Tiny Birds, Long Flight

 

Tiny Tern Takes Flight 

by Donna B. McKinney; illus by Fiona Osbaldstone 

40 pages; ages 4-6

‎Science, Naturally!, 2024 

theme: birds, migration, nonfiction

Arctic terns live in shivering cold lands near the North Pole.

They may be tiny, but they are mighty birds who dive into icy water for food, and scoop out nests on the rocky tundra. They may be small, but they are fierce protectors of their nests and hatchlings. They may look puny, but when summer light fades and seasons change, they take off on the longest migration journey of any bird – flying all the way from the Arctic to the Antarctic. A wonderful story about an ordinary tern making an extraordinary flight.

What I like about this book: Sure, this book is filled with facts, but the language is so lyrical you don’t even notice. As seasons change, “sunlight creeps toward darkness as the Earth turns on its axis…” Air currents carry the terns “higher, further, southward.” Back matter shows details of the tern and their feathers, tells more about migration, and describes how they live in the Arctic and Antarctic. And there's the alliterative title, too!

Beyond the Books:

Arctic terns are migrating, and right now are close to the midpoint in their migration from the Antarctic to the Arctic. You can look at their migration map, and find out more about these tiny terns at All About Birds.

Join a scientific expedition to monitor arctic tern migration via this video

For deeper study of arctic terns, check out this hands-on unit from author and teacher, Jessica Fries Gaither

Fly like a tern. In the book, the terns rise and glide on air currents. They twirl and soar. Can you move like a tern?

Today we’re joining Perfect Picture Book Friday. It’s a wonderful gathering where bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's website. Review copy provided by the author.

Explore Outdoors ~ Birds and Bugs Together!

Saturday is World Migratory Bird Day! Did you know that insects are an important food source for migratory birds? If you love to watch birds, make room in your yard for bugs!

 

Learn more at https://www.migratorybirdday.org/

Animals on the Move

Animals are heading out on journeys every day. Some are long: migrations from summer home to winter home. Some are shorter: looking for food or a mate or a good place to make a den for little ones. These books take a look at animals on the move – and what happens when you can’t travel along your normal route.

theme: animals, migration, nature

Border Crossings 

by Sneed B. Collard III; illustrated by Howard Gray 

32 pages; ages 6-9

‎Charlesbridge, 2023

On a moonless night, padded paws silently step across pebbled ground. They make their way past thorn tree, through brush, and around a muddy marsh.

A male ocelot is on the move, across the Chihuahuan Desert, seeking a mate. But then he comes upon an obstacle so tall and slippery he can’t get over it. The wall runs right through ocelot country, splintering rich habitat into two pieces. Ocelot isn’t the only animal that crosses the border to find a mate, hunt, or graze. 

What I like about this book: I like how the author presents the borderlands as an environment that has been part of animals’ lives for longer than humans have inhabited that bit of land. That for them, the border is not something that divides, but just … home. The illustrations capture the beauty of the desert, and (I hope) will inspire some readers to learn more about the southwestern desert. And the back matter is a tremendous resource, packed with information about the ecology of the border region, a glossary, and great recommendations for further reading.

Animal Journeys  

by Carron Brown; illus. by Carrie May

36 pages; ages 4-8

Kane/Miller Book Publishers, 2023

Many animals make incredible journeys every year, month, and even each day. This is called migration.

Readers go on journeys with geese, lobsters, sea turtles, and butterflies in environments ranging from high mountains to the seashore. But some things are hidden from view. To reveal the different animals on their travels, readers will need to shine a flashlight behind the page – or hold the page up to a light source, such as a window. Which works even on a cloudy day (I tested this).

What I like about this book: This is a fun way to introduce a diversity of animals from around the world. And the last spread invites kids to look for animals on their journeys. Plus there is back matter that explains a bit more about how animals stay safe on their travels.

Beyond the Books:

Learn more about ocelots and how walls and other infrastructure fragments their habitat. You can find out more about ocelots (and hear some ocelot sounds) at the San Diego Zoo website. Two places to learn more about the impacts of the border wall are the Defenders of Wildlife and the Center for Biological Diversity.

