Flying Fox and Drifting Sand, the Adventures of a Biologist in Queensland

New York: Robert M.McBride & Co., 1938 Hard cover, 8vo, in tan cloth, titles in blue to spine, in the original pictorial dust jacket, 341pp. Printed by R.& R. Clark, Ltd., Edinburgh. Printed on laid paper, with frontispiece and many other illustrations and maps. Condition: Very Good in a Very Good, un price-clipped d/j. Outer rear joint shows some staining in the gutter; matched by browning along corresponding interior rear hinge--could be from gluing during manufacture? (Not seen on the front joint or hinge.) Text block edges a bit dusty, just a hint of foxing to top outer edge and fore edge of text block. Interior with mild age-toning. D/j with minor crimping, one half-inch closed tear, and a couple of marks to rear portion.** As much a travelogue as a scientific work, this highly readable title helped bring the topic of conservation to the consciousness of the Commonwealth.**Indian-born zoologist, entomologist, and early conservationist Francis Ratcliffe, OBE (1904-1970) was best known for his work on the giant fruit-eating bat, or "flying foxes." He conducted this scientific survey on behalf of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research, beginning in 1929. The first part of this book deals with his observations on their behaviors in the various environs of eastern Australia, and their detrimental effects on commercial farming. The second part of the book discusses the effects of erosion on the environment and quality of life of the people living in "the Stony Desert" of Queensland. The Introduction is written by Professor of Zoology at Oxford University, Dr. Julian Huxley, under whom the Author studied in the 1920's. (ADB) Rare with the dust jacket. OCLC 423982. First American Edition. Hard Cover. Very Good/Very Good.