In a Patch of Fireweed - Tapa dura

YHeinrich's memoir explains, with great charm, how he came to devote his life to such projects as measuring the temperature of wasps and swindling gullible beetles with phony dungballs...YHe is delightful company. In this charming volume, Heinrich combines biographical details with his economic-ecological approach to flora and fauna--embellishing the whole with precisionist pencil drawings...To be read and savored for the writing, the drawings, and the science. In this autobiographical reflection...YHeinrich is intent on explaining why he became an insect physiologist and ecologist. In the process, he gives us a winning portrait of a fine scientific mind at work...There is a fine balance here between intellection and practical experience, speculation and discovery. This is a book that sends you right outdoors. -- Barry Lopez "New York Times Book Review" Heinrich's stated purpose is to 'tell about the natural links forged between one's life and a life in science.' He succeeds magnificently. His prose reflects Thoreau's empathy with nature and the contemporary naturalist's technical knowledge...This meticulously observed book will please scientists, but it will also delight non-scientist readers who wonder what, in this increasingly polymerized world, is truly human and truly natural. -- John Wilkes "San Francisco Examiner-Chronicle"

One of the world's foremost physiological ecologists discusses his life and work as a scientist and recounts in detail years spent in research in the wild in many parts of the world.