Explore the Chihuahuan Desert. Here are some resources to get you started: National Park Service; World Wildlife Fund; and this photo essay of plants and animals commonly seen on the desert.

Watch for migrating animals. As we move towards warmer spring weather, you might hear – and see – new birds flying overhead or stopping for a snack at local birdfeeders. Here’s a tool for following bird migration. Or you might discover butterflies returning to the gardens – check out this migration map for monarchs. 

Today we’re joining Perfect Picture Book Friday. It’s a wonderful gathering where bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's website. Review copies provided by the publishers.

Make the World a Better Place for Wild Things ~ by Lisa Kahn Schnell

I write and make art to make the world a better place. To me, that means protecting wild creatures and wild places, connecting people with the non-human natural world, and deepening and sharing those connections. That’s part of what made me curious to learn more about Rosalie Edge. 

Lisa's sketch of tree at Hawk Mountain

Mabel Rosalie Barrow Edge founded Hawk Mountain Sanctuary in 1934 as a response to the annual shooting of migrating raptors that passed along the main ridge that runs through southeastern Pennsylvania. Because hawks, eagles, falcons, and other birds of prey were considered vermin at the time, whole families gathered on rocky outcrops on Sundays each autumn to shoot the birds as they flew by. Rosalie, who by that point had dedicated her life to protecting wildlife of all sorts (not just the cute and cuddly kind), was horrified. After many ups and downs and a whole lot of work, she raised enough money to purchase the land and create the world’s first sanctuary for migrating raptors. 

I had worked and volunteered at Hawk Mountain Sanctuary for over ten years before I dove into the details of Rosalie’s story. Big posters of her greeted me every time I walked into the visitor center, and I had given presentations about her to tour groups and sanctuary visitors. But with her tidy suit, fancy hat, and heels, I always found her a bit intimidating. Her face did not just look out from those posters. It implored, with the fierceness of one of the raptors she so loved.

Red-tailed hawk sketch by Lisa

I have come to understand that fierceness as devotion to the causes she cared about. Hawk Mountain Sanctuary was definitely one of those causes! But her reach was broad, and whatever the topic, Rosalie took every opportunity to speak up—and encouraged others to do the same. By creating Hawk Mountain Sanctuary, she also made it possible to start collecting data about migrating raptors. This data set has continued to build to this day, and has been used by scientists far and wide (including Rachel Carson) to monitor raptor population trends. Rosalie listened to her heart, and her actions sparked great changes.  

But Rosalie hasn’t gotten as much attention as other environmentalists. I’m excited to share her story, both as a way to give back to Hawk Mountain Sanctuary—a place that has meant so much to me—and also to inspire others. By learning about her struggles and creative solutions, I hope that more people will use their own skills and ideas to make the world a better place for wild things and the humans who love them, too.     

Lisa at Hawk Mountain

One way you can help make the world a better place for wild things is to ask someone to tell you about an experience they had with nature. A lot can happen if you listen. However big or small the story—or the teller!—listening is a great reminder that these experiences and relationships with wild things are important. And who knows what good things will come of that. 

Lisa Kahn Schnell is the author of High Tide For Horseshoe Crabs and other books for young readers. She has worked and volunteered at Hawk Mountain Sanctuary for over 20 years. This year, Lisa has been sketching a tree every day. She’d love to hear your stories about a special tree you know, or other moments in the natural world. You can find her online at lisakschnell.com and @lisakschnell. 

Butterflies Belong Here!

As summer comes to an end, I’ve noticed tons of butterflies flitting around my garden and along the roadside: Monarchs, cabbage butterflies, sulfurs, blues, checkered, and cute, fuzzy skippers.

theme: butterflies, nature, environment

Butterflies Belong Here: A Story of One Idea, Thirty Kids, and a World of Butterflies 
by Deborah Hopkinson; illus. by Meilo So
68 pages; ages 5-8
Chronicle Books, 2020

Last spring, we took a class picture… I was a little like a caterpillar then: quiet and almost invisible.

When a girl moves to a new home, she learns all about monarch butterflies. But when she looks for them in the gardens of her neighborhood, they are hard to find. She hears about way stations – gardens filled with plants that monarchs like – and wonders if she could plant a way station at the school. All it takes is one person with an idea, says the librarian.

