Ecoblitz

Book excerpt: A short hike through an Indiana forest reveals layers of living things: the overstories and understories of trees, the shadow of a mammal, colorful fungi. But what would it mean to methodically document the communities of plants and animals harboring in Indiana's public forests, at humid midnight or coldest dawn? What is the impact of this wondrous knowledge? Ecoblitz describes the findings of, and the dogged scientists behind, the Indiana Forest Alliance's multiyear forest wildlife census. Scientists' journeys in pursuit of elusive bats, lavish lichen, and spider species paint a breathtaking picture of Indiana's biodiversity and its value to Indiana's policy, polity, and poetics. This book will amaze readers with a dazzling portrait of local biodiversity, deepen appreciation for Indiana's eastern hardwood forest system, and inspire a desire to advocate for it. Ecoblitz is a book for lovers of nature, for those who appreciate science but are not scientists themselves, and for those who want to learn something new.