-
Empire of Ants
- The Hidden Worlds and Extraordinary Lives of Earth’s Tiny Conquerors
- Narrated by: Cat Gould
- Length: 8 hrs and 2 mins
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Empire of Ants
Buy for $21.49
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Listeners also enjoyed...
-
Tales from the Ant World
- By: Edward O. Wilson
- Narrated by: Jonathan Hogan
- Length: 5 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 134
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 108
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 107
"Ants are the most warlike of all animals, with colony pitted against colony.... Their clashes dwarf Waterloo and Gettysburg", writes Edward O. Wilson in his most finely observed work in decades. In a myrmecological tour to such far-flung destinations as Mozambique and New Guinea, the Gulf of Mexico's Dauphin Island and even his parents' overgrown yard back in Alabama, Wilson thrillingly evokes his nine-decade-long scientific obsession with more than 15,000 ant species.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Terrible narration, pointless rambling writing.
- By Kara on 12-09-21
By: Edward O. Wilson
-
Super Fly
- The Unexpected Lives of the World's Most Successful Insects
- By: Jonathan Balcombe
- Narrated by: Jonathan Balcombe
- Length: 8 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 53
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 49
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 49
For most of us, the only thing we know about flies is that they're annoying, and our usual reaction is to try to kill them. In Super Fly, the myth-busting biologist Jonathan Balcombe shows the order Diptera in all of its diversity, illustrating the essential role that flies play in every ecosystem in the world as pollinators, waste-disposers, predators, and food source; and how flies continue to reshape our understanding of evolution.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Wonderful
- By Chris on 02-13-22
-
The Sting of the Wild
- By: Justin O. Schmidt
- Narrated by: L. J. Ganser
- Length: 9 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 69
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 61
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 62
Entomologist Justin O. Schmidt is on a mission. Some say it's a brave exploration, others shake their heads in disbelief. His goal? To compare the impacts of stinging insects on humans, mainly using himself as the gauge. In The Sting of the Wild, the colorful Dr. Schmidt takes us on a journey inside the lives of stinging insects, seeing the world through their eyes as well as his own.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
An interesting look at stinging insects
- By Colin Mc on 04-13-17
-
Never Home Alone
- From Microbes to Millipedes, Camel Crickets, and Honeybees, the Natural History of Where We Live
- By: Rob Dunn
- Narrated by: Sean Patrick Hopkins
- Length: 9 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 437
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 376
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 376
A natural history of the wilderness in our homes, from the microbes in our showers to the crickets in our basements Even when the floors are sparkling clean and the house seems silent, our domestic domain is wild beyond imagination. In Never Home Alone, biologist Rob Dunn introduces us to the nearly 200,000 species living with us in our own homes, from the Egyptian meal moths in our cupboards and camel crickets in our basements to the lactobacillus lounging on our kitchen counters. You are not alone.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
The most astonishing book I've read this decade!
- By Paula on 04-17-19
By: Rob Dunn
-
Entangled Life
- How Fungi Make Our Worlds, Change Our Minds & Shape Our Futures
- By: Merlin Sheldrake
- Narrated by: Merlin Sheldrake
- Length: 9 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 3,815
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 3,249
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 3,241
When we think of fungi, we likely think of mushrooms. But mushrooms are only fruiting bodies, analogous to apples on a tree. Most fungi live out of sight, yet make up a massively diverse kingdom of organisms that supports and sustains nearly all living systems. Fungi provide a key to understanding the planet on which we live, and the ways we think, feel, and behave.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Mycology for Everyone
- By Cephalopods Revenge on 05-12-20
By: Merlin Sheldrake
-
Endless Forms
- The Secret World of Wasps
- By: Seirian Sumner
- Narrated by: Sumner Seirian
- Length: 12 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 23
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 22
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 22
Everyone worries about the collapse of bee populations. But what about wasps? Deemed the gangsters of the insect world, wasps are winged assassins with formidable stings. Conduits of Biblical punishment, provokers of fear and loathing, inspiration for horror movies: wasps are perhaps the most maligned insect on our planet. But do wasps deserve this reputation? Endless Forms opens our eyes to the highly complex and diverse world of wasps.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Informative, but...
- By Jeffrey D on 10-17-22
By: Seirian Sumner
-
Tales from the Ant World
- By: Edward O. Wilson
- Narrated by: Jonathan Hogan
- Length: 5 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 134
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 108
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 107
"Ants are the most warlike of all animals, with colony pitted against colony.... Their clashes dwarf Waterloo and Gettysburg", writes Edward O. Wilson in his most finely observed work in decades. In a myrmecological tour to such far-flung destinations as Mozambique and New Guinea, the Gulf of Mexico's Dauphin Island and even his parents' overgrown yard back in Alabama, Wilson thrillingly evokes his nine-decade-long scientific obsession with more than 15,000 ant species.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Terrible narration, pointless rambling writing.
