“Let me tell you about the birds and the bees and the flowers
and the trees and the moon up above …”
“Let me tell you about the birds and the bees and the flowers and the trees and the moon up above …”
Where do you go to find out the answers to those nagging little questions such as: What is that shrub with the purple flowers on it? What is that yellow bird at my feeder? What kind of lizard did my cat drag in?
The library has a great collection of books to answer just these types of questions. They are called field guides, they offer illustrations and descriptions of all manner of species of plant and animal and all varieties of rocks and minerals, too. They are usually small enough to take with you on a hike outdoors.
There are a number of field guides to birds. The National Audubon Society publishes two guides to North American birds, one for the eastern region and one for the western region of the continent. The American Bird Conservancy has a book entitled All the Birds of North America. We even have a CD entitled Backyard Bird Walk which will help you identify the songs of 24 common birds.
You can identify bees and other insects and spiders with the help of the National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Insects and Spiders, and the Peterson Company publishes a Guide to Western Butterflies, as well as a book on Insects.
You’ll also find the Peterson Guide to Pacific States Wildflowers (very useful this time of year) The Simon & Schuster’s Guide to Trees is just one of the many field guides to trees on the library’s shelves.
Skyguide: A Field Guide for Amateur Astronomers is one of the astronomical guides that will tell you about “the moon up above” and the wonders of the universe as viewed from Earth.
Some of the other field guides in our collection include: David Arora’s Mushrooms Demystified, Peterson’s Guides to Freshwater Fishes, Rocks and Minerals, Mushrooms or Mammals. You’ll also find handbooks to owls, bats, amphibians and reptiles, marine mammals, lichens and mosses, seashells, tidepool life, animal tracks and many other subjects. So next time one of those questions starts to gnaw at you, remember to come into the library and check out a field guide. The library is the answer place.
This column was written by Jeff Grubb. Questions and suggested topics for At the Library, which appears in Tuesday editions, should be directed to Nancy Howe, community librarian, at nh***@**********************ca.us or by calling 779-3196. The Morgan Hill Library, located at the corner of Peak and West Main avenues next to City Hall, is open every day but Sunday.
