Ribbon of Sand: The Amazing Convergence of the Ocean and the Outer Banks - Hardcover

Alexander, John; Lazell, James

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0945575327 ISBN 13: 9780945575320

Publisher: Algonquin Books, 1992

Synopsis

Wind, currents, tides, and sand. Kingsnakes and rice rats. The disappearance of the Lost Colony, the raids of the pirate Blackbeard, and the Wright brothers' first attempts at flight. The Outer Banks is a place like no other.

About this title

About the Author

John Alexander has worked as a journalist and is now president of the Center for Creative Leadership in Greensboro, North Carolina. James Lazell lives in Jamestown, Rhode Island and is the president of the Conservation Agency.

Reviews

North Carolina's Outer Banks region, 180 miles of shifting sands, has both a romantic past--including the lost colony of Roanoke Island, the Wright brothers, pirates and shipwrecks--and a unique natural history. Alexander, a former newspaper editor, and naturalist Lazell, president of the Conservation Agency, examine this fragile ecosystem and unravel an evolutionary mystery. Explaining the actions of ocean currents, winds and waves, they show how island contours change, how inlets open and close. They describe the fauna and flora of maritime forests and beaches and search for a rare Ocracoke king snake, sticticeps. Their finding it yields an engrossing story of field science and discloses a remarkable example of relatively recent co-evolution (snake, rice rat, warmyrtle) . The authors also chart the changes brought by development of the island. As natural history or as description of barrier islands, this book leaves the reader with a clear sense of place and an understanding of the forces of wind and water. Illustrations.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

In a popular style of science writing that will appeal to lay readers, the authors discuss the history, geography, and ecology of North Carolina's Outer Banks in the context of barrier island geology and ecology. Among the topics they explore are the interactions of wind, sea, sand, and land on the Outer Banks, the influence of the Gulf Stream, geological development, and the ecological role of the maritime forest. Line drawings of native flora and fauna and maps (not seen) accompany the text. Alexander, a journalist, and Lazell, a scientist, love the unspoiled Outer Banks and warn of possible threats to the area. A useful supplement to more specialized studies (Orrin H. Pilkey's From Currituck to Calabash, Duke Univ. Pr, 1982, and Paul V. Godfrey's Barrier Island Ecology of Cape Lookout National Seashore and Vicinity, N. Carolina, G.P.O., 1976), this work is suitable for natural history collections in public and academic libraries.
- Judith B. Barnett, Pell Marine Science Lib., Univ. of Rhode Island, Kingston
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Algonquin Books
• Publication date: 1992
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0945575327
• ISBN 13: 9780945575320
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 254