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A Naturalist's Guide to the Arctic
This book is a practical, portable guide to all of the Arctic's natural history—sky, atmosphere, terrain, ice, the sea, plants, birds, mammals, fish, and insects—for those who will experience the Arctic firsthand and for armchair travelers who would just as soon read about its splendors and surprises. It is packed with answers to naturalists' questions and with questions—some of them answered—that naturalists may not even have thought of.
344 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1995
39 people are currently reading
108 people want to read
About the author
E.C. Pielou
11 books5 followersEvelyn Chrystalla "E.C." Pielou is a statistical ecologist. She began her career as a researcher for the Canadian Department of Forestry and the Canadian Department of Agriculture. Later she was professor of biology at Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario, and at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and then Oil Sands Environmental Research Professor working out of the University of Lethbridge, Alberta.
She has contributed significantly to the development of mathematical ecology, the mathematical modeling of natural systems and wrote six academic books on the subject.
She now lives in Comox, British Columbia, Canada, and writes popular books on natural history.
She has contributed significantly to the development of mathematical ecology, the mathematical modeling of natural systems and wrote six academic books on the subject.
She now lives in Comox, British Columbia, Canada, and writes popular books on natural history.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
July 31, 2020
Recommend this for people following the climate changes effect on the arctic. Very informative look by Canadian expert with long term perspective. Also suggest author's after ice age book.
After the Ice Age: The Return of Life to Glaciated North America
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E._C._P...
After the Ice Age: The Return of Life to Glaciated North America
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E._C._P...
January 7, 2026
I simultaneously read three books in preparation for a trip to Churchill, Manitoba, next month:
The Last Imaginary Place: A Human History of the Arctic World The Last Imaginary Place (2005) by Robert McGhee, an arctic archaeologist. This book is mainly history, informed by archaeological discoveries, of Indigenous people of the arctic and exploration. Topics include: ancient myths about the north, Viking settlements in Greenland, Indigenous peoples of North America (first Tuniit then Inuit), Russian exploration of Siberia, excesses of whaling and other extractive industries, attempts to find the Northeast Passage (a route to the Pacific going east above Siberia) and the Northwest Passage (a route to the Pacific going west above Canada), the race to the North Pole, sovereignty, and climate change.
Arctic Dreams Arctic Dreams (1986) by Barry Lopez, which won the National Book Award. This book is informed by the author’s extensive travels in the north, accompanying scientists, explorers, and Indigenous people. It is part travelogue and part lyrical contemplation of the landscape and history. Topics include arctic history, in-depth information about polar bears, narwhals and muskox, thoughts about migration of birds and caribou and humans, reflections on snow and ice, and the way our language and experience shapes our perceptions of time and space.
A Naturalist's Guide to the Arctic A Naturalist’s Guide to the Arctic by E.C. Pielou, an ecologist. It’s not just a field guide to plants, birds, and mammals of the arctic, but also includes explanations of glaciers, icebergs, pack ice, atmospheric phenomena, and daylight length. It includes wonderful explanatory pen-and-ink drawings by the author.
Reading the three books simultaneously was informative as they cover different aspects of the topics, and there is helpful crossover. For example, in Arctic Dreams (pg 107), Lopez mentions an artifact of the Dorset culture, an ivory polar bear in a floating or flying posture carved in the year AD 500. There’s a color photo of the piece in Imaginary Place (color plate following pg 64). Another example: Arctic Dreams (pg 24) describes a 1597 expedition that was icebound over the winter at Novaya Zemlya. The crew was overjoyed when the sun returned early; the physics of this atmospheric phenomenon is described and illustrated in Naturalist’s Guide (pg 23).
The Last Imaginary Place: A Human History of the Arctic World The Last Imaginary Place (2005) by Robert McGhee, an arctic archaeologist. This book is mainly history, informed by archaeological discoveries, of Indigenous people of the arctic and exploration. Topics include: ancient myths about the north, Viking settlements in Greenland, Indigenous peoples of North America (first Tuniit then Inuit), Russian exploration of Siberia, excesses of whaling and other extractive industries, attempts to find the Northeast Passage (a route to the Pacific going east above Siberia) and the Northwest Passage (a route to the Pacific going west above Canada), the race to the North Pole, sovereignty, and climate change.
