Parents and teachers disappointed that their children and students are too young to participate on Earthwatch expeditions need not wait any longer. The Frozen Tundra: A Web of Life opens with an intimate glimpse of volunteers assisting Dr. Jane Waterman as she explores polar bear behavior in Manitoba, Canada, with Earthwatch volunteers. Like any Earthwatch project related to biodiversity, the book is a primer on community ecology, yet it is for readers in third to fifth grade.
Written by Earthwatch Managing Editor Philip Johansson, The Frozen Tundra is the first of a series of six books on the world's biomes. From studying polar bears in the tundra, young readers can turn to learning about wolves in the taiga or boreal forest, black bears in the temperate forest, caterpillars in the Costa Rican rain forest, zebras in African grasslands, and desert tortoises in the Mojave Desert. Each book is illustrated with stunning photos, and imparts a basic sense of food webs, energy flow, and other elements of ecology. The series will make a valuable addition to any school library, as well as the library of any future Earthwatch volunteers.
The Frozen Tundra: A Web of Life; The Forested Taiga: A Web of Life; The Temperate Forest: A Web of Life; The Tropical Rain Forest: A Web of Life; The Grasslands: A Web of Life; The Dry Desert: A Web of Life. Philip Johansson. Enslow Publishers, 2004.