The Best Ecology Books Of All-Time

“What are the best books about Ecology?” We looked at 198 of the top books, aggregating and ranking them so we could answer that very question!

The top 10 titles, all appearing on 2 or more “Best Ecology” book lists, are ranked below by how many times they appear. The remaining 150+ books, as well as the lists we used, are in alphabetical order on the bottom of the page.

Happy Scrolling!

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Top 10 Best Ecology Books

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10 .) Field Notes from a Catastrophe: Man, Nature, and Climate Change by Elizabeth Kolbert

Lists It Appears On:

• Mother Nature Network
• Goodreads

“Elizabeth Kolbert’s environmental classic Field Notes from a Catastrophe first developed out of a groundbreaking, National Magazine Award-winning three-part series in The New Yorker. She expanded it into a still-concise yet richly researched and damning book about climate change: a primer on the greatest challenge facing the world today.

But in the years since, the story has continued to develop; the situation has become more dire, even as our understanding grows. Now, Kolbert returns to the defining book of her career. She’ll add a chapter bringing things up-to-date on the existing text, plus she’ll add three new chapters–on ocean acidification, the tar sands, and a Danish town that’s gone carbon neutral–making it, again, a must-read for our moment.”

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9 .) Walden by Henry David Thoreau

Lists It Appears On:

• Goodreads
• Mother Nature Network

In 1845, Henry David Thoreau moved into a cabin by Walden Pond. With the intention of immersing himself in nature and distancing himself from the distractions of social life, Thoreau sustained his retreat for just over two years. More popular than ever, “Walden” is a paean to the virtues of simplicity and self-sufficiency.

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8 .) The Theory of Ecology by Mark Vellend

Lists It Appears On:

• Bioteaching
• Dynamic Ecology

“A plethora of different theories, models, and concepts make up the field of community ecology. Amid this vast body of work, is it possible to build one general theory of ecological communities? What other scientific areas might serve as a guiding framework? As it turns out, the core focus of community ecology―understanding patterns of diversity and composition of biological variants across space and time―is shared by evolutionary biology and its very coherent conceptual framework, population genetics theory. The Theory of Ecological Communities takes this as a starting point to pull together community ecology’s various perspectives into a more unified whole.

Mark Vellend builds a theory of ecological communities based on four overarching processes: selection among species, drift, dispersal, and speciation. These are analogues of the four central processes in population genetics theory―selection within species, drift, gene flow, and mutation―and together they subsume almost all of the many dozens of more specific models built to describe the dynamics of communities of interacting species. The result is a theory that allows the effects of many low-level processes, such as competition, facilitation, predation, disturbance, stress, succession, colonization, and local extinction to be understood as the underpinnings of high-level processes with widely applicable consequences for ecological communities.”

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7 .) The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History by Elizabeth Kolbert

Lists It Appears On:

• Goodreads
• Small Pond Science

Over the last half-billion years, there have been Five mass extinctions, when the diversity of life on earth suddenly and dramatically contracted. Scientists around the world are currently monitoring the sixth extinction, predicted to be the most devastating extinction event since the asteroid impact that wiped out the dinosaurs. This time around, the cataclysm is us. In prose that is at once frank, entertaining, and deeply informed, New Yorker writer Elizabeth Kolbert tells us why and how human beings have altered life on the planet in a way no species has before. Interweaving research in half a dozen disciplines, descriptions of the fascinating species that have already been lost, and the history of extinction as a concept, Kolbert provides a moving and comprehensive account of the disappearances occurring before our very eyes. She shows that the sixth extinction is likely to be mankind’s most lasting legacy, compelling us to rethink the fundamental question of what it means to be human.

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6 .) Where the Wild Things Were: Life, Death, and Ecological Wreckage in a Land of Vanishing Predators by William Stolzenburg

Lists It Appears On:

• Small Pond Science
• Goodreads

For years, predators like snow leopards and white-tipped sharks have been disappearing from the top of the food chain, largely as a result of human action. Science journalist Will Stolzenburg reveals why and how their absence upsets the delicate balance of the world’s environment.