- By Kara on 12-09-21
By: Edward O. Wilson
-
Super Fly
- The Unexpected Lives of the World's Most Successful Insects
- By: Jonathan Balcombe
- Narrated by: Jonathan Balcombe
- Length: 8 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 53
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 49
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 49
For most of us, the only thing we know about flies is that they're annoying, and our usual reaction is to try to kill them. In Super Fly, the myth-busting biologist Jonathan Balcombe shows the order Diptera in all of its diversity, illustrating the essential role that flies play in every ecosystem in the world as pollinators, waste-disposers, predators, and food source; and how flies continue to reshape our understanding of evolution.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Wonderful
- By Chris on 02-13-22
-
The Sting of the Wild
- By: Justin O. Schmidt
- Narrated by: L. J. Ganser
- Length: 9 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 69
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 61
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 62
Entomologist Justin O. Schmidt is on a mission. Some say it's a brave exploration, others shake their heads in disbelief. His goal? To compare the impacts of stinging insects on humans, mainly using himself as the gauge. In The Sting of the Wild, the colorful Dr. Schmidt takes us on a journey inside the lives of stinging insects, seeing the world through their eyes as well as his own.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
An interesting look at stinging insects
- By Colin Mc on 04-13-17
-
Never Home Alone
- From Microbes to Millipedes, Camel Crickets, and Honeybees, the Natural History of Where We Live
- By: Rob Dunn
- Narrated by: Sean Patrick Hopkins
- Length: 9 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 437
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 376
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 376
A natural history of the wilderness in our homes, from the microbes in our showers to the crickets in our basements Even when the floors are sparkling clean and the house seems silent, our domestic domain is wild beyond imagination. In Never Home Alone, biologist Rob Dunn introduces us to the nearly 200,000 species living with us in our own homes, from the Egyptian meal moths in our cupboards and camel crickets in our basements to the lactobacillus lounging on our kitchen counters. You are not alone.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
The most astonishing book I've read this decade!
- By Paula on 04-17-19
By: Rob Dunn
-
Entangled Life
- How Fungi Make Our Worlds, Change Our Minds & Shape Our Futures
- By: Merlin Sheldrake
- Narrated by: Merlin Sheldrake
- Length: 9 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 3,815
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 3,249
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 3,241
When we think of fungi, we likely think of mushrooms. But mushrooms are only fruiting bodies, analogous to apples on a tree. Most fungi live out of sight, yet make up a massively diverse kingdom of organisms that supports and sustains nearly all living systems. Fungi provide a key to understanding the planet on which we live, and the ways we think, feel, and behave.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Mycology for Everyone
- By Cephalopods Revenge on 05-12-20
By: Merlin Sheldrake
-
Endless Forms
- The Secret World of Wasps
- By: Seirian Sumner
- Narrated by: Sumner Seirian
- Length: 12 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 23
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 22
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 22
Everyone worries about the collapse of bee populations. But what about wasps? Deemed the gangsters of the insect world, wasps are winged assassins with formidable stings. Conduits of Biblical punishment, provokers of fear and loathing, inspiration for horror movies: wasps are perhaps the most maligned insect on our planet. But do wasps deserve this reputation? Endless Forms opens our eyes to the highly complex and diverse world of wasps.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Informative, but...
- By Jeffrey D on 10-17-22
By: Seirian Sumner
-
Buzz, Sting, Bite
- Why We Need Insects
- By: Anne Sverdrup-Thygeson
- Narrated by: Kristin Millward
- Length: 7 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 174
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 160
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 159
An enthusiastic, witty, and informative introduction to the world of insects and why we - and the planet we inhabit - could not survive without them.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Content is very interesting
- By Klaasneus on 07-17-19
-
The Lives of Bees
- The Untold Story of the Honey Bee in the Wild
- By: Thomas D. Seeley
- Narrated by: William Hope
- Length: 10 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 201
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 177
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 176
Humans have kept honey bees in hives for millennia, yet only in recent decades have biologists begun to investigate how these industrious insects live in the wild. The Lives of Bees is Thomas Seeley’s captivating story of what scientists are learning about the behavior, social life, and survival strategies of honey bees living outside the beekeeper’s hive - and how wild honey bees may hold the key to reversing the alarming die-off of the planet’s managed honey bee populations.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
The Lives of Bees - Read the Book Instead
- By JonathanG on 06-05-19
By: Thomas D. Seeley
-
Immune
- A Journey into the Mysterious System That Keeps You Alive
- By: Philipp Dettmer
- Narrated by: Steve Taylor
- Length: 10 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 1,172
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 1,005
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 998
You wake up and feel a tickle in your throat. Your head hurts. You’re mildly annoyed as you get the kids ready for school and dress for work yourself. Meanwhile, an epic war is being fought, just below your skin. Millions are fighting and dying for you to be able to complain as you head out the door. So what, exactly, is your immune system? In Immune, Philipp Dettmer, the brains behind the most popular science channel on YouTube, takes listeners on a journey through the fortress of the human body and its defenses.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Steve Taylor for the win
- By Bay Area Engineer on 11-02-21
By: Philipp Dettmer
-
The House of Kennedy
- By: James Patterson
- Narrated by: David Pittu
- Length: 10 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 579
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 506
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 501
The Kennedys have always been a family of charismatic adventurers, raised to take risks and excel, living by the dual family mottos: "To whom much is given, much is expected" and "Win at all costs". And they do - but at a price. Across decades and generations, the Kennedys have occupied a unique place in the American imagination: charmed, cursed, at once familiar and unknowable. The House of Kennedy is a revealing, fascinating account of America's most storied family, as told by America's most trusted storyteller.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Nothing New
- By Visa on 04-23-20
By: James Patterson
-
The Mind of a Bee
- By: Lars Chittka
- Narrated by: Michael Butler Murray
- Length: 7 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 40
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 36
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 36
Most of us are aware of the hive mind—the power of bees as an amazing collective. But do we know how uniquely intelligent bees are as individuals? In The Mind of a Bee, Lars Chittka draws from decades of research, including his own pioneering work, to argue that bees have remarkable cognitive abilities. He shows that they are profoundly smart, have distinct personalities, can recognize flowers and human faces, exhibit basic emotions, count, use simple tools, solve problems, and learn by observing others. They may even possess consciousness.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
A Nerdgasm: Informative Yet Deterministic
- By Drone Boy on 08-06-22
By: Lars Chittka
-
Life on Earth
- By: David Attenborough
- Narrated by: David Attenborough
- Length: 12 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 657
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 581
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 577
To celebrate the 40th anniversary of the book’s first publication, David Attenborough has revisited Life on Earth, completely updating and adding to the original text, taking account of modern scientific discoveries from around the globe....
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
100% Pure Attenborough
- By Dave on 09-25-18
-
Venomous
- How Earth's Deadliest Creatures Mastered Biochemistry
- By: Christie Wilcox
- Narrated by: Emily Rankin
- Length: 6 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 430
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 383
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 379
In Venomous, molecular biologist Christie Wilcox investigates venoms and the animals that use them, revealing how they work, what they do to the human body, and how they can revolutionize biochemistry and medicine today. Wilcox takes us from the coast of Indonesia to the rainforests of Peru in search of the secrets of these mysterious animals.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
not for kids
- By Chris McAllister on 10-13-18
By: Christie Wilcox
-
The Hidden Kingdom of Fungi
- Exploring the Microscopic World in Our Forests, Homes, and Bodies
- By: Keith Seifert, Rob Dunn - foreword
- Narrated by: Steven Marriott
- Length: 6 hrs and 39 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 16
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 15
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 15
In this illuminating account, esteemed career mycologist Keith Seifert reveals the important role that microscopic fungi, including yeasts, molds, and slimes, play in our lives, all while remaining invisible to the naked eye. Divided into sections, each one exploring a different environment where fungi thrive, The Hidden Kingdom of Fungi introduces listeners to the fascinating world of mycology. Seifert urges us to better understand our relationship with fungi—and to plan our future with them in mind—while revealing their world in all its beautiful complexity.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Learned a lot.
