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A Naturalist on a Tropical Farm
The naturalist offers a portrait of his life on a farm in the tropical rain forests of Costa Rica and provides a look at flora, fauna, and the forest ecosystem
405 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1980
About the author
Alexander F. Skutch
57 books9 followersDoctor Alexander Frank Skutch was a naturalist and writer. He published numerous scientific papers and books about birds and several books on philosophy. He is best remembered for his pioneering work on helpers at the nest. Skutch wrote over 40 books and over 200 papers on ornithology, preferring a descriptive style and eschewing statistics and even banding.
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
October 28, 2013
For more than 60 years beginning in the 1940s, Alexander Skutch – naturalist, ornithologist, farmer, philosopher, writer, botanist, and environmentalist – lived the examined life far off the beaten path in Costa Rica. Written in the 1980s, this book calls to mind “A Sand County Almanac” by Aldo Leopold. He and Mr. Leopold had a lot in common in how deeply they cared for the Earth and especially for their particular piece of it. In his farming practices Skutch, who was U.S. born, practiced a philosophy of doing no harm, cherishing all life – especially the abundant bird life – and living in harmony with the Costa Rican landscape. All the while he farmed he was keenly tuned into his nearly wild surroundings, jotting down notes from his times spent walking behind the plow or from times spent inside his homemade blind where, ever the naturalist, he began his days at dawn. He writes just as well of rare and illusive birds as he does of his treasured horses and chickens.
An extraordinary naturalist, self-sufficient farmer, vegetarian and author of dozens of detailed nature and bird books, he lived what we might think of as the good life in a time before “progress” arrived to his side of the mountains. Deploring the ‘slash and burn’ method used for clearing farms, you hear in his voice a philosophical acceptance of the lives of his neighbors, a quality that no doubt forged friendships and fostered alternative ideas about how to farm with less disastrous consequences to the old growth forest.
Each chapter of the book told a story, whether it was about the farm, a particular bird or an amazing flower adaptation. Only the last chapter was odd. It deviated quite abruptly from his nature chronicling to that of expounding upon the predator/prey relationship. He discussed at length how, in his opinion, the divine creator could've designed all creatures to live in harmony and less violently. Birds and insects peacefully benefit the plant kingdom through pollination and dispersal of their seeds/nuts so why couldn't the animal kingdom behave by the same rules? Why not indeed? Questions like this one suggest that God messed up. Whether or not He did is worthy of discussion elsewhere, but introducing it in the last chapter definitely made for an unsatisfactory end to an otherwise great book.
An extraordinary naturalist, self-sufficient farmer, vegetarian and author of dozens of detailed nature and bird books, he lived what we might think of as the good life in a time before “progress” arrived to his side of the mountains. Deploring the ‘slash and burn’ method used for clearing farms, you hear in his voice a philosophical acceptance of the lives of his neighbors, a quality that no doubt forged friendships and fostered alternative ideas about how to farm with less disastrous consequences to the old growth forest.
Each chapter of the book told a story, whether it was about the farm, a particular bird or an amazing flower adaptation. Only the last chapter was odd. It deviated quite abruptly from his nature chronicling to that of expounding upon the predator/prey relationship. He discussed at length how, in his opinion, the divine creator could've designed all creatures to live in harmony and less violently. Birds and insects peacefully benefit the plant kingdom through pollination and dispersal of their seeds/nuts so why couldn't the animal kingdom behave by the same rules? Why not indeed? Questions like this one suggest that God messed up. Whether or not He did is worthy of discussion elsewhere, but introducing it in the last chapter definitely made for an unsatisfactory end to an otherwise great book.
April 17, 2025
This book surprised me. It is the first time that I would describe a book as a natural history memoir. And, it's the first time I would describe such a work as relaxing to read. The author describes the flora and fauna, and his farming adventures in Costa Rica. It was easy to imagine that I was right there with him. So much so that I could feel, hear, and smell the experience - it was full immersion.
July 16, 2016
A botanist by academic training, Skutch added birding to his repertoire and did some of the first scientific studies of a variety of birds in Costa Rica. His tenure on a farm in southern Costa Rica, Los Cusingos, allowed him to be both a farmer and biologist for approximately 60 years. Living to the ripe old age of 99, Skutch’s farm is now a nature reserve.
The highlight of the book for me is the detailed studies he undertakes of a variety of tropical birds. Skutch patiently watched birds at their nests for hours recording how long parents sat on eggs, roles of male v. female, how often they delivered food to nestlings, predation on nests etc…
There are other snippets of life in Costa Rica from his time there: the growth of the population and consequentially the destruction of forest, relationships with neighbors, breeding biology of fish in the streams as well as the life of the various trees, shrubs and flowers. Oddest of all, as Skutch was a scientist, was his moralistic take on predation, which he considered the greatest evil (which was bookended by his belief that photosynthesis was the greatest good). Skutch himself was a vegetarian.
Skutch is considered a legend and rightfully so. He took on a frontier life, in 1940’s Costa Rica living for decades without electricity or indoor plumbing. He was a prolific writer, publishing dozens of books and hundreds of articles and scientific papers and he was a staunch conservationist all along. Certainly this was a life well lived.
The highlight of the book for me is the detailed studies he undertakes of a variety of tropical birds. Skutch patiently watched birds at their nests for hours recording how long parents sat on eggs, roles of male v. female, how often they delivered food to nestlings, predation on nests etc…
There are other snippets of life in Costa Rica from his time there: the growth of the population and consequentially the destruction of forest, relationships with neighbors, breeding biology of fish in the streams as well as the life of the various trees, shrubs and flowers. Oddest of all, as Skutch was a scientist, was his moralistic take on predation, which he considered the greatest evil (which was bookended by his belief that photosynthesis was the greatest good). Skutch himself was a vegetarian.
Skutch is considered a legend and rightfully so. He took on a frontier life, in 1940’s Costa Rica living for decades without electricity or indoor plumbing. He was a prolific writer, publishing dozens of books and hundreds of articles and scientific papers and he was a staunch conservationist all along. Certainly this was a life well lived.
January 18, 2016
This is a wonderful (out-of-print) book by Costa Rico naturalist Alexander Skutch. Skutch and his wife lived a major portion of their lives in Costa Rica on a farm he called Los Cusingos ("for the birds"). In this work he describes the beautiful and rich natural heritage of Costa Rica. One of my greatest goals is to someday visit Costa Rica and Los Cusingos, the place where Alexander Skutch lived, and was buried upon his death in 2004 at the age of 99 years.
May 10, 2009
One of the books I read while researching Costa Rica: the Last Country the Gods Made.
This book is such a pleasure to read. Written in the relaxed style of the great field naturalist works of the nineteenth century.
This book is such a pleasure to read. Written in the relaxed style of the great field naturalist works of the nineteenth century.
July 6, 2013
An account of the author's life on his Costa Rican farm. More exactly, it's an account of the plant and animal life with which his farm is teeming. Very detailed, and very deliberately paced. If you love birds and botany, you'll enjoy it. If you like a book where something happens (outside of seasonal changes, which are documented in great detail), maybe not.
November 9, 2008
what a shame this has a beautiful bookcover...scarlet macaws flying over an idyllic costa rican farmstead...illustrated by one of my favorite natural history illustrators- Dana Gardner.
June 3, 2012
Interesting accounts, a bit technical at times but overall great descriptions of life and nature from the smallest insects to the largest mammals of the Costa Rican tropics
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews