author
Merlin K. Potts
b. 1915
Best known for writing lively, accessible books about America’s national parks, this author brought wildlife and Western history to general readers. His work moves easily between natural history and storytelling, with a clear affection for places like Mount Rainier and Jackson Hole.
1 Audiobook
Mammals of Mount Rainier National Park
by Merlin K. Potts, Russell K. Grater
About the author
Merlin K. Potts was an American nature writer and park naturalist born in 1915. Contemporary catalog records and Project Gutenberg list him as "Merlin K. Potts, 1915-", and Mammals of Mount Rainier National Park identifies him as an assistant park naturalist when that book was prepared.
His best-known works include Mammals of Mount Rainier National Park, written with Russell K. Grater, and Campfire Tales of Jackson Hole. Together, those books show the range of his interests: careful observation of wildlife on one hand, and engaging retellings of regional history and folklore on the other.
Potts also appears in National Park Service historical material as chief park naturalist at Rocky Mountain National Park. Even from the limited biographical record available online, he comes across as a writer deeply connected to the national parks, eager to help visitors understand both the animals they might see and the human stories tied to those landscapes.