SCOTT SHALAWAY Mexico's president moves to preserve Monarchs

Great news from Mexico!
President Vicente Fox recently visited the monarch butterfly sanctuaries in the mountains of central Mexico. He called the tens of millions of monarchs that winter on a few isolated forest reserves, "a heritage of humanity" and announced a program to protect the forests from illegal logging.
Fox observed, "We've already lost 44 percent of the forest, and today the monarch is in danger."
The greatest danger is posed by the illegal logging of the oyamel fir trees, upon which the monarchs roost in staggering numbers. President Fox has directed his federal forest service to assign 60 new inspectors to patrol the forests and roads of the monarch reserve 24 hours a day.
The Mexican government and the World Wildlife Fund will cooperate to help families dependent on logging to find other work in forest restoration or ecotourism.
Mexico deserves praise and thanks for protecting the monarch preserve. I encourage readers and Spanish classes everywhere to send a note of thanks to President Fox. Send notes to President Vicente Fox Quesada, Residencia Oficial de Los Pinos, Col. San Miguel Chapultepec, 11850 Mexico, D.F., Mexico.
Gift suggestions: A few weeks ago I made some holiday gift suggestions. As often happens, I didn't have space to list all the items that warrant mention, so here are some additional holiday tips.
For a variety of outdoor-oriented gifts, including artwork, T-shirts, mugs, embroidered patches, knives and full-color calendars, visit the Pennsylvania Game Commission's Web site at www.pgc.state.pa.us or call (888) 888-3459 during business hours. Prices range from $4.95 (travel mug) to $222.50 (limited edition signed and numbered framed elk print by Gerald Putt).
For information junkies on your shopping list, here are a few books worth considering.
"The Bluebird Monitor's Guide to Bluebirds and Other Small Cavity-Nesters" by Cynthia Berger, Keith Kridler, and Jack Griggs ($14.95, 2001, HarperCollins) is sponsored by the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology and is essential for anyone who monitors even a single nest box.
It answers virtually every question a nest box landlord might have and is lavishly illustrated with 148 color photos and many diagrams of plans for various nest boxes and predator baffles. This book is the new "best" reference book for anyone who uses nest boxes to attract cavity-nesters.
Curious creature: "Platypus: The Extraordinary Story of How a Curious Creature Baffled the World" by Ann Moyal ($21.95; 2001, Smithsonian Institution Press) is a delightful introduction to a truly strange creature most of us will never see.
Imagine when that first specimen arrived in England in 1799. A duck's bill, a mammal's body, webbed feet -- and it laid eggs. It wasn't even a clever hoax, some thought. The tale of the discovery and acceptance of the platypus is a classic in the annals of natural history.
"Wildflowers of Pennsylvania" by Mary Joy Haywood and Phyllis Testal Monk ($22.00 ppd., 2001) was conceived by members of the Botanical Society of Western Pennsylvania as a guide for "families and amateurs who wished to walk our woods and fields and be able to identify the beautiful plants encountered therein."
This spiral-bound field guide illustrates more than 600 wildflowers with excellent color photos provided by Society members. And because many of these species occur far beyond the boundaries of Pennsylvania, this book will appeal to botanists throughout the East and Midwest. Order by sending a check to the Botanical Society of Western Pennsylvania, c/o Carlow College, 3333 Fifth Ave., Pittsburgh, PA 15213. (Pa. residents add $1.40 sales tax.).
A river history: Finally, "River on the Rocks" by Skip Johnson ($22.50, 2001, www.scenicbirchriver.com) is a fascinating natural, social and cultural history of a single West Virginia river.
Skip Johnson was born along the Birch River and still lives there. The retired outdoor columnist for the Charleston Gazette knows the Birch as well as anyone knows any river, and he combines this knowledge with his considerable skills as a reporter and woodsman. This gem of a book may not be widely available in bookstores outside of West Virginia, so visit the Web site to order.