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5 .) The Forest Unseen: A Year’s Watch in Nature by David George Haskell

Lists It Appears On:

• Small Pond Science
• Goodreads

“In this wholly original book, biologist David Haskell uses a one- square-meter patch of old-growth Tennessee forest as a window onto the entire natural world. Visiting it almost daily for one year to trace nature’s path through the seasons, he brings the forest and its inhabitants to vivid life.

Each of this book’s short chapters begins with a simple observation: a salamander scuttling across the leaf litter; the first blossom of spring wildflowers. From these, Haskell spins a brilliant web of biology and ecology, explaining the science that binds together the tiniest microbes and the largest mammals and describing the ecosystems that have cycled for thousands- sometimes millions-of years. Each visit to the forest presents a nature story in miniature as Haskell elegantly teases out the intricate relationships that order the creatures and plants that call it home.

Written with remarkable grace and empathy, The Forest Unseen is a grand tour of nature in all its profundity. Haskell is a perfect guide into the world that exists beneath our feet and beyond our backyards.”

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4 .) Silent Spring by Rachel Carson

Lists It Appears On:

• Goodreads
• Mother Nature Network

Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring was first published in three serialized excerpts in the New Yorker in June of 1962. The book appeared in September of that year and the outcry that followed its publication forced the banning of DDT and spurred revolutionary changes in the laws affecting our air, land, and water. Carson’s passionate concern for the future of our planet reverberated powerfully throughout the world, and her eloquent book was instrumental in launching the environmental movement. It is without question one of the landmark books of the twentieth century.

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3 .) A Sand County Almanac by Aldo Leopold

Lists It Appears On:

• Mother Nature Network
• Small Pond Science
• Goodreads

These astonishing portraits of the natural world explore the breathtaking diversity of the unspoiled American landscape—the mountains and the prairies, the deserts and the coastlines. Conjuring up one extraordinary vision after another, Aldo Leopold takes readers with him on the road and through the seasons on a fantastic tour of our priceless natural resources, explaining the destructive effects humankind has had on the land and issuing a bold challenge to protect the world we love.

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2 .) Elements of Ecology by Robert L. Smith, Thomas M. Smith, Graham C. Hickman, Susan M. Hickman

Lists It Appears On:

• IASZoology
• Learn 4 Good
• Wiki.ezvid

Elements of Ecology, Ninth Edition continues to explain ecological processes clearly and concisely, with a greater emphasis on the relevance of ecology to everyday life and the human impact on ecosystems. This dramatically revised edition discusses issues of human ecology throughout the text and provides a greater variety of opportunities for students to learn, practice, and develop quantitative and analytical skills. Current research examples and other content updates are supported by more than 200 redesigned, full-color illustrations, graphs, and tables.

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1 .) Fundamentals of Ecology by Eugene Odum, Gary W. Barrett

Lists It Appears On:

• IASZoology
• Learn 4 Good
• Wiki.ezvid

The late Eugene Odum was a pioneer in systems ecology and is credited with bringing ecosystems into the mainstream public consciousness as well as into introductory college instruction. FUNDAMENTALS OF ECOLOGY was first published in 1953 and was the vehicle Odum used to educate a wide audience about ecological science. This Fifth Edition of FUNDAMENTALS OF ECOLOGY is co-authored by Odum’s protege Gary Barrett and represents the last academic text Odum produced. The text retains its classic holistic approach to ecosystem science, but incorporates and integrates an evolutionary approach as well. In keeping with a greater temporal/spatial approach to ecology, new chapters in landscape ecology, regional ecology, and global ecology have been added building on the levels-of-organization hierarchy. Also, a final chapter entitled “Statistical Thinking for Students of Ecology” provides a quantitative synthesis to the field of statistics. Contemporary and engaging, this text brings clarity and specificity to the study of ecology in the twenty-first century.

