John Muir, naturalist and founder of the Sierra Club, had a deep appreciation of the interdependence evident in our world. He once wrote: "When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the universe." In nature, we have many dramatic and vivid examples of this truth.
This picture book, designed for children 4 – 8 years old, focuses on one process of interdependence. Through beautiful illustrations by Kenard Pak, Rita Gray explains how flowers need pollinators to flourish, and pollinators need flowers for nourishment. The flowers call out to butterflies, bumblebees, hummingbirds, beetles, honeybees, wasps, moths, nectar bats, which all have a role to play in the pollination of flowers. A few other animals -- bears, frogs, porcupines, blue jays, moose, rabbits, snakes, raccoons, and deer -- live around flowers, but they are not pollinators.
Children reading this book are invited to look at flower colors, patterns, shapes, and times of opening. A "Would You Believe" page includes more information on pollinators and suggests that to find out how to attract them in your area, you enter your zipcode at: pollinator.org/guides.htm
