Nature Minute Book Club

Winter is my least favorite time to be outside. It's cold, dark, and precipitating. In fact, I'm expecting snow the day after tomorrow. It's a great time to grab a cup of tea and a good book. Here are some more suggestions for your reading pleasure.

Dolphin Diaries by Dr. Denise L. Herzing

Herzing spent a quarter century in the Bahamas, essentially living among the spotted dolphins, if only
during the summer. During her seasons there she was able to gain unprecedented access to their
behaviors, communications, and rituals. She was seemingly accepted into their society. This book
chronicles the amazing discoveries she made in her time with these fascinating creatures and will
challenge what you think about animal intelligence.

A Sting in the Tale by Dave Ghoulson

Learn about British bumblebees. Ghoulson recounts the history of bumblebees from their appearance
in natural history when dinosaurs roamed the Earth to their problems today. All this, of course, is
interspersed with his own humorous tales from a childhood fascinated with wildlife to his more recent
time in the field tracking down some elusive bees. Oh, and there’s pie.

The Invention of Nature, Alexander Von Humboldt's New World by Andrea Wulf

This biography of Humboldt explores his development from a dutiful son to the father of ecology, even
if the word didn’t yet exist. A contemporary of Darwin’s father, it was he who planted the seeds that
germinated into the theory of evolution. He even warned of human activities influencing the climate,
making him possibly the world's first environmentalist. We discover his intellectual, philosophical, and
artistic influences as well as tag along on his adventures around the world. 

Winter World by Berndt Heinrich

Heinrich is an entomologist by trade, but his keen eye for observation makes him a great naturalist as
well. Part science, part personal narrative and drawing on his own research and observations, in this
book he takes us for a walk through Maine woods to see how critters from flies to bears survive the
brutal Down East winters.

Nature Minute Book Club

While it's not as cold as it was this time last year, I'm still hunkered down for winter. Even though temperatures are more seasonable this year, it's still a good time to curl up with a good book. Here are a few I read in the last year.

The Soul of an Octopus by Sy Montgomery

Naturalist Montgomery spent time at the New England Aquarium in Boston, where she got to know the aquarists and their charges. Getting up close and personal with the octopus (several over the course of a few years). In that time, we explore animal personalities and intelligence. As the aquarium loses and acquires new octopuses we learn about their life cycles. Overall, the book does a good job of breaking down the stigma against this odd-looking mollusk.

The Gulf by Jack E. Davis

Part history, part geology, part ethnography, and part ecology, this book examines every facet of the Gulf of Mexico. Beginning with the Gulf’s prehistoric origins to its modern day exploitation and ecological disasters, Davis shares his intimate knowledge of what he terms “the American Sea”. Meet some of the colorful characters who shaped Gulf culture as we know it today: from Colusa chieftains to Spanish conquistadors to tarpon fishermen, oil barons, feather hunters, and conservationists.

What a Fish Knows by Jonathan Balcombe

Balcombe dives into what makes a fish different from a mammal or a bird, and what is surprisingly similar. Anecdotal evidence, mixed with lab and field research reveals much about a fish’s sensory and perception, emotion, thought, communication, intelligence, and farts.

Rain: A Natural and Cultural History by Cynthia Barnett

For centuries, mankind has had a love-hate relationship with rain. We curse it for ruining our picnics and parades. We suffer from not enough or too much. Take a journey through time and see how our understanding of rain has changed over the years and how rain (or lack of it) has shaped the course of history and influenced pop culture.

Furry Logic by Matin Durrani and Liz Kalaugher

This book takes place at the intersection of biology and physics, exploring how animals of all shapes and sizes use physics in their daily lives. Learn about how snakes and ground squirrels use thermodynamics; see Komodo dragons and shrimp use force. Marvel as bees defy our understanding of aerodynamics, elephants communicate through seismic waves, and ants find their way home with polarized light. The section on eels will shock you!

Nature Minute Book Club

It's February and the days are getting noticeably longer, but we still have quite a few cold weeks ahead of us here in the Northeast. This month is like life in the Stone Ages: nasty, brutish, and short. I have snow coming twice before the Super Bowl is over, and I'm pretty sure more will be along shortly afterwards. Once the big game is over, what else is there to until spring but read? Having said that, feel free to peruse these titles from the Nature Minute book shelf.