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The 150+ Additional Best Ecology Books

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#	Books	Authors	Lists
(Titles Appear On 1 List Each)
11	A Biogeoscience Approach to Ecosystems	Edward A. Johnson	Bioteaching
12	A Critique for Ecology		Dynamic Ecology
13	A is for Activist	Innosanto Nagara	Ecology Center
14	A Language Older Than Words	Derrick Jensen	Goodreads
15	A remarkable gift to environmental educators	Bora Simmons	Ecoliteracy
16	A Sting In The Tale		Small Pond Science
17	A text book of environmental sciences	Purohit, S.S., Shammi, Q.J. & Agrawal, A.K.	IASZoology
18	A Walk in the Woods	Bill Bryson	Goodreads
19	A Whale for the Killing		Mother Nature Network
20	Afro-Vegan	Bryant Terry	Ecology Center
21	Agriculture and Food in Crisis: Conflict, Resistance and Renewal	Brian Tokar	Institute For Social Ecology
22	Alien Species Intervention	J.K. Accinni	Best Science Fiction Books
23	Anachism, Marxism, and the Future of the Left: Interviews and Essays, 1993-1998	Murray Bookchin	Institute For Social Ecology
24	Animal ecology and distribution of animals	Rastogi, V.B. & Jayaraj, M.S. Animal ecology and distribution of animals.	IASZoology
25	Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life	Barbara Kingsolver	Goodreads
26	Annals of the Former World		Mother Nature Network
27	Art of Fermintation	Sandor Ellix Katz	Ecology Center
28	Arts for Change: Teaching Outside the Frame	Beverly Naidus	Institute For Social Ecology
29	Basic ecology	Odum, E.P.	IASZoology
30	Bay Area Forager	Mia Ander and Kevin Feinstein	Ecology Center
31	Beak of the Finch		Small Pond Science
32	Braiding Sweetgrass		Small Pond Science
33	Cadillac Desert		Mother Nature Network
34	Changes in the Land: Indians, Colonists, and the Ecology of New England	William Cronon	Goodreads
35	Concepts of Ecology	Kormondy, E.J. Concepts of Ecology.	IASZoology
36	Connects all the dots	David Sobel	Ecoliteracy
37	Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things	William McDonough	Goodreads
38	Create an Oasis with Greywater	Art Ludwig	Ecology Center
39	Deep Economy: The Wealth of Communities and the Durable Future	Bill McKibben	Goodreads
40	Deschooling Our Lives	Matt Hern	Institute For Social Ecology
41	Desert Solitaire	Edward Abbey	Goodreads
42	Dune	Frank Herbert	Goodreads
43	Eaarth: Making a Life on a Tough New Planet	Bill McKibben	Goodreads
44	Earth for Sale: Reclaiming Ecology in the Age of Corporate Greenwash	Brian Tokar	Institute For Social Ecology
45	Earth in the Balance		Mother Nature Network
46	Eating the Alphabet	Lois Ehlert	Ecology Center
47	Ecofascism: Lessons from the German Experience	Janet Biehl	Institute For Social Ecology
48	Ecological Communities	Donald R. Strong, Jr., Daniel Simberloff, Lawrence G. Abele, & Anne B. Thistle	Princeton University Press
49	Ecological Diversity and Its Measurement	Anne E. Magurran	Princeton University Press
50	Ecological Models and Data in R	Benjamin M. Bolker	Princeton University Press
51	Ecological Stoichiometry	Robert W. Sterner & James J. Elser	Princeton University Press
52	Ecology (Third Edition)		Wiki.ezvid
53	Ecology & Environmental biology	Purohit, S.S.	IASZoology
54	Ecology and environment	Sharma, P.D.	IASZoology
55	Ecology and field biology	Smith, R.L.	IASZoology
56	Ecology in Action	Fred D. Singer	Bioteaching
57	Ecology of a Cracker Childhood		Small Pond Science
58	Ecology of Urban Environments	Kirsten M. Parris	Bioteaching
59	Ecology, with special reference to animals and man	Kendeigh, S.C.	IASZoology
60	Ecology: Concepts and Applications,		Wiki.ezvid
61	Ecology: Pearson New International		Wiki.ezvid
