Group! This time we'll be exploring the Fungus Identification chapter, which means all you mushroom hunters who are looking to tighten up your ID skills will want to take notice.

I got THE best thing in the mail yesterday--my first actual paperback copy of The Everyday Naturalist! My editor at Ten Speed Press sent it overnight as soon as she got the first samples. It will still be a couple months at least before the main print run makes it to the warehouse, but we're looking good for the official June 17 release!

Look closely, and you can get an idea of the content and my writing style. There's so much more beyond this, too; the total page count is 270 pages, plus the online bibliography (we ran out of room because I managed to turn a 50,000 word project into a 70,000 word manuscript). I kept telling you all what an absolutely beautiful book this was going to be, and now I get to show you a tiny taste of that. Check out the gorgeous cover and interior artwork by Ricardo Macia Lalinde--he far exceeded my expectations! The art department at TSP did a fabulous design job overall, too, and let me give feedback every step of the way.

Book release day is serious business.