HOT on the heels of photographer Richard Austin's Westcountry Animal Magic comes a second volume of superb pictures, guaranteed to raise an 'Aaahh' with the turn of every page.

Richard Austin has long been admired for his stunning animal photography and his second book, More Westcountry Animal Magic, does not disappoint.

From cute and cuddly, through wild and magnificent, to stark and sometime surreal, he manages perfectly to capture images of a wide range of animals both wild and domestic.

Often posed and even more effective, totally unposed, there are pictures to inspire any lover of photography to rush for his camera. Yet anyone who has ever tried to capture a great photo of their own family pet or the squirrels in the garden will realise just how difficult and time consuming a job this can be.

Richard Austin has travelled all over the West Country collecting material for this latest book. There are wonderful images of sleeping dormice from the Secret World Wildlife Rescue centre; playful lambs in bright red raincoats from Wylde Meadow Farm in Dorset and some delightfully inquisitive young pigs at the Kenford Farm Shop near Exeter.

There are also a few hard-edged shots — a reconstruction revealing how dangerous to wildlife the plastic loops connecting drinks cans together can be when they are discarded carelessly, or the sad sight of a swan shot in the head by someone using an air gun.

The book is also a tribute to the incredible love and time dedicated to animal husbandry in our region. Such commitment is demonstrated perfectly in shots like the eagle owl being treated for asthma with a nebuliser, or the nearly bald baby parrots being hand-fed from a specially-shaped spoon.

The full colour plates do justice to the incredible beauty to be found in the natural world, whether it is the grasshopper munching through a fuschia-pink cyclamen petal in Richard Austin's back garden, or the stunning plumage of a Mandarin duck as it floats on sunlit water.

More Westcountry Animal Magic by Richard Austin is published by Halsgrove and is available at bookshops priced £12.95 or direct by calling 01884 243242.

JANE HONEY