Winter is the perfect time to cozy up and learn more about nature.
Whether you are looking for gift ideas for the nature lover in your life, a downtime-friendly book for this winter, or have a specific nature-related research question, you’ll want to read this list of book recommendations from our Heritage Conservancy staff!
These picks are primarily geared towards adults, and feature mostly non-fiction. For a bonus children’s book, scroll to the end of Sebastian’s picks. We also include a list of our most-used field guides at the end.
Courtesy of Katie Toner and Sebastian Harris, Heritage Conservancy’s Conservation Easement Stewards, here are some reading recommendations:
Katie’s Picks
The Living Landscape: Designing for Beauty and Biodiversity in the Home Garden by Doug Tallamy and Rick Darke
Featuring stunning photography, this book is a great starting point for anyone who wants to get into landscaping with native plants. Doug Tallamy is one of the country’s leading biologists, while Rick Darke is a talented field ecologist and horticulturalist. Together, they’ve created a book that will walk you through the process of designing a beautiful native plant garden that will improve local ecosystems. The plants highlighted within this book are the right palette for the gardeners of southeast PA. I first read this book over the winter of 2023-24, and it was so inspiring.
Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge, and the Teachings of Plants by Robin Wall-Kimmerer
Robin Wall-Kimmerer is a mother, botanist, professor, Citizen Potawatomi Nation member, and director of the Center for Native Peoples and the Environment at the SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry. In this book, Prof. Wall-Kimmerer weaves together personal storytelling, the history of her people, and lessons in botany.
If you’re feeling curious about fungi, reading Entangled Life is for you! British biologist Merlin Sheldrake’s writing is accessible, yet detailed, exploring the many ways that fungi defy expectations, challenge boundaries, and make the world go round. The paperback edition comes with a few illustrations, but there is also a hardback illustrated edition that features some truly stunning depictions of fungi.
An Immense World: How Animal Senses Reveal the Hidden World Around Us by Ed Yong
Another British writer on my list, Ed Yong is an award-winning journalist with a focus on science communication. His most recent book, An Immense World, delves into the study of animal senses. This book challenges the reader to imagine a world beyond the limitations of our human-forms, to consider how the non-human world perceives us. In reading this book, I found a new appreciation for the impressive evolutionary feats of other animals.
Sebastian’s Picks
Vesper Flights by Helen Macdonald
If you love nature and memoirs, Vesper Flights by Helen Macdonald is a must-read. I first discovered her work through one of her previous publications, H is for Hawk, and really fell in love with her writing style. It’s immediately apparent that the author has very deep ties with nature. The book doesn’t rely on sharing superficial findings or observations, but instead gives a glimpse into different observations in nature. I love a good collection of reflections, and this is one of my favorites to date.
Coyote America: A Natural and Supernatural History by Dan Flores
I’d argue that many people don’t appreciation just how incredible coyotes really are. Dan Flores is a master historian with respect to North American wildlife and ecology. In this book, he delves into the history of one of North America’s greatest underdogs. The story of the coyote is one of triumph and resilience. This book also offers a glimpse into poor management practices of the past, and lays out how our actions affect the distribution of wildlife across the continent.
The Nature of Oaks: The Rich Ecology of Our Most Essential Native Trees by Doug Tallamy
Out of all of the books I have listed here, I find myself repeating information I gathered from this one far more than any of the others. I’ve long had an appreciation for oaks, as they provided the botanical backdrop for most of my field work in graduate school. But it wasn’t until I read this book that I had any real appreciation for this incredible genus of trees. Dr. Doug Tallamy and his collaborators have highlighted just how vital oaks are to the environment. This book provides a wealth of information regarding oak ecology, natural history, and their importance for the future.
Hope Is the Thing with Feathers: A Personal Chronicle of Vanished Birds by Christopher Cokinos
The sad truth about conservation is that in order for us to be better stewards of the land, we have to take a hard look at how our species has failed in the past. This book was shared with me by a co-worker from a previous job, and I couldn’t be more appreciative of his suggestion. Hope is the Thing with Feathers takes a look at six bird species that are no longer with us. Out of all of the books I have listed here, this might be the toughest to read, as it chronicles the tragic loss of each focal species. I think this work is important nonetheless. This book left me feeling motivated to protect what we have left.
Box Turtle at Long Pond by William T. George
To end on a lighter note, this book is for anyone looking for a nice nature-related children’s book. Box Turtle at Long Pond is a charming story about the day in the life of an Eastern Box Turtle. While the story itself is pretty simple, the illustrations are undeniably stunning and beautifully detailed. If you or your little one have ever wondered what the life of a box turtle is like, give this book a read.
Guide Books for Budding Naturalists
There are many field guides to identifying the plants and animals around us, so choosing among them can be daunting. Here is a list of some of the guides we use around the Heritage Conservancy offices (think of it as a starting point for your own library):
- Peterson Field Guide’s Eastern Trees by George Petrides
- National Wildlife Federation Field Guide to Trees of North America by Bruce Kershner
- Newcomb’s Wildflower Guide by Lawrence Newcomb
- The Plants of Pennsylvania by Ann Rhodes and Timothy Block
- Mushrooms of the Northeastern United States and Eastern Canada by Timothy J. Baroni
- Insects: Their Natural History and Diversity by Stephen Marshall
- Caterpillars of Eastern North America: A Guide to Identification and Natural History by David Wagner
- Peterson Field Guide to Freshwater Fish by Lawrence Page and Brooks Burr
- Salamanders of the United States and Canada by James W. Petranka
- Snakes of the United States and Canada by Carl H. Ernst and Evelyn M. Ernst
- Turtles of the United States and Canada by Carl H. Ernst and Jeffrey E. Lovich
- Amphibians and Reptiles of Pennsylvania and the Northeast by Arthur C. Hulse, C.J. McCoy, and Ellen Censky
- Peterson Field Guide’s Eastern Birds, or Peterson Field Guide to Birds of Eastern and Central North America by Roger Tory Peterson
- Guide to the Mammals of Pennsylvania by Joseph Merritt
Final Chapter
Winter is the perfect time to catch up on some cozy reading. The prospect of comfortably spending time outside fades as we approach the frigid months of January and February, so why not utilize this time to learn more about the natural world? Keep in mind that spring is right around the corner, and pretty soon we’ll have plenty of excuses to be outside and active.
We hope at least one of the books we mentioned can keep you or your loved ones company this winter.
As always, thanks for reading!
Katie Toner and Sebastian Harris, Conservation Easement Stewards