62	Ecology: Principles and applications	Chapman, J.L. & Reiss, M.J.	IASZoology
63	Ecology: Science and practice	Faurie, Claude et al.	IASZoology
64	Ecology: The Economy of Nature		Wiki.ezvid
65	Ecology: The experimental analysis of distribution and abundance	Krebs, Charles	IASZoology
66	Ecology: The Experimental Analysis of Distribution and Abundance: Hands-On Field Package	Charles J. Krebs	Learn 4 Good
67	Ecotopia	Ernest Callenbach	Best Science Fiction Books
68	Elements of ecology	Klarke, G.L.	IASZoology
69	Endgame, Vol. 1: The Problem of Civilization	Derrick Jensen	Goodreads
70	Endgame, Vol. 2: Resistance	Derrick Jensen	Goodreads
71	Envionmental Science	Wright, R.T. & Nebel, B.J.	IASZoology
72	Environmental biology and toxicology	Sharma, P.D.	IASZoology
73	Environmental pollution: causes, effects and control	Purohit, S.S. & Agrawal, A.K.	IASZoology
74	Environmental science	McKinney, M.L. & Schoch, R.M.	IASZoology
75	Essentials of Ecology	Jr., G. Tyler Miller	Learn 4 Good
76	Everywhere All the Time: A New Deschooling Reader	Matt Hern	Institute For Social Ecology
77	Evolutionary ecology	Pianka, Eric R.	IASZoology
78	Fallen Angels	Larry Niven, Jerry Pournelle, and Michael Flynn	Best Science Fiction Books
79	Feral: Rewilding the Land, the Sea and Human Life	George Monbiot	Goodreads
80	Field and Laboratory Methods		Wiki.ezvid
81	Field Day: Getting Out of School	Matt Hern	Institute For Social Ecology
82	Fine, timely, and needed	The San Francisco Chronicle	Ecoliteracy
83	Flight Behavior	Barbara Kingsolver	Goodreads
84	Foraging Theory	David W. Stephens & John R. Krebs	Princeton University Press
85	Foundations of Ecology: Classic Papers with Commentaries		Dynamic Ecology
86	Gaia: A New Look at Life on Earth	James E. Lovelock	Goodreads
87	Gene Traders: Biotechnology, World Trade, and the Globalization of Hunger	Brian Tokar	Institute For Social Ecology
88	General Animal ecology	Ananthakrishnan & Viswanathan, T.R.	IASZoology
89	Geographical Ecology	Robert H. MacArthur	Princeton University Press
90	Global Ecology in Human Perspective	Southwick, Charles H.	IASZoology
91	Global environmental issues: A climatological approach	Kemp, David D.	IASZoology
92	Golden Gate Gardening	Pam Peirce	Ecology Center
93	Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies	Jared Diamond	Goodreads
94	Important	Frances Moore Lappé	Ecoliteracy
95	In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto	Michael Pollan	Goodreads
96	Infochemicals: Invisible bonds binding creatures great and small	Yuvaraj Ranganathan	Bioteaching
97	Inspired, substantive, and visionary	Booklist	Ecoliteracy
98	Ishmael: An Adventure of the Mind and Spirit	Daniel Quinn	Goodreads
99	Lab Girl		Small Pond Science
100	Last Chance to See	Douglas Adams	Goodreads
101	Learning Our Way Out: Adult Education at a Crossroads	Matthias Finger	Institute For Social Ecology
102	Living in the environment—Principles, connections and solutions	Miller, G. Tyler	IASZoology
103	Log of the Sea of Cortez		Small Pond Science
104	Merchants of Doubt		Mother Nature Network
105	Messages from Islands: A Global Biodiversity Tour	Ilkka Hanski	Bioteaching
106	Method in Ecology		Dynamic Ecology
107	Modeling Nature		Dynamic Ecology
108	Mollie Katzen’s Recipes: Soups	Mollie Katzen	Ecology Center
109	Mycelium Running: How Mushrooms Can Help Save the World	Paul Stamets	Goodreads
110	Natural Capitalism	Paul Hawken	Goodreads
111	Nature’s Confession	J.L. Morin	Best Science Fiction Books
112	Neptune’s Revenge		Mother Nature Network
113	Never Cry Wolf		Mother Nature Network
114	Never Out of Season		Small Pond Science
115	On the Origin of Species		Dynamic Ecology
