THE COMMON UNCOMMON

Questions and answers about a small patch of land.

Heinrich, a biologist whose books include Mind of the Raven (1999), has lived off and on for 65 years in a rustic cabin with an outhouse “a mere minutes’ walk from the front door” in central Maine, on land that was once a farm but is now owned under an easement from the Forest Society of Maine. Unusual among biology professors—he was one at the University of Vermont—he hasn’t confined himself to one narrow specialty, instead spending time observing and writing about squirrels, owls, trees, beetles, geese, moths, and the connections among all the beings that live in or around his cabin, including himself. Now in his 80s, he makes an elegant spokesperson for the value of sticking around in one place, noticing similarities and differences from year to year, or decade to decade. Sometimes, those are differences he made himself. In 1980, he planted 15 blight-resistant American chestnuts in an area where they had been killed off. Now, not only are two of those trees more than 60 feet tall, but he’s counted 1,300 of their offspring spreading out a half mile in all directions. Heinrich is an engaging storyteller, hopping or meandering from one subject to the next in the course of a single chapter, so that you never know where you’re going to end up, but you’ll always learn something new and intriguing along the way. A born scientist, he often starts with a surprising observation, which leads to questions, which lead to more observations, and on and on. Quirky and thorough, he occupies himself tossing various insects into a spiderweb to see how the spider will react or analyzing the amount of fecal waste produced by a pair of nesting phoebes.

Quietly fascinating rambles through a tiny territory.