BOOKISH: James L. and Carol Grant Gould @ Free Library, 7/10

How do animals know when and where to go? Husband-and-wife team the Goulds explain everything you've ever wanted to know about animal navigation.

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BOOKISH: James L. and Carol Grant Gould @ Free Library, 7/10

POSTED: Monday, July 9, 2012, 10:00 AM
Filed Under: Arts Books

When winter hits, birds fly south and humans go to Florida. To explain the human migration, we can look to the warm weather and great deals on flights, but the birds? Scientists have known for years that many species possess the ability to feel the Earth's magnetic poles. Like a sixth sense, the birds seem to gravitate south around the same time every year without the conveniences of complex reasoning or a GPS system. Husband-and-wife team James L. Gould and Carol Grant Gould were so intrigued by this phenomenon, they wrote an entire book on the subject.

Nature's Compass: The Mystery of Animal Navigation explains the science behind many species' sense of direction, from the monarch butterfly to the honey bee. They describe how a deeper understanding of the subject is not only fascinating science but essential to the goal of animal conservation. Both accomplished scholars in their own fields — evolutionary biology and science writing, respectively — the Goulds have published nine previous books on animal behavior. They'll speak tomorrow at the Free Library's Central Branch (1901 Vine St) at 7:30 p.m. The talk is free and open to the public.

(nina@citypaper.net) (@willboctopus)

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