- By BlondeDude on 06-29-22
By: Keith Seifert, and others
-
The Rise and Reign of the Mammals
- A New History, from the Shadow of the Dinosaurs to Us
- By: Steve Brusatte
- Narrated by: Patrick Lawlor
- Length: 13 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 460
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 381
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 382
We humans are the inheritors of a dynasty that has reigned over the planet for nearly 66 million years, through fiery cataclysm and ice ages: the mammals. Our lineage includes saber-toothed tigers, woolly mammoths, armadillos the size of a car, cave bears three times the weight of a grizzly, clever scurriers that outlasted Tyrannosaurus rex, and even other types of humans, like Neanderthals.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Fantastic Book
- By Peter Jensen on 09-08-22
By: Steve Brusatte
-
Murder Your Darlings
- And Other Gentle Writing Advice from Aristotle to Zinsser
- By: Roy Peter Clark
- Narrated by: Jefferson Mays
- Length: 9 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 123
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 104
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 100
With so many excellent writing guides lining bookstore shelves, it can be hard to know where to look for the best advice. Should you go with Natalie Goldberg or Anne Lamott? Maybe William Zinsser or Stephen King would be more appropriate. Then again, what about the classics - Strunk and White, or even Aristotle himself? In Murder Your Darlings, Roy Peter Clark, who has been a beloved and revered writing teacher to children and Pulitzer Prize winners alike for more than 30 years, has compiled a remarkable collection of more than 100 of the best writing tips.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Surprisingly engaging
- By Sil A. on 08-05-21
By: Roy Peter Clark
-
Clash of the Carriers
- The True Story of the Marianas Turkey Shoot of World War II
- By: Barrett Tillman, Stephen Coonts
- Narrated by: Joe Barrett
- Length: 11 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 264
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 237
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 232
The incredible true story of the most spectacular aircraft-carrier battle in history - World War II's Great Marianas Turkey Shoot. Here is the true account of those great and terrible days - by those who were there, in the thick of the Battle of the Philippine Sea. Drawing upon numerous interviews with American and Japanese veterans as well as official sources, Clash of the Carriers is an unforgettable testimonial to the bravery of those who fought and those who died in a battle that will never be forgotten.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
OUTSTANDING BOOK!!
- By Bill on 10-30-18
By: Barrett Tillman, and others
-
Maximum Volume: The Life of Beatles Producer George Martin
- The Early Years, 1926-1966
- By: Kenneth Womack
- Narrated by: Paul Woodson
- Length: 15 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 104
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 95
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 95
Maximum Volume offers a glimpse into the mind, the music, and the man behind the sound of the Beatles. George Martin's working-class childhood and musical influences profoundly shaped his early career in the BBC's Classical Music department and as head of the EMI Group's Parlophone Records. Out of them flowed the genius behind his seven years producing the Beatles' incredible body of work, including such albums as Rubber Soul, Revolver, Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, and Abbey Road.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Extremely informative but tiresome accents
- By John R. Blackburn Jr. on 10-12-17
By: Kenneth Womack
Publisher's summary
Ants number in the ten quadrillions, and they have been here since the Jurassic era. Inside an anthill, you'll find high drama worthy of a royal court; and between colonies, high-stakes geopolitical intrigue is afoot. Just like us, ants grow crops, raise livestock, tend their young and infirm, and make vaccines. And, just like us, ants have a dark side: They wage war, despoil environments, and enslave rivals - but also rebel against their oppressors.
Engineered by nature to fulfill their particular roles, ants flawlessly perform a complex symphony of tasks to sustain their colony - seemingly without a conductor - from fearsome army ants, who stage 12-hour hunting raids where they devour thousands, to gentle leafcutters cooperatively gardening in their peaceful underground kingdoms.
Acclaimed biologist Susanne Foitzik has traveled the globe to study these master architects of Earth. Joined by journalist Olaf Fritsche, Foitzik invites listeners deep into her world - in the field and in the lab. (How do you observe the behavior of ants just millimeters long - or dissect a brain the width of a needle?) Empire of Ants will inspire new respect for ants as a global superpower - and raise new questions about the very meaning of "civilization".
More from the same
Author
Related to this topic
-
The Hidden Life of Trees
- What They Feel, How They Communicate - Discoveries from a Secret World
- By: Peter Wohlleben
- Narrated by: Mike Grady
- Length: 7 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 6,243
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 5,365
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 5,327
How do trees live? Do they feel pain or have awareness of their surroundings? Research is now suggesting trees are capable of much more than we have ever known. In The Hidden Life of Trees, forester Peter Wohlleben puts groundbreaking scientific discoveries into a language everyone can relate to.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Tree Hugger
- By Darwin8u on 04-18-19
By: Peter Wohlleben
-
Nature's Best Hope
- A New Approach to Conservation that Starts in Your Yard
- By: Douglas W. Tallamy
- Narrated by: Adam Barr
- Length: 6 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 426
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 363
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 358
Douglas W. Tallamy's first book, Bringing Nature Home, awakened thousands of individuals to an urgent situation: wildlife populations are in decline because the native plants they depend on are fast disappearing. His solution? Plant more natives. In this new book, Tallamy takes the next step and outlines his vision for a grassroots approach to conservation.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
A must read for everybody! Not just nature lovers.