116	One Size Does Not Fit All	Beverly Naidus	Institute For Social Ecology
117	Our Synthetic Environment	Murray Bookchin	Institute For Social Ecology
118	Pilgrim at Tinker Creek	Annie Dillard	Goodreads
119	Plant Ecology in the Middle East	Ahmad Hegazy	Bioteaching
120	Post-Scarcity Anarchism	Murray Bookchin	Institute For Social Ecology
121	Principles of environmental science, inquiry and applications	Cunningham, W.P. & Cunningham, M.A.	IASZoology
122	Quantitative Ecology and Evolutionary Biology: Integrating models with data (Oxford Series in Ecology and Evolution)	Otso Ovaskainen	Bioteaching
123	Ravens in Winter		Small Pond Science
124	Re-Enchanting Humanity: A Defense of the Human Spirit Against Anti-humanism, Misanthropy, Mysticism, and Primitivism	Murray Bookchin	Institute For Social Ecology
125	Redesigning Life? The Worldwide Challenge to Genetic Engineering	Brian Tokar	Institute For Social Ecology
126	Resource Competition and Community Structure	David Tilman	Princeton University Press
127	Rethinking Ecofeminist Politics	Janet Biehl	Institute For Social Ecology
128	Science in the Capital	Kim Stanley Robinson	Best Science Fiction Books
129	Seamlessly and elegantly communicated	NAAEE Communicator	Ecoliteracy
130	Secret Life of Dust		Mother Nature Network
131	Serendipity	Estes	Small Pond Science
132	Ship Breaker	Paolo Bacigalupi	Best Science Fiction Books
133	Social Anarchism or Lifestyle Anarchism: An Unbridgeable Chasm	Murray Bookchin	Institute For Social Ecology
134	Social Ecology and Communalism	Murray Bookchin	Institute For Social Ecology
135	Spatial Ecology	David Tilman & Peter Kareiva	Princeton University Press
136	Stability and Complexity in Model Ecosystems	Robert M. May	Princeton University Press
137	Start with Soil: The Organic Gardener’s Guide to Improving Soil for Higher Yields, More Beautiful Flowers,	Grace Gershuny	Institute For Social Ecology
138	The Background of Ecology		Dynamic Ecology
139	The best book of its kind	Michael Pollan	Ecoliteracy
140	The Biology of Deserts (Biology of Habitats Series)	David Ward	Bioteaching
141	The Botany of Desire: A Plant’s-Eye View of the World	Michael Pollan	Goodreads
142	The Color of Distance	Amy Thomson	Best Science Fiction Books
143	The Coming of the Global Superstorm	Art Bell and Whitley Strieber	Best Science Fiction Books
144	The Diversity of Life	Edward O. Wilson	Goodreads
145	The Earth Brokers: Power, Politics and World Development	Matthias Finger	Institute For Social Ecology
146	The Ecological Detective	Ray Hilborn & Marc Mangel	Princeton University Press
147	The Ecological Rift	John Bellamy Foster	Goodreads
148	The Ecology of Everyday Life	Chaia Heller	Institute For Social Ecology
149	The Ecology of Freedom	Murray Bookchin	Institute For Social Ecology
150	The Empty Ocean		Mother Nature Network
151	The End of Nature	Bill McKibben	Goodreads
152	The Future Of Life	Edward O. Wilson	Goodreads
153	The Green Alternative: Creating an Ecological Future	Brian Tokar	Institute For Social Ecology
154	The Hidden Life of Trees: What They Feel, How They Communicate – Discoveries from a Secret World	Peter Wohlleben	Goodreads
155	The Idea of Biodiversity		Dynamic Ecology
156	The Invention of Nature: Alexander von Humboldt’s New World	Andrea Wulf	Goodreads
157	The Limits of the City	Murray Bookchin	Institute For Social Ecology
158	The Limits to Growth: The 30-Year Update	Donella H. Meadows	Goodreads
159	The Lorax	Dr. Seuss	Goodreads
160	The Modern Crisis	Murray Bookchin	Institute For Social Ecology
161	The Monkey Wrench Gang	Edward Abbey	Goodreads
162	The Murray Bookchin Reader	Murray Bookchin	Institute For Social Ecology
