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March 2015 Vol. 52 No. 7

Some conservation books are of local or otherwise limited interest, but that cannot be said for this one.  Jaguars are of global interest because current conservation efforts employ representative methods for transnational management, e.g., the identification and protection of habitat corridors and the use of genetic data to determine links and breeding patterns among a widespread population.  Rabinowitz merits attention because he knows as much about big cats as anyone in the world; through decades of groundbreaking research, he has secured protection for big cats in diverse countries and served as director of the world’s largest big cat conservation program within the Wildlife Conservation Society.  More recently, he founded Panthera, which quickly amassed significant financial resources and unparalleled scientific expertise.  This book is written for the lay reader, and the science is described clearly and concisely.  The chapters on the historical and cultural aspects of jaguars are noteworthy.  The maps would benefit from being larger but are informative.  The example of modern conservation techniques in action in a transnational setting combined with the authority of an experienced and respected voice make this work an essential addition to all academic collections.

--J. Nabe, Southern Illinois University Carbondale

Summing Up: Essential. All students, general readers, researchers/faculty, and professionals/practitioners.