Field Guide to Bacteria

"Although most people are aware that bacteria are all around us, few would guess that they produce such distinctive and accessible signs. Whether you're walking on the beach, visiting a zoo or aquarium, buying groceries, looking for fossils, drinking beer, traipsing through a swamp, or cleaning scum from beneath a dripping outdoor faucet, you're surrounded by bacterial field marks. You don't need a laboratory or fancy equipment to find out what kind of bacteria are there—this guide will tell you how."—from the Introduction

Bacteria are an integral aspect of every habitat in which they occur and affect the lives of humans, other animals, and plants in many ways. Too often, we equate "bacterium" with "pathogen" and think of bacteria as things to avoid. In a fascinating guide perfect for naturalists, students, teachers, and tourists alike, Betsey Dexter Dyer lets the reader know that it is possible to observe bacteria with all the senses. Many groups of bacteria can be easily identified in the field (or in the refrigerator) without a microscope. Written for curious souls of all ages, A Field Guide to Bacteria opens our eyes—and noses and ears—to this hidden (or neglected) world around us. Useful illustrations, including 120 color photographs, accompany Dyer's lively text throughout.

Betsey Dexter Dyer is Professor of Biology at Wheaton College. She is coauthor of Tracing the History of Eukaryotic Cells and coeditor of The Origin of Eukaryotic Cells, both with Robert Obar.