Forests Amber Books (370609569)

Forests cover a third of our planet’s land mass. They are home to more than three-quarters of the world’s species. They absorb a quarter of the carbon dioxide that industries pump into the air. Their existence supports human life. We both treasure them and waste them. Illustrated with more than 180 photographs, Forests is a pictorial exploration of an ancient ecosystem that covers four billion hectares of the Earth’s surface and whose maintenance is crucial to human survival. Divided into chapters by continent and arranged by country, Forests examines diverse forest environments, including: the weird and distinctive Dragon’s Blood Forest, Socotra, Yemen; the Borneo rainforest, home to more than 15,000 plant species, 380 bird species and the famous orangutan, or “jungle man”; the “Crooked Forest” near Nowe Czarnowo, Poland, where a grove of oddly-shaped pine trees have a mysterious origin; Cathedral Grove, an ancient Douglas fir ecosystem 9m (29ft) in circumference and 75m (250ft) in height on Vancouver Island in British Columbia; and the ancient German Black Forest, a place imbued with history and legend since ancient times. With more than 180 outstanding photographs of forests and their flora and fauna, Forests will excite and captivate those who love exploring the world’s woodland environments.