Watchers at the Pond

Watchers at the Pond by Franklin Russell
Illustrations by Robert W. Arnold
Cover Art by Diane and Leo Dillon
First Printing: 1961 by Knopf

I spent most of my biology classes filling in coloring pages and growing basil plants in paper cups. Needless to say, I didn't learn very much. Being a person who thinks in narratives, this book filled in some of the gaps in my knowledge.

Watchers at the Pond describes the life cycle of a pond over the course of a year. There is no human encroachment at the pond, and life goes on as nature intended it. Every creature, from the amoeba to the red-tailed hawk, serves an invaluable purpose in sustaining the pond's natural balance. The survival methods of the plants and animals are explained in detail with rich description and character.

Russell makes the animals comes to life without the need to personify them. He succeeded in keeping their integrity intact while still making them multi-dimensional. I particularly enjoyed the story of the old muskrat who had fathered many kits in his time; and the male bullfrog who still called for a mate even though he was the only one of his kind left at the pond. It was interesting to learn that many insects, including bumblebees and many species of beetles, hide between rocks and inside of trees through the winter so they can emerge again in the spring. One of my favorite insects was the praying mantis. It was fascinating to know that when praying mantises hatch they are vulnerable to ants, which are an adult mantis's main food source. Ants feast on the baby mantises, but the ones who get away grow into an ant's worst nightmare.

As in all life cycles, death was a major theme in this book. It occurs without much emotion. For example, a young crow fails to follow the rest of his flock into the shelter of the pine trees during a snow storm. He alights on a naked branch. It becomes clear that it is to cold for him to survive, but he is afraid to fly in the dark. In the morning his body is seen frozen to the branch, and his flock leaves without a backward glance. Death is simply accepted by all.

Final Rating: 4.5 out of 5
This book is a breed all its own. It transcends fiction and non-fiction, and its descriptions of life at the pond helped me remember things about the life cycles of many creatures. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in biology, and anyone who retains knowledge best when it is put in the form of a story. I wish Franklin Russell would have made this into a series, with each book describing a different piece of land.

Favorite Quote: "At one moment, all the winged ants began moving to the surface, hustling up dark tunnels and jostling unwinged ants in the pre-eminent purpose to reach the hot sunlight. They tumbled out of the mounds and rose quickly into hot puffing upper air. Later that day, and on ensuing days, male ants steadily fell from the sky, dying and dead. Their lives were ended the moment they mated with the flying females, who were themselves coming to earth to face a new beginning of life. With the living sperm of the males within their bodies, many would now remain pregnant for ten to fifteen years and then produce colonies of their own creation. These new ant communities would have all sprung from a few hours of flight in the blazing summer sky over the pond."

Watchers at the Pond is currently out of print. It can only be obtained through a used bookseller.