Review by Booklist Review
This handsome book looks closely at a vernal pool: a forest pool that dries up at the end of each summer and gradually fills with water again during the fall, winter, and spring. Naturalist-photographer Wechsler offers a close-up view of a vernal pool in Delaware as it cycles through a year. Focusing on one animal after another, he shows not only the variety of life supported by the pool but also the complex, interconnected ecosystem that depends not just on the pool but upon the fact that it dries up annually. This cycle limits the animals the pool can support and creates an environment where certain species thrive, unthreatened by fish or by the year-round presence of certain other predators. Each of the first four chapters considers a season and the changes it brings to the pool and inhabitants, while the final chapter discusses the preservation of vernal pools. From a close-up of salamanders in their jelly-covered eggs to a composite picture with superimposed lines showing the pool's food web, Wechsler's clear, color photos provide an excellent visual counterpoint to the text. This well-focused book will open readers' eyes to an ecological feature they may have seen without recognizing.The book concludes with a glossary and a list of recommended books and Web sites. --Carolyn Phelan Copyright 2006 Booklist
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 3-6-This thoroughly researched book introduces a vernal pool in the woods of Delaware and documents the ecology of this unique habitat during the cycle of a year. Beginning with autumn, clear, detailed chapters focus on each season, describing physical changes to the pond (from dry, to wet, to ice-covered, to wet again), the creatures that breed and live there (including many types of insects and amphibians), and plant life. Throughout, Wechsler highlights the ways in which various species are interrelated and their role in the food web. The last section discusses the importance of these pools and how to prevent them from being destroyed. The full-color photographs vividly bring this environment to life by combining images of the changing pond with close-up pictures of its varied inhabitants. -Christine Markley, Washington Elementary School, Barto, PA (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
In an apparently empty weedy area in the autumn woods, late rains begin a cycle of life in a Delaware vernal pool, providing a breeding place for 14 species of amphibians, as well as snakes, invertebrates and plants. Wechsler, an experienced naturalist and photographer, provides a clear explanation of the interdependence of the species and their surroundings and the importance of seasonally flooded pools not only in Delaware but across the country. His beautifully reproduced color photographs show the pond throughout the year from a distance, as well as many close-ups of its inhabitants. (A few require careful scrutiny and reading of the surrounding text for understanding.) After following the Delaware pond through four seasons, the author concludes with more general information about ephemeral pools and student action that helps preserve them. Endmatter includes a glossary, a few suggested readings (half are other books on amphibians by the author), two websites and an index. Attractive and informative, this will be welcomed by young naturalists and their teachers. (Nonfiction. 8-12) Copyright ©Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