Voyage of the Turtle: In Pursuit of Earth’s Last Dinosaur by Carl Safina

Safina travels the globe following sea turtles from their nesting grounds to their feeding grounds and points in between, looking for answers. What’s being done to protect them? What are the negative impacts people have on them, and how can we reduce or turtle-stomping footprint? Just where to they go and what do they do? If nothing else, you’ll learn just how immense these magnificent critters are and how they have adapted to a carefree life adrift and the challenges they face.

The Hidden Life of Trees by Peter Wohlleben 

Wohlleben, a German forester, takes us into the heart of his forest to show us how trees interact with friends and family, other tree species, and the animal world. Fascinating ideas about tree cognition, memory, and communication, as well as trees’ nurturing abilities will change the way you look at plants. Is a forest bigger than the sum of its parts? 

The Sun’s Heartbeat by Bob Berman

This book is the sun’s biography, from its humble birth to its spectacular future death. In between, learn about our changing relationship with the sun over the centuries, how it influences everything, and take a historical trip through own growing sea of knowledge about our nearest star. A seasoned skywatcher, Berman has yet to lose his sense of awe over solar eclipses.

Travels in Alaska by John Muir

America’s leading conservationist of the 19^th century recalls his journeys to Alaska in 1879, 1880, and 1890 in this book, which was still unfinished as the time of his death. Relying on his careful expedition notes, Muir gives a poetic narrative of his voyages exploring mountains and glaciers and documenting the flora and fauna of the Last Frontier while describing the scenery with a sense of reverence and awe. His love of life and the outdoors really shines through.

The Thing With Feathers by Noah Strycker

This book is about birds and people. Not relationships between the two, but common traits that will shock you. In some regards, birds are just as intelligent as humans. Sometimes, understanding their behavior helps us understand human nature. Deep down inside, on some basic level, maybe we’re not above the animals. Language and culture are thought to be defining human traits, but what happens when a “lower” animal develops art?

Nature Minute Book Club

It’s January. The most wonderful time of the year is behind us and we have nothing to look forward to but cold and dark for the next few months. Here in the Northwest it’s colder and snowier than usual, which is good news for the mountain snowpack. Mountain trails are closed and the cold, rain, and snow make for miserable hiking conditions. Since we’ve no place to go, grab a book from the Nature Minute book shelf and cozy with some of these titles.

“A Sand County Almanac” by Aldo Leopold

Leopold was a Nature Guy like me, working for the US Forest Service where he germinated the idea for roadless and wilderness areas which culminated in the Wilderness Act of 1964. His “Sand County Almanac” is a poetic observation of the natural world through changing seasons plus arguments in favor conservation, responsible land use, and the role of ethics in ecology. It’s an easy read and might inspire you to go outside and do some journaling of your own.

Multiple titles by Rachel Carson

Carson began her writing career working on publications for the US Fish and Wildlife Service as a biologist, at a time when few women worked in science. Her earliest books, including “Under the Sea-Wind” and “The Sea Around Us” established her reputation as a talented writer who could translate scientific studies into the language of the lay person. Her controversial “Silent Spring”, warning of the dangers of the overuse of pesticides and other chemicals and written as she was dying of cancer, helped ignite the environmental movement of the 1970s.

“Crow Planet” by Lyanda Lynn Haupt

Seattle-based urban ecologist Haupt gives us a glimpse into the world of an otherwise overlooked piece of our landscape, the common crow. The American crow, an incredibly intelligent bird, is so conspicuous as to escape our attention but Haupt manages to transform this bird from a nuisance to fascinating subject.

“Wesley the Owl” by Stacey O’Brien

Wesley is an owl who breaks all the rules of what researchers thought it meant to be an owl. Born with a defective wing that prevented him from being able to survive in the wild, Wesley went to live with researcher O’Brien. The two spent nearly a decade together, teaching each other about life and love.

“The Secret Life of Bats” by Melvin Tuttle

Who likes bats? Tuttle does, and after reading this book you will too. A career of researching one the most misunderstood critters on the planet has led to a remarkable conservation success story. Discover how one conversation can save not just a species, but an entire order of mammals.