The Homing Instinct
Meaning & Mystery in Animal Migration
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3.0 • 2 Ratings
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
“A noted naturalist explores the centrality of home in the lives of humans and other animals . . . A special treat for readers of natural history” (Kirkus Reviews).
Every year, many species make the journey from one place to another, following the same paths and ending up in the same places. Every year since boyhood, the acclaimed scientist and author Bernd Heinrich has done the same, returning to a beloved patch of western Maine woods. Which led him to wonder: What is the biology in humans of this primal pull toward a particular place, and how is it related to animal homing?
In The Homing Instinct, Heinrich explores the fascinating mysteries of animal migration: how geese imprint true visual landscape memory; how scent trails are used by many creatures to locate their homes with pinpoint accuracy; and how even the tiniest of songbirds are equipped for solar and magnetic orienteering over vast distances. And he reminds us that to discount our human emotions toward home is to ignore biology itself.
“A graceful blend of science and memoir . . . [Heinrich’s] ability to linger and simply be there for the moment when, for instance, an elderly spider descends from a silken strand to take the insect he offers her is the heart of his appeal.” —Julie Zickefoose, The Wall Street Journal
“Deep and insightful writing.” —David Gessner, The Washington Post
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Retired biologist Heinrich (Life Everlasting) combines a scientific examination of animal migration with elements of journalism and memoir to produce a thoroughly engaging book. To open, he discusses the amazing ability of a diverse array of animals to migrate long distances and to return to their home breeding grounds: sandhill cranes annually to a small pond in Alaska after overwintering in Mexico, albatrosses to a speck of land in the middle of the ocean to breed after being away for years at a stretch, or salmon to their natal stream. Heinrich comfortably recognizes that there is a great deal that scientists have yet to discover and poses intriguing unanswered questions. The highlight of Heinrich's second section is his recounting of an expedition he made to a pristine rainforest in the mountains of Suriname. In the final section he focuses on himself and his home in Maine, writing beautifully of living and hunting on his land as well as the myriad ways he has come to know the fauna and flora with which he shares his property. Although the books elements do not fit seamlessly, the work is strong enough to yield a holistic picture of various aspects of this important natural phenomenon.
