This is a beautiful book (I could not put it down), as well as being an important work about a very important subject. Bees pollinate more than 130 fruit, vegetable, and seed crops that humans rely on. Bees are crucial to the reproduction and diversity of flowering plants; their economic contributions are measured in the…
Why do birds have regional accents? Can horses learn mathematics? What do animals without eyes see? How do salmon return to their spawning grounds? How does the Syrian desert hamster know where its burrow is, after hours of foraging in the pitch black desert night? Ethology – the study of animal…
The NHBS Backlist Bargain sale runs until the March 2017. You can, it says: “save up to 60% on nearly 2,000 field guides, monographs, scientific textbooks and more, covering a broad range of topics in ornithology, entomology, mammalian biology, zoology, evolution, ecology, and botany.” NHBS started life as the Natural History Book Service in London…
John Muir is regarded as the ‘father of America’s national parks’ and is a towering figure in the history of that country’s involvement with ecology, wilderness and all things natural. Born into a harsh disciplinarian home in Dunbar, Scotland (not the US as often thought), as a young boy he would often escape the grit of…
Anna Carlile’s book accomplishes an impressive merging of style and substance; at first glance stunning and evocative photography draws the reader in yet suggests that this is nothing more than a walk in the woods in coffee-table reading form. However, on full immersion into the (admittedly slightly hard-on-the-eye) text and projects Carlile has brought together,…
‘The Children’s Garden’ provides a useful resource for any teacher keen to maximise the potential of a school garden for the purposes of enjoyment and creativity. The handbook is organised into sections based on the seasons. In Spring, one of the most fun and creative ideas is the construction of a ‘wall of sound and…
‘Secrets of the Vegetable Garden’ is a picture book with a difference! Children hold the book up to light or shine a torch behind the page to reveal the hidden activity going on in the garden: seeds appear magically under soil in a pot; roots and worms, normally hidden to us, become apparent under the…
Miles Irving’s, ‘The Forager Handbook’, begins with a passionate introduction about a revolution in the food industry and a burgeoning communal return to our ancestral roots. His enthusiasm and knowledge are clear from the start, and the book, without doubt, does offer a wealth of information. However, I fear the title misleads us in its…
It seems to have been a bad summer for the elm across southern England. Wherever there is elm, there are the tell-tale signs of attack by the elm bark beetle with shriveled brown leaves and bent-over branches standing out against the green hedge background. From being green and healthy-looking in May and June, during July…
Anna Carlile’s book accomplishes an impressive merging of style and substance; at first glance stunning and evocative photography draws the reader in yet suggests that this is nothing more than a walk in the woods in coffee-table-reading form. However, on full immersion into the (admittedly slightly hard-on-the-eye) text and projects Carlile has brought together, one…
“Dragonflies are rock and roll insects,” states Nick Baker in the foreword. They are high energy aerial predators that have the raptorial appeal of birds of prey and the grace, agility and vibrancy of butterflies. They inhabit just about anywhere and everywhere connected to water. Did you know there are 56 species? The high quality…
It’s very easy, with rules and regulation, for school children to spend much of their class time… indoors. This book is full of ideas to get kids to experience and enjoy being outside… and help adults stuck for what to do! Tried-and-true activities cover: gardening (the author is a horticulturalist); things to do at dawn…