What I like about this book: I like that the main character, who remains unnamed, feels empowered enough to lead a class project in planting a monarch garden. It requires a plan, a presentation, and persistence. Planting flowers can sound so simple and small – but when it’s done to make the world a better place for butterflies, it’s huge. Back matter includes a guide to making a monarch way station, monarch facts, and resources for monarch activists of all ages.

Beyond the Books:

Do Monarch butterflies live in your neighborhood? Look for orange and black butterflies flitting around or nectaring at flowers. Then look closer to make sure it’s really a monarch. Here’s how to tell whether you’ve got a monarch.

Make a plan for planting a monarch way station. If you need some help, check out these articles here and here.

Draw or paint a picture of a monarch butterfly. Take a close look at its wings. Are they tattered? Maybe your monarch has been flying south for days.

Monarchs migrate in the fall. You can track the migration here.

Today we're joining Perfect Picture Book Friday, an event where bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's website. Review copy provided by the publisher.

Snack, Snooze, Skedaddle

Snack, Snooze, Skedaddle: How Animals Get Ready for Winter 
by Laura Purdie Salas; illus by Claudine Gévry 
32 pages; ages 5-9
Millbrook Press, 2019

theme: winter, animals, nature

Soak up the sun, breathe in the breeze, munch crunchy apples that fall from the trees.

Because nights are growing longer, days are getting colder, and soon snow and ice will cover the landscape. Laura Purdie Salas shows how different animals prepare to survive the winter. Some, such as hummingbirds and butterflies, migrate. Others store up nuts and seeds, or build layers of fat, and spend the winter napping. And others grow extra layers of hair so they can keep warm.

What I like about this book: Rhyming text reveals survival secrets of twelve different animals, from worms to mammals. And yes, humans are counted amongst those mammals. A line of smaller text, offset by squiggly lines, offers additional details. Claudine Gévry’s illustrations are filled with details inviting readers to explore the spreads that show animals across the two seasons of autumn and winter.

And there is back matter! Salas provides more information about the three basic winter survival strategies: migrate, hibernate, or tolerate. Following pages tell more about the migrators, hibernators, and tolerators, and end with a glossary.

Beyond the Books:

The Cornell Lab of Ornithology is a great resource for learning more about bird migration. Here’s an article about bird migration basics, and here’s the migration forecast map.

Spend a month watching the wild animals and birds in your yard, neighborhood, parks, or nearby fields and woods. Jot down the dates when you see (or hear) geese flying overhead, or other birds. Make a list of animals you see staying. Are the birds that hang out in winter the same ones you saw in the summer?

If you live in a place of winter snow and ice, what do you do to adapt to the colder temperatures? Put on extra layers? Build snow forts and glide on ice? Do you eat different kinds of food than you do in the summer?

Today we're joining other book bloggers over at STEM Friday, where you can discover other cool STEM books. And we're joining Perfect Picture Book Friday, an event where bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's website. Review copy provided by the publisher.

My Happy Year

My Happy Year by E.Bluebird (A Nature Diary)
by Paul Meisel 
40 pages; ages 4 - 8
Holiday House, 2019

theme: birds, nature, growing up

Today is my birthday! I can’t see yet. When I stick my head up and open my beak, Mom and Dad feed me.

E. Bluebird has a good life: loving parents who feed her beetles and crickets, a cozy nest, and fancy new feathers on her wings. Even when her parents want E to leave the nest (she’s afraid of heights…) they still feed her. But when E. does take that leap out of the nest, she discovers flight.

What I like about this book: It’s fun to read. Plus, who knew that bluebirds keep journals? For example:
July 4 ~ Flight is amazing! … Everything is so beautiful from up here. (Apparently she didn’t notice the owl watching her.) Plus we get to tag along on her migration flight there and back and watch her get on with bluebird life.

I also like the creative use of end pages. That’s where Paul Meisel puts the sort of things that one might usually find in back matter: a range map; information about bluebirds in the wild; links for how to build a bluebird house; lyrics to their songs; and a short glossary.

