Summer World

by Bernd Heinrich

Book Overview

How can cicadas survive--and thrive--at temperatures pushing 115 F? Do hummingbirds know what they're up against before they migrate over the Gulf of Mexico? Why do some trees stop growing taller even when three months of warm weather remain? With awe and unmatched expertise, Bernd Heinrich's Summer World never stops exploring the beautifully complex interactions of animals and plants with nature, giving extraordinary depth to the relationships...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0060742186
• ISBN13: 9780060742188
• Release Date: April 2010
• Publisher: Ecco Press
• Length: 304 Pages
• Weight: 0.56 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 5.2" x 8.0"

Customer Reviews

In awe of nature

The book goes like a true story of parts of nature. Wood frogs: Their rituals(awake for only few months a year and still thriving) seem weird. The author doesnt just stop at this observation. He goes about setting up little experiments to prove or dispute the possible explanations. Bald-Faced Hornet Nests: Hornet paper, a Talisman to ward off all evil predators from a vireo's nest. The Blues: Why ants dont eat blue butterflies? Mud Daubers and Behavior: Can you imagine being born in an encasement with food provided? Artful Diners: Rolled leaf caterpillars and dried leaves with still a bit of green at a spot The sketches and pictures add to the magic.

The author's own line drawings compliment a gentle consideration

SUMMER WORLD: A SEASON OF BOUNTY is for any lending library strong in natural history in general and New England wildlife in particular. It observes the interactions of animals and plants with nature, discussing the relationships between habitat and global warming and considering different growth patterns of animals, birds, plants and insects. The author's own line drawings compliment a gentle consideration perfect for general-interest libraries.

engaging look at nature

This engaging look at nature in Vermont and Maine during the summer will have even couch potatoes searching their neighbor for fauna and flora as Bernd Heinrich makes it fun to investigate the birds, bees, and beasts including humans. He and Crackle the grackle tackle local science with passion though I would avoid visiting the nearby wasp nest with a weapon of mass destruction the toilet paper hole-stuffer. The author entreats readers to sing on a tree dais with birds, watch caterpillars dine on fast food while marveling how human are aviary-like migratory either by being snowbirds living in the south in winter or by creating an indoor climate. Obviously Mr. Heinrich is concerned with the impact on the ecosystem of not just global warming and hoping to get some activation by getting people up and out with an enjoyable entertaining trip outside. This is fun as fans of all ages will dance in their backyard with the stars of nature in this super insightful look at the SUMMER WORLD of northern New England. Harriet Klausner

FASCINATING CHRONICLE OF NATURE'S BEAUTY SEEN THRU SUMMER'S PRISM

Five MESMERIZING Stars!! Award-winning naturalist Bernd Heinrich "Summer World" ("A Season of Bounty") is teeming with keen, fascinating observations on fauna and flora and the interconnections within Nature at the height of summer. He follows up his book on Winter World: The Ingenuity of Animal Survival (P.S.) by primarily focusing on this very special season with reflections and investigations near his own home and cabin with regard to the different species of plant and animal life. Then he branches out around the world in specific cases. Professor Heinrich begins in winter and then spring: awaiting the arrival of the blue jays, with beavers secure in lodges, & frogs in near-lifeless suspended animation. Then he takes us from "Awakening" in his neck of the woods and in general: with essays on geese, the "rowdy" convocations of the wood frog, early-arriving red-winged blackbirds and phoebes, soaring woodcocks, sneaky cowbirds, and so on, all the way to "The Last Peep" of summer. Reading this book, one can only be impressed by the professor's powers of observation, his 'hands on' approach, and his ability to make what are often dry subjects into 'poetic descriptions'. On one hand, he can get technical and reach back 150,000 years as man emerges; or 80 million years into the Cretaceous period; or to distant solar systems to speculate on life-ready planets; or discuss the effect of the inclination of the earth, the solstices, photo-periods, and biological clocks. On the other hand, he gets into some engrossing discussions about moths; butterflies; eggs; larvae; pupae; ants; bees; birds; complex trees, the environment, evolution, and the true heralding of summer's end: photoperiod and a key type of acid. Some of the word pictures and thoughts are awesome such as some ants "bodyguarding" catepillars, Apache cicadas using the desert paloverde tree as a drinking fountain, and the almost unbelievable 17 hour non-stop, top-speed flight of some hummingbirds across the Gulf of Mexico. He is great at describing specific animals getting the next generation of a species born, prepared, and independent before fall and winter close in. This is a totally impressive nature book by a man so 'into Nature' that he actually uses an electronic thermometer to measure the body temperature of bees. This book is one huge learning experience that should intrigue lovers of nature and may cause one to look a lot closer at what is happening around the neighborhood and the world with far more understanding and empathy. My Highest Recommendation! Five NATURAL Stars! (This review is based on a Kindle download, with 41 figures.)