Clearly written guide to observing and studying flowers and grasses, fish scales, moth and insect wings, egg cases, buds, and more — all with an ordinary magnifying glass. 209 line drawings.

With an ordinary magnifying glass and this book as your guide, 50 adventures in close observation await you. These entertaining nature studies take you on field trips in and around your home, calling attention to interesting features of dozens of familiar or overlooked plants, insects, and other animals, and common materials like cloth, quartz, and the paper on which this book is printed.A great deal of basic natural-science theory and detail is presented in this delightful narrative. Flowers and grasses, fish scales, moth and insect wings, egg cases, buds, feathers, seeds, leaf scars, moss, molds, ferns, and common crystals are among the many structures examined, often comparatively. Many natural processes and behavior patterns are observed — seed dispersal and other methods of reproduction, protective coloration, rusting symbiosis, fertilization of the soil, breathing and case building of insects, and many others, all with only an inexpensive hand lens as equipment and with "specimens" you probably pass by going for a walk. More than 200 labeled illustrations accompany the text.The author is a former teacher and associate curator of the New England Museum of Natural History. No previous science background is assumed of readers, and curious readers of almost any age will find this book an interesting introduction to numerous facets of nature study.

INTRODUCTIONADVENTURE1 We Peer through Our Lens at Some Familiar Objects2 We Listen to Some Music and Discover How It Is Played3 We Give Seeds More Than a Passing Glance4 We Become Better Acquainted with the Snail5 We Inquire into the Nature of Rusting6 We Meet the Insect Brownies7 We Visit Fairyland8 We Examine a Feather9 We Learn the Meaning of the Word Catkin10 We Study the Wings of Insects11 We Watch Some Acrobats Perform12 We Go Botanizing13 We Compare Insect Antennae14 We See How Ants Keep Clean15 We Find out how the Earthworm Moves16 We Discover that There Are Different Kinds of Hairs17 We Spy on the Aphids18 We Become Familiar with the Eating Habits of Insects19 We Look a Spider in the Eye20 We Investigate the Structure of Grass Flowers21 We Hunt a Lion22 We Trace a Tadpole's Development23 We Encounter Some Hitchhikers24 We Make the Acquaintance of Some Housebuilders25 We Come Upon Some More Housebuilders26 We Ascertain how the Leech Sucks Blood27 We Identify Some Ferns28 We View the Scale Insects29 We Undertake the Study of Minerals30 We Consider Some Diagonistic Characters31 We Inspect the Breathing Apparatus of Some Aquatic Insects32 We Do Some Fishing33 We Turn Our Attention to Buds34 We Trace Some Tunnels35 We Continue Our Study of Minerals36 We Scrutinize a Miniature Pepper Box37 We Invade the Privacy of Gall Makers38 We Are Introduced to Some Queer Plants39 We Stand Corrected that Eggs Are Not Always Egg-Shaped40 We Play Amateur Petrologists41 We Marvel at Nature's Ingenuity42 We Breed Some Flies43 We Explore the Subject of Variation44 We Get to Know the Barnacle45 We Seek the Liverwort46 We Set Some Traps47 We Quest for Oil48 We Assume the Role of Farmers49 We Are Intrigued by an Ingenious Mechanism50 We Probe into a Complicated Life History