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The Secret Wisdom of Nature

Trees, Animals, and the Extraordinary Balance of All Living Things -— Stories from Science and Observation

#3 in series

ebook
1 of 1 copy available
1 of 1 copy available

"As you read these pages you will understand why I so admire [Peter Wohlleben] and am so in love with his work."—JANE GOODALL

Nature is full of surprises: deciduous trees affect the rotation of the Earth, cranes sabotage the production of Iberian ham, and coniferous forests can make it rain. But what are the processes that drive these incredible phenomena? And why do they matter?

In The Secret Wisdom of Nature, master storyteller and international sensation Peter Wohlleben takes readers on a thought-provoking exploration of the vast natural systems that make life on Earth possible. In this tour of an almost unfathomable world, Wohlleben describes the fascinating interplay between animals and plants and answers such questions as: How do they influence each other? Do lifeforms communicate across species boundaries? And what happens when this finely tuned system gets out of sync? By introducing us to the latest scientific discoveries and recounting his own insights from decades of observing nature, one of the world's most famous foresters shows us how to recapture our sense of awe so we can see the world around us with completely new eyes.

Published in Partnership with the David Suzuki Institute.

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  • Reviews

    • Kirkus

      Starred review from December 15, 2018
      Closing a trilogy on "the mysteries of nature," German forester Wohlleben (The Inner Life of Animals, 2017) examines complex ecosystems and our interventions in them.Early on in the book, the author, a lively and engaging writer, unfolds a pleasingly puzzling tale about how salmon help ensure the health of forests, and forests in turn the health of oceans: "The relationship between tress and fish shows just how complicated ecosystems can be....Fish and rivers, it turns out, play an important role in nutrient redistribution." Teasing out the hows and whys drives Wohlleben's narrative, which touches on matters as various as the role of fire in managing the growth and health of forests and the critical importance of maintaining apex predators in ecosystems that, without them, eventually become something other than what they evolved to be: Kill off wolves and roe deer populations increase in the forests of Germany, which then, browsed and gnawed, sprout grasses where mosses and ferns used to be, changing the composition of the forest and inviting the likes of bark beetles, which in turn "open the door for creatures that make their living off dead wood." Beetles, fire, mudslides: All speak to how human tinkering can have unintended consequences in a vast array of landscapes. So, too, can saving just a single species--reintroducing the wolf, say, in those altered forests among deer that don't know how to run from the predator, making those forests "a pantry stuffed full of tasty treats." So what's to be done? Writes Wohlleben, in a provocative and slightly contrarian closing, "we don't even need to do anything. Just the opposite, in fact. We need to leave things alone--on as large a scale as possible."Fruitful reading for students of the environment and of environmental literature, of which this is a fine specimen indeed.

      COPYRIGHT(2018) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

    • Booklist

      March 1, 2019
      Dedicated forester Wohlleben completes his nature trilogy (The Hidden Life of Trees, 2016; The Inner Life of Animals, 2017) with a broad look at the connections between all living things. This deep appreciation for ecology includes a passionate look at many animals, including wolves, salmon, and bears, and reflections on how their presence affects everything around them, from what they eat to plants and trees, bodies of water, rivers, and the very air they pass through. As in all of his works, Wohlleben thoughtfully and lucidly illuminates scientific facts, and his quiet leaps of brilliance are thrilling. As he himself admits in charming asides to the reader, one does not expect wolves, for example, to impact the power of a river in Yellowstone, and yet the evidence he presents to support this is clear and undeniable. In the same vein as all the great nature writers, from Bernd Heinrich to Sy Montgomery to Jane Goodall (an admirer), Wohlleben conveys his findings in passages of pure poetry; he truly is an author to treasure.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)

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  • Kindle Book
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Languages

  • English

Levels

  • Lexile® Measure:1140
  • Text Difficulty:8-9

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