163	The Omnivore’s Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals	Michael Pollan	Goodreads
164	The One-Straw Revolution	Masanobu Fukuoka	Goodreads
165	The Origin of Species	Charles Darwin	Goodreads
166	The Philosophy of Social Ecology: Essays on Dialectical Naturalism	Murray Bookchin	Institute For Social Ecology
167	The Politics of Social Ecology	Janet Biehl	Institute For Social Ecology
168	The Rise of Urbanization and the Decline of Citizenship	Murray Bookchin	Institute For Social Ecology
169	The Science of Ecology	Richard Brewer	Learn 4 Good
170	The Sea Around Us	Rachel Carson	Goodreads
171	The Serengeti Rules		Small Pond Science
172	The Song Of The Dodo: Island Biogeography In An Age Of Extinctions	David Quammen	Goodreads
173	The Soul of Soil	Grace Gershuny	Institute For Social Ecology
174	The Spanish Anarchists: The Heroic Years	Murray Bookchin	Institute For Social Ecology
175	The Spell of the Sensuous: Perception and Language in a More-Than-Human World	David Abram	Goodreads
176	The Theory of Island Biogeography	Robert H. MacArthur & Edward O. Wilson	Princeton University Press
177	The Theory of Sex Allocation	Eric L. Charnov	Princeton University Press
178	The Third Revolution Vol. 1-4	Murray Bookchin	Institute For Social Ecology
179	The Unified Neutral Theory of Biodiversity and Biogeography	Stephen P. Hubbell	Princeton University Press
180	The Unsettling of America: Culture and Agriculture	Wendell Berry	Goodreads
181	The Water-Wise Home	Laura Allen	Ecology Center
182	The Web of Life: A New Scientific Understanding of Living Systems	Fritjof Capra	Goodreads
183	The Wild Life of Our Bodies		Small Pond Science
184	The World Without Us	Alan Weisman	Goodreads
185	The Year of the Flood	Margaret Atwood	Best Science Fiction Books
186	Theory-Based Ecology: A Darwinian approach	Liz Pasztor	Bioteaching
187	This Changes Everything: Capitalism vs. The Climate	Naomi Klein	Goodreads
188	To Remember Spain: The Anarchist and Syndicalist Revolution of 1936	Murray Bookchin	Institute For Social Ecology
189	Toward an Ecological Society	Murray Bookchin	Institute For Social Ecology
190	Toward Climate Justice: Perspectives on the Climate Crisis and Social Change	Brian Tokar	Institute For Social Ecology
191	Under the Sea Wind	Rachel Carson	Goodreads
192	Urban Homesteading	Rachel Kaplan	Ecology Center
193	Vegetable Gardener’s Guide to Permaculture	Christopher Shein	Ecology Center
194	Watch Yourself: Why Safer Isn’t Always Better	Matt Hern	Institute For Social Ecology
195	Watermind	M.M. Buckner	Best Science Fiction Books
196	What Kind of Name is That	Beverly Naidus	Institute For Social Ecology
197	Winter World: The Ingenuity of Animal Survival	Bernd Heinrich	Goodreads
198	Worms Eat My Garbage	Mary Appelhof	Ecology Center

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13 Best Ecology Book Sources/Lists

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Source	Article
Best Science Fiction Books	Ecological Science Fiction
Bioteaching	Top 2016 Ecology Books
Dynamic Ecology	Books that all ecology grad students should read
Ecoliteracy	ECOLOGICAL LITERACY: EDUCATING OUR CHILDREN FOR A SUSTAINABLE WORLD
Ecology Center	BEST SELLING BOOKS
Goodreads	Popular Ecology Books
IASZoology	Books on Ecology & Environmental Science
Institute For Social Ecology	Published Books
Learn 4 Good	Ecology Books for College & University Students
Mother Nature Network	The 5 best environmental books of all time
Princeton University Press	Dynamic Ecology is searching for the best books in the field
Small Pond Science	Good popular books about ecology?
Wiki.ezvid	The 7 Best Ecology Textbooks