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The Biologia Centrali-Americana is an important literary resource of Central American biodiversity. Issued between 1879 to 1915 in 215 parts, the series resulted from scientific surveys and explorations during the turn of the 20th century. The BCA is a scarce resource in Latin America research collections and became a foundation of the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute Library. The volumes of the BCA were primarily amassed and used in the field on the Barro Colorado Island station by researcher and benefactor Thomas Barbour.

Imagine a dazzling sunlit morning where you’ve chosen to escape from modern day technology and enjoy the beauty of nature. You come across an intriguing structure that you identify as a birds nest. However, without cell phone reception you are unable to scurry to Google for help, and you are unable to identify the species of bird that constructed the nest. Well, fear no more.

Number 68 of just 200 copies, this whimsical semi-autobiography of expert naturalist and taxidermist Oliver Davie is interspersed with encyclopedia-esque entries minutely describing species particular to the author’s career. The pebbled, green cover is embossed in black and gold, and the book is printed on thick, embossed paper with visible chain lines. Lithographs, photos, and illustrations dot its text, including a photograph of the author at work.

A detailed and riveting history of early African Americans and aviation written by one of the Tuskegee pilots who served in the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War II. This book details the stories of those first aviation pioneers and their contributions that aided in the founding of the Tuskegee program and its success. It is unsparing in detailing the realities and risks they faced to achieve their goals.