by Mary Holland
495 pages, all ages
Trafalgar Square Books
This isn't the sort of field guide you tuck in with the granola bars and water bottles ... it's too big and too heavy. But as a natural history/field guide it's the perfect resource to have at hand before you head out, when you come back, or sitting around the tent on a rainy day. The photos are luscious - most taken by naturalist/writer/photographer Mary Holland.
What I really like is the way this book is set up - it's seasonal. The book begins with spring, March, and wanders through the seasons like a curious kid - peeking under stones and into hollow logs. Each chapter highlights a theme in nature. For March it's "awakening"; for July it's "maturation". This is, after all, the month when fledgelings and young frogs learn to live on their own; when flowers go to seed.
Each chapter begins with "nature notes" - brief accounts of what's happening in the world of amphibians, reptiles, birds, mammals, insects, plants and fungi. Following that is a section called "a closer look" in which Holland focuses on things of particular interest during that season. She's got a profile of bats, the inside scoop on caddisfly larvae and their marvelous cases, and how caterpillars defend themselves from predators. There's also a handy reference to Milkweed visitors.
Mary Holland was gracious enough to answer Three Questions:
Archimedes: What inspired you to begin writing about nature?
Mary: I grew up in rural Massachusetts and had acres of fields and woodlands to roam in. My parents allowed me to bring home skulls, bones and other things I collected. My writing began with a journal - I recorded nature sightings, like the first hummingbird of spring, or the first day I heard peepers calling. When I worked for the Mass. Audubon Society I began writing for their newsletter, using my journal entries as a source for ideas. I eventually wrote a natural history column for a local paper and those columns (plus a lot of additional information) made their way into this book. I want to let people know what they can expect to find outdoors, and tell them a bit about the life of the plants and animals they see.
Archimedes: What's the most curious thing you've ever seen or heard?
Mary: Probably the time a wild Ruffed Grouse walked up to me as I sat quietly in the woods. It climbed up my leg and perched on my knee for several minutes. An equally magical experience is watching the metamorphosis of a caterpillar turning into a butterfly or moth - or a spider spinning its web... it's hard to name a favorite. All of nature is fascinating to me.
Archimedes: Do you have any tips for kids who want to take photos of nature?
Mary: Sit very, very still in one spot for up to half an hour. Often you see more when you let animals come to you, rather than trying to find them. A dragonfly might land on you, or a deer might walk past. Have a magnifying glass with you - there's a whole new world when you look at things closely. Even a common flower, like a dandelion, can look different when magnified. Lastly, use all of your senses; your ears will tell you where a bird is singing, a frog calling, a bee flying.
IF you take cool photos or observe interesting things in nature, and want to share them, please send them to me - I will happily post things Curious Naturalists find this summer. email to: sueheaven (at) gmail (dot) com.And be sure to check in on Wednesdays to see what I'm finding in my neck of the woods. Friday blogs will resume Aug 23.
This is a great post! Lovely book, nice interview. Thanks! I'm headed out to find some interesting scent trails!
ReplyDeletepeople can do scent trails too, but you need a friend. One person is blindfolded and the other person leads them on an easy-to-walk trail through a woods or botanical garden. Lots of fun.
DeleteEnjoy your "sabbatical." Can't wait to see the results.
ReplyDelete