A Naturalist at Large

March 1, 2018
A collection of essays on plants and animal biology and behavior by a scientist who is also a prolific, prize-winning author.Heinrich (Emeritus, Biology/Univ. of Vermont; One Wild Bird at a Time: Portraits of Individual Lives, 2016, etc.) writes engagingly about soil, trees, insects, birds, and mammals, all of which he has observed closely for years. All the included essays, ranging in date from 1974 to 2017, have been previously published, many in Natural History magazine and Orion. The author is no casual observer of the world around him. When something catches his eye, he studies it intensely, counting, measuring, and dissecting. Many of his observations are made inside and outside his cabin in the Maine woods, where he now lives. However, during his long career, he has also studied trees, elephants, and predators in Africa, bees in the Arctic, flowers in Israel, and caterpillars in California. Among other tidbits, readers will learn how red squirrels tap maple trees, how a raven notifies other ravens of the location of a dead animal, and how beetles cooperate to bury a mouse. Heinrich wants to know how vines twist and turn, why trees have certain shapes, and how animals survive fierce heat and intense cold. At times, the author provides more detail than many general readers will require--e.g., a comparison between Thoreau's bean- patch expenses and his own. More often, however, he illustrates just what the work of a dedicated biologist entails. Where necessary, he appends codas to bring certain essays up to date. To accompany his investigations into the natural world, the author also provides includes two -dozen appealing line drawings revealing structural details of plants and close-ups of insects and tiny creatures that would escape most casual observers.Heinrich's personal touch and breadth of knowledge make this a satisfying outing for armchair naturalists.

COPYRIGHT(2018) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

March 15, 2018

Maine resident, prolific author, and behavioral ecologist Heinrich (emeritus, biology, Univ. of Vermont; One Wild Bird at a Time) presents 35 previously published essays, illustrated by his own sketches. He recounts experiences ranging from collecting insects during his childhood in Germany to postretirement African safari tourism, emphasizing his fieldwork in multiple North American habitats and observations of the forest surrounding his western Maine cabin. About half of the work focus on insects and birds, reflecting Heinrich's primary professional interests. But this compilation also reveals the role of serendipity in the conduct of natural history, as the author applies systematic observation to other phenomena piquing his interest--the sudden transition of iris buds to open flowers or the resilience of trees subjected to severe ice storms. Since many of the stories collected here first appeared in Natural History magazine, regular readers of that publication will be familiar with this work. VERDICT This compelling collection will appeal to those interested in natural history or the environment of northern New England, with the caveat that Heinrich focuses on the inland, forested part of the region, rather than the coast.--Nancy R. Curtis, Univ. of Maine Lib., Orono

Copyright 2018 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.