Arctic Dreams Arctic Dreams (1986) by Barry Lopez, which won the National Book Award. This book is informed by the author’s extensive travels in the north, accompanying scientists, explorers, and Indigenous people. It is part travelogue and part lyrical contemplation of the landscape and history. Topics include arctic history, in-depth information about polar bears, narwhals and muskox, thoughts about migration of birds and caribou and humans, reflections on snow and ice, and the way our language and experience shapes our perceptions of time and space.
A Naturalist's Guide to the Arctic A Naturalist’s Guide to the Arctic by E.C. Pielou, an ecologist. It’s not just a field guide to plants, birds, and mammals of the arctic, but also includes explanations of glaciers, icebergs, pack ice, atmospheric phenomena, and daylight length. It includes wonderful explanatory pen-and-ink drawings by the author.
Reading the three books simultaneously was informative as they cover different aspects of the topics, and there is helpful crossover. For example, in Arctic Dreams (pg 107), Lopez mentions an artifact of the Dorset culture, an ivory polar bear in a floating or flying posture carved in the year AD 500. There’s a color photo of the piece in Imaginary Place (color plate following pg 64). Another example: Arctic Dreams (pg 24) describes a 1597 expedition that was icebound over the winter at Novaya Zemlya. The crew was overjoyed when the sun returned early; the physics of this atmospheric phenomenon is described and illustrated in Naturalist’s Guide (pg 23).
September 1, 2022
I didn't read this straight through, but just read sections as they interested me. This book is full of great details about the arctic. Here are some of my favorites (hopefully I understand them and communicate them well):
The clouds can reflect the light reflecting up from the landscape below it. While it happens everywhere, it's more noticeable in the arctic because of the high contrast between the light snow/ice and the dark water. Sailors can use this to avoid ice and find open water by navigating toward dark parts of the sky. This phenomenon is called ice blink for light areas and water sky for dark areas.
While the arctic soil is generally poor, there can be tiny well-fertilized patches. This can be at the carcass of a large animal or below a place where birds frequently hang out (and poop). This includes the base of nesting cliffs as well as large rocks (or even centuries old whale skulls on what used to be a beach!) from which carnivorous birds survey their fairly flat territory.
During the summer, when the sun never sets in the arctic, at noon the sun shines from the south and at "midnight" the sun shines from the north! Because of this, hills are kind of their own worlds with day/night cycles. Opposite sides of the hill will be warmed by direct sunlight 12 hours apart.
There is a species of moth in the far north that takes 14 years to mature due to being frozen in a kind of stasis for much of the year.
The clouds can reflect the light reflecting up from the landscape below it. While it happens everywhere, it's more noticeable in the arctic because of the high contrast between the light snow/ice and the dark water. Sailors can use this to avoid ice and find open water by navigating toward dark parts of the sky. This phenomenon is called ice blink for light areas and water sky for dark areas.
While the arctic soil is generally poor, there can be tiny well-fertilized patches. This can be at the carcass of a large animal or below a place where birds frequently hang out (and poop). This includes the base of nesting cliffs as well as large rocks (or even centuries old whale skulls on what used to be a beach!) from which carnivorous birds survey their fairly flat territory.
During the summer, when the sun never sets in the arctic, at noon the sun shines from the south and at "midnight" the sun shines from the north! Because of this, hills are kind of their own worlds with day/night cycles. Opposite sides of the hill will be warmed by direct sunlight 12 hours apart.
There is a species of moth in the far north that takes 14 years to mature due to being frozen in a kind of stasis for much of the year.
May 18, 2021
Carried with me hiking in ANWR. Read at night, and tucked bits and pieces in between the pages. Perhaps it’s these memories that make the book mean so much to me.
July 8, 2025
The only book you need to prep for the Arctic.
July 25, 2011
11/1/2010 - Made me want to get my butt up there. Good overview of basic critters and processes.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews