Tennant, Alan 1943–

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Tennant, Alan 1943–

PERSONAL: Born June 19, 1943, in Fort Worth, TX; son of Joseph Alan and Elizabeth Shirley (Foster) Tennant. Education: Attended Stanford University, 1961–62; University of Texas, B.A. (with honors), M.A.

ADDRESSES: Home—3506 Cherry Lane, Austin, TX 78703. Agent—Helen Rees, Marvin Kaplan Associates, Boston, MA. E-mail—[email protected].

CAREER: Writer and lecturer. Associated with the University of Texas Press, Austin, Texas Monthly Magazine and Press, and Austin Natural Science Center. University of Texas, Austin, TX, former English teacher; Raptor Preservations Fund, former co-director.

MEMBER: Wildlife, Inc. (past president), Texas Institute of Letters, Society for the Preservation of Reptiles and Amphibians (past president).

AWARDS, HONORS: Southwest Book Award and awards from Southern Books Competition, 1980, Texas Institute of Letters, Border Regional Library Association, and Rounce and Coffin Club, all 1981, for The Guadalupe Mountains of Texas; New York Public Library Award, 2004, for On the Wing.

WRITINGS:

(With Michael Allender) The Guadalupe Mountains of Texas, University of Texas Press (Austin, TX), 1980.

(With John E. Werler and Bill Marvel) The Snakes of Texas: A Field Guide, Texas Monthly Press (Austin, TX), 1984, 2nd edition, Gulf (Houston, TX), 1998.

(With Kenneth L. Krysko) A Field Guide to Snakes of Florida, Gulf (Houston, TX), 1997.

(With Richard D. Bartlett) Snakes of North America: Western Region, Gulf (Houston, TX), 2000.

(With Richard D. Bartlett) Snakes of North America: Eastern and Central Regions, Gulf (Houston, TX), 2000.

On the Wing: To the Edge of the Earth with the Peregrine Falcon, Knopf (New York, NY), 2004.

Lone Star Field Guide to Texas Snakes, 3rd edition, Taylor Trade (Lanham, MD), 2005.

Contributor to newspapers. Author of "Geosphere," a monthly column in Backpacker.

ADAPTATIONS: On the Wing is being adapted for a feature film.

SIDELIGHTS: Among wildlife and nature writer Alan Tennant's many books is the highly acclaimed On the Wing: To the Edge of the Earth with the Peregrine Falcon. This book recounts the author's attempt to become the first person to follow a peregrine falcon during its migration from the Caribbean to Alaska. Tennant accomplishes this task over several years with the help of pilot and former combat instructor George Vose, whose plane proves to be less than reliable. The duo, however, must deal with more than plane problems as they follow the fastest animal on Earth. They have encounters with hostile authorities and with drug smugglers who mistake them for law enforcement officers. A Publishers Weekly contributor noted that the author writes with "a nature-lover's deep concern rather than an ideologue's rhetoric." Brian Latta, writing in Mother Earth News, commented that he was "struck by the author's vivid portrayal of the stark beauty and unique natural history of South Padre Island and its importance as a refuge for peregrines." Latta went on to note: "More than just a superb account of natural history, On the Wing is part exotic travelogue, part epic adventure saga, part coming-of-middle-age chronicle and part buddy story."