A couple years ago Meisel wrote another book from the point of view of a praying mantis. you can find my review of My Awesome Summer,  by P. Mantis here.

Beyond the Books:

Go on a bird walk. The best times are early in the morning or in the evening before dusk. If you have a field guide, take it along. If not, you can check back with Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s All About Birds to help identify birds you see. While you’re out with the birds, watch how they fly. And listen to their songs. Here are songs of an Easter bluebird.

Build a bluebird nesting box. It’s too late for this year, but you can make it now for next spring. Instructions are here and here - and here's a video.

Today we're joining other book bloggers over at STEM Friday, where you can discover other cool STEM books.
Review copy provided by the publisher.

Bugs Don't Hug & Little Whale

Last month I reviewed two books that focused on animal families. I'm revisiting the topic with a couple more. One is about how parents care for their young, and the other a tale about a little whale on a long journey.

Themes: animals, families, nature

Bugs Don't Hug, Six-legged parents and their kids
by Heather L. Montgomery; illus. by Stephen Stone
32 pages; ages 3-7
Charlesbridge, 2018

Mommy and daddy bugs don't give good-morning kisses. They don't tie shoes or untangle hair. And bugs don't hug.

Every spread introduces something parent bugs "don't do", from playing peekaboo to serving eggs and toast. But when you turn the page ... you discover that, yes indeed, bug parents are just like human parents. 

What I like about this book: I like the way Heather Montgomery uses compare-and-contrast to show the similarities and differences in parents. Maybe bugs don't bake birthday cakes, but they do make a cake for their babies. It's fun and best of all - surprising! The illustrations are cartoony and fun. And I LOVE the back matter (of course) - more about each of the insects featured in the book plus a note on scientific language. And a list of books to read for the naturally curious kids.

 Little Whale
by Jo Weaver
32 pages; ages 3-7
Peachtree, 2018

Gray Whale led her baby out of the shallows and into the warm southern sea.
"Where are we going?" asked Little Whale.
"Follow me," said Gray Whale.

With that, we're off on a grand journey - a migration from the southern sea to the far north. There will be danger along the way, and wonderful sights, and perhaps an adventure or two. But always, there will be mama whale there to guide, comfort, and help Little Whale.

What I like about this book: I like the tale of a journey. It's Little Whale's first migration, so we see things new to him. And, as with any journey with kids, there's the "are we there yet" questions that pop up. And Little Whale gets tired - so what's a parent to do? Beyond the tale of whales and migration, this is a story grounded in the love a parent feels for her child.  The monochromatic illustrations are soothing, and perfect for a bedtime read-aloud.

Beyond the books:

What kinds of things do your parents do for you? Do they tell bedtime stories? Give you rides to soccer practice? List three or four things. Now find out if there are any insect parents that do those sort of things - or other animal parents.

 Do all whales migrate? Where do they come from - and where do they go? You might want to make a map to show some of these migrations.

Make your own monochromatic art using paint. All you need is one color plus black and white. Check out this video if you need more help with that.

Today we're joining other book bloggers over at STEM Friday, where you can discover other cool STEM books. We're also joining Perfect Picture Book Friday, an event where bloggers share great picture books at Susanna Leonard Hill's website. She keeps an ever-growing list of Perfect Picture Books. Review copies provided by the publishers.

Belle's Journey

At the end of August, I headed out with a passionate osprey-watcher to check on a nest near Cayuga Lake. It was atop a high pole, on a platform built for ospreys who, the locals hoped, might repopulate the area.

Mother (Ophelia) and daughter were there, calling loudly for dad to bring home the fish. "I figured mom would have left already," said my osprey buddy. With the youngest able to fly and learning to hunt, there was nothing left to do - and dad ospreys are the ones who stick around until the last fledge is ready to live independently.

Osprey are hawks. Big hawks who thrive on fish. Some folks refer to them as fish hawks. They hang out in upstate NY, and in the northeast for the summer and, when fall comes, they fly to South America.

A lot of what we know about ospreys comes from researchers like Rob Bierregaard, who has been tagging young ospreys with radio transmitters and following their migratory paths. One of the cool things he discovered is that young ospreys - at least those on the east coast - tend to make their initial southbound journey over the ocean.

