Weird and Wonderful Nature

Not for the faint-hearted, this fact-packed information book dives straight into the weird and sometimes repulsive species, behaviour and phenomena that exists on our planet.

Children who love facts will devour information about the immortal jellyfish, the see-through frog and the oxpecker bird who sips on blood, and also eats ear wax, lice, maggots and dandruff.

There is a whole host of detail on similarities across species – such as the many animals who dance to either attract or warn off – and differences within species, such as the pale blackbirds and the albino coastal redwood trees. The section on phenomena is particularly intriguing - for instance, why is it only Australian termites who build 'magnetic mounds'?  

There are gory details galore, and the photographs throughout, along with the illustrations by Kaley McKean, bring this wonderful world to life in vivid colour and detail. It is a large-format, chunky hardback, and would be a good gift, or an addition to a library.

This is a book to be pored over and returned to, with many fascinating facts to astound others with. (Did you know panthers are not a species, but are jaguars or leopards with more dark pigment?)