Nature’s Fascinating Friendships is a wonderful book to educate children on how the animal kingdom works together, to help each other out. Most animal abuse worldwide simply occurs through a lack of empathy, because children have never been taught of the wonders of the natural world. So start them young with this book.
Each page is beautifully illustrated and packed full of facts. The book also has a second benefit of helping children to overcome differences with each other, a skill that is also good as adults.
Go on an amazing journey to discover how animals and plants (and even microscopic organisms) develop fascinating friendships, to help each other survive and thrive. Did you know that:
Pom pom crabs wear sea anemones as boxing gloves, to fight off enemies?
Bats use pitcher plants, as sleeping bags?
From ravens and wolves to trees and fungi, learn how unlikely alliances and friendships are formed in the natural world, and learn of the funny, incredible and sometimes weird and disgusting reasons, why these partnerships work!
Kerry Hyndman is an illustrator who is the owner of a Blue Peter book award. Mike Hill is a writer who works as a BBC news journalist.
They live on the west coast of Scotland, where they like exploring islands, lochs and mountains. They also love waterfalls, swimming with seals and trying to hide from midges.
The Science Behind Animal Friendships
Ever wondered why birds travel in flocks or wolves hunt in packs? Animals that live in groups are more likely to survive. Friendships can mean better chances of finding food and staying safe from predators. Whether it’s a pack of wolves collaborating to catch prey or meerkats keeping watch, these social bonds are key to survival.
Animals display their emotions in fascinating ways. They often form deep friendships that go beyond survival. Elephants are known to exhibit grief at the loss of a friend. Dolphins call out to each other by name, and even rescue their pals when in distress.
Animal sanctuaries play a vital role in nurturing friendships. These safe havens provide a refuge for animals who might not meet in the wild. Here, bonds form that cross species lines. Whether it’s a pig and a dog sharing a nap or a duck and a zebra grazing together, sanctuaries create an environment ripe for friendships.
A Story of Friendship Between Creatures
The Bison and the Butterfly is a touching ecosystem story about a sad and lonely bison who is big and hairy (and sometimes a bit clumsy) and can’t imagine why anyone would want to be her friend. But wise woodpecker knows that everybody likes different things, and that the other animals in the forest likely feel different that what she imagines.
As Bison eats her breakfast and has her bath, she meets different creatures who love her exactly as she is.
This friendship story is coupled with an inspiring message on how different animals work within an ecosystem in harmony, to benefit one another. A light-hearted tale that gently explains the science behind rewilding, and that we are all worthy of friendship, whether in our ecosystem or personal community.
Alice Hemming is a former librarian who attended classes in illustration and writing, before writing books herself. On maternity leave with her first child, she wrote and published her first book and has since published 50 others. She lives in Hertfordshire, where she writes from a shed at the top of her garden.