Five years ago Dr. B (as his students call him) was waiting for a young osprey to return to its nest so he could fit it with a backpack radio transmitter. A neighbor, seeing him there, suggested he write a book. So he did.

Belle's Journey, An Osprey Takes Flight
by Rob Bierregaard; illustrated by Kate Garchinsky
122 pages; ages 7 - 10 (and older)
Charlesbridge, 2018

The story of Belle begins with her parents, who return to their nest on Martha's Vineyard in March (brrrr!), and the two scientists who are scouting for active nests. By the middle of July, the young ospreys are nearly as big as their parents and they're stretching their wings. One day, while the birds are out hunting, Dr. B and his fellow researcher climb up and put a fish in the nest as bait. Then they cover the nest with wire mesh to trap the birds.

Success! They capture Belle, fit the backpack straps over her wings and sew the harness so the radio transmitter won't fall off in flight. The transmitter will send signals so the scientists can track her migration.

So here's the thing about a young osprey's first migratory flight: they don't have maps. Their parents have already gone, so there's no flock to join. They may run into danger, such as hurricanes, eagles,  or people who shoot at them. And the journey is long - three to four thousand miles.

What I like about this book: The story is written from Belle's point of view. We see her adventures during migration through her eyes. Chapters about the scientists are written from a different point of view. I like the back matter that gives more information about ospreys, migration, and what to do if you find injured birds. There are also lots of resources.

And I love the illustrations! Full color spreads are soft and inviting. Sepia-colored vignettes give us quick glimpses into the lives of Belle and the children following her journey. There's even a series of sketches illustrating how an osprey captures fish.

Check out this interview with Rob Bierregaard  over at the GROG blog.

You can find out more about Rob Bierregaard's research and osprey tracking here. There are links to interactive maps as well, and brief osprey bios.

Want to see what life in an osprey nest is like? Here's a birdcam from Montana, and this one in Georgia.

Today we're joining the STEM Friday roundup. Review copy from the publisher.

Books about Bugs!

There are so many fun books about butterflies, beetles, and all other six-leggeds that I have a hard time keeping up! Here are three that crawled, climbed, and fluttered to the top of the book basket last week. Just in time for monarch butterfly migration...

The Monarchs are Missing: A Butterfly Mystery
by Rebecca Hirsch
56 pages; ages 8-12
Millbrook Press, 2018

One of the things we used to do with our kids was tag monarch butterflies as they began their southbound journey. In our neck of the woods that means heading out to the hayfields with net and tags in the first weeks of September.

Rebecca Hirsch begins her book with kids in the field, capturing monarchs to tag for the Monarch Watch citizen science project. The monarch butterflies they tag will head south on a journey of nearly 3,000 miles from across the eastern US and Canada to Mexico. How they do that is a mystery. What's not a mystery: that monarchs are in danger. Every hear fewer butterflies reach the forests in Mexico where they spend the winter.

Why are the monarchs disappearing? That's what scientists want to know, so Hirsch profiles scientists in the field. We learn how field scientists count butterflies, and how human land use affects monarch populations. Habitat loss, climate change, parasites ... these are just some of the issues that monarchs face. Fortunately, there are things people can do to make the world a better - and safer - place for monarch butterflies, from creating milkweed corridors to planting native flowers in our back yards.

Yay for back matter! Hirsch provides further reading, seed sources for butterfly plants, and plenty of ways kids (and adults) can get involved as citizen scientists.Want to get started watching monarchs? Check out her website here.

Bug Hotel
by Clover Robin
16 pages; ages 5+
Kane Miller, 2018

Bug Hotel is a lift-the-flap board book filled with discoveries. Maybe you're thinking bug hotels are made-up - but no, they really do exist. People build structures from natural materials such as straw, plant stems, wood, and stones. They provide places for insects to stay. Some people build hotels for native bees. Some people create hotels for toads. And some folks build fancy condos with rooms for many different critters to move into.

As you turn each page, you learn more about the bugs (bees, beetles, butterflies, even snails) and you see what sort of accommodations they appreciate. The back spread provides a list of materials and encourages kids to build their own hotel to help create a sustainable and safe place for backyard bugs to live.

Sure, it's written for the board-book audience, but this "older kid" had fun exploring the pages! Check out these cool bug hotels!

1,000 Facts about Insects

 by Nancy Honovich
96 pages; ages 8-12
National Geographic Children's Books, 2018

Insects are the most diverse, widespread, and fascinating animals on planet Earth, writes entomologist Bill Lamp, in the foreward. So it stands to reason that we should get to know them. Every spread focuses on some incredible aspect of the insect world: life cycles, stingers, migration, conservation. Want to know more about butterflies? Pages 78-79 contain 50 fluttering facts about them.

Information is presented in fact-boxes, with photos interspersed, making this a perfect browse for waiting for an appointment or riding in the car. I can only imagine the kinds of trivia contests it might engender!  

Today we're joining the STEM Friday roundup.  On any other Friday we'd be joining others over at Perfect Picture Book Friday, but it's summer vacation. PPBF will resume in September, but you can always head over to Susanna Hill's ever-growing list of Perfect Picture Books. Review copies from publishers

STEM Friday - The Boy Who Drew Birds

The Boy Who Drew Birds

By Jacqueline Davies; illus by Melissa Sweet

32 pages, ages 7 – 10

Houghton Mifflin, 2004

This book has everything one could want in a sciency book: luscious artwork (I love collage!), mystery, historical context and wonderful storytelling. I was hooked at page one: “It was true that John James could skate, hunt, and ride better than most boys. True also that he could dance the minuet and gavotte as if he had been born a king.” John James, we learn, can fiddle and fence and flirt – but the thing he likes to do best is watch birds.

Even though birds have four legs too few, I had to keep reading. Who is this John James? And what is it about birds that intrigues him so?

But what really hooked me was that the story centered around Audubon’s observations of the eastern phoebe – a bird that, over the past dozen years, we have been watching closely because a pair built its nest just beneath my study window. And, as John James learned, they return spring after spring, with kids in tow.

The mystery is where birds go in winter. We know they migrate, but back in 1804 scientists thought they hibernated underwater. Or flew to the moon. The other mystery is whether they return to their home each spring – a mystery Audubon solved with a silver thread.

We think of Audubon as an artist. But clearly, he was a natural scientist as well – even though he didn’t fare well within the confines of a classroom.

Like Audubon, author Jacqueline Davies was inspired by the phoebe. “I met my first phoebe during a nature walk with my daughter," she says. "I was intrigued by the idea of a bird that returns to the same nest year after year.” When she delved into research, she learned that Audubon was the first person to band a bird in this country and that the bird was the phoebe. That’s when she knew she had to write the story. 

Davies read lots of biographies about Audubon, as well his own writing. But she didn’t make it to visit his Pennsylvania home until after her book was published.

During those three months of research, Davies says she learned lots of new things. “The most engrossing,” she says, was reading the scientific theories of Audubon’s day that explained where birds go in the winter. “Those theories offered great insight into not only what they knew but also the accepted practices of the day for making scientific discoveries,” Davies said.  

While Davies doesn’t keep a life list, she does keep a pair of binoculars at the ready in her upstairs bathroom. “It’s the perfect spot for watching all the bird activity in my backyard,” she explained.

This is part of STEM Friday, hosted at Celebrate Science. Review copy provided by Tompkins County Public Library in Ithaca.

Heading South: Monarchs on Migration

Last month a monarch caterpillar found a nice cozy spot under a cabbage leaf and decided to pupate there. It walked a fair distance before finding shelter, because the nearest patch of milkweed is a football field's length away.

After 24 hours it had changed into a chrysalis.It was well protected from wind and weather and, apparently, anything interested in munching on chrysalides. Not to mention that the chrysalis blended well with the color of the cabbage leaf...

Now it’s waiting to join the vast Monarch migration southward, to Mexico – which, given where we live (42nd parallel) should peak over the next two weeks. 

If you live south of the 45th parallel, now’s the time to start paying attention to Monarch butterflies. Scientists are interested in them and you can help by gluing tags on Monarchs you catch in your neighborhood. It’s a great way to spend sunny autumn days with your children and helps scientists learn more about these butterflies. You can learn more at Monarch Watch.