- By Steve Ebert on 06-11-20
-
A Naturalist at Large
- The Best Essays of Bernd Heinrich
- By: Bernd Heinrich
- Narrated by: Rick Adamson
- Length: 8 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 54
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 50
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 49
From one of the finest scientists and writers of our time comes an engaging record of a life spent in close observation of the natural world, one that has yielded marvelous, mind-altering insight and discoveries. In essays that span several decades, Bernd Heinrich finds himself at his beloved camp in Maine, plays host to annoying visitors from Europe (the cluster fly) and more helpful guests from Asia (ladybugs), and unravels the far-reaching ecological consequences of elephants in Botswana bruising mopane trees.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Listen and See the World Anew!
- By Thoughtful Learner on 06-03-18
By: Bernd Heinrich
-
Fruitless Fall
- The Collapse of the Honey Bee and the Coming Agricultural Crisis
- By: Rowan Jacobsen
- Narrated by: Rowell Gormon
- Length: 6 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 46
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 40
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 41
Many people will remember that Rachel Carson predicted a silent spring, but she also warned of a fruitless fall, a time with no pollination and no fruit. The fruitless fall nearly became a reality when, in 2007, beekeepers watched 30 billion bees mysteriously die. And they continue to disappear. The remaining pollinators, essential to the cultivation of a third of American crops, are now trucked across the country and flown around the world, pushing them ever closer to collapse.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Compulsory Reading - Share with Everyone!
- By Charles Koenen on 04-12-20
By: Rowan Jacobsen
-
Gods, Wasps and Stranglers
- The Secret History and Redemptive Future of Fig Trees
- By: Mike Shanahan
- Narrated by: James Cameron Stewart
- Length: 4 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 34
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 29
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 29
They are trees of life and trees of knowledge. They are wish-fulfillers, rain forest royalty, more precious than gold. They are the fig trees, and they have affected humanity in profound but little-known ways. Gods, Wasps and Stranglers tells their amazing story. Fig trees fed our prehuman ancestors, influenced diverse cultures, and played key roles in the dawn of civilization.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Incredible research in a wonderful story
- By Alonsa Guevara on 11-24-22
By: Mike Shanahan
-
The Triumph of Seeds
- How Grains, Nuts, Kernels, Pulses & Pips Conquered the Plant Kingdom and Shaped Human History
- By: Thor Hanson
- Narrated by: Marc Vietor
- Length: 7 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,674
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,484
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,490
We live in a world of seeds. From our morning toast to the cotton in our clothes, they are quite literally the stuff and staff of life, supporting diets, economies, and civilizations around the globe. Just as the search for nutmeg and the humble peppercorn drove the Age of Discovery, so did coffee beans help fuel the Enlightenment and cottonseed help spark the Industrial Revolution. And from the fall of Rome to the Arab Spring, the fate of nations continues to hinge on the seeds of a Middle Eastern grass known as wheat.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Delightfully simplistic!
- By Adrian on 03-30-16
By: Thor Hanson
-
The Hidden Life of Trees
- What They Feel, How They Communicate - Discoveries from a Secret World
- By: Peter Wohlleben
- Narrated by: Mike Grady
- Length: 7 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 6,243
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 5,365
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 5,327
How do trees live? Do they feel pain or have awareness of their surroundings? Research is now suggesting trees are capable of much more than we have ever known. In The Hidden Life of Trees, forester Peter Wohlleben puts groundbreaking scientific discoveries into a language everyone can relate to.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Tree Hugger
- By Darwin8u on 04-18-19
By: Peter Wohlleben
-
Nature's Best Hope
- A New Approach to Conservation that Starts in Your Yard
- By: Douglas W. Tallamy
- Narrated by: Adam Barr
- Length: 6 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 426
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 363
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 358
Douglas W. Tallamy's first book, Bringing Nature Home, awakened thousands of individuals to an urgent situation: wildlife populations are in decline because the native plants they depend on are fast disappearing. His solution? Plant more natives. In this new book, Tallamy takes the next step and outlines his vision for a grassroots approach to conservation.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
A must read for everybody! Not just nature lovers.
- By Steve Ebert on 06-11-20
-
A Naturalist at Large
- The Best Essays of Bernd Heinrich
- By: Bernd Heinrich
- Narrated by: Rick Adamson
- Length: 8 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 54
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 50
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 49
From one of the finest scientists and writers of our time comes an engaging record of a life spent in close observation of the natural world, one that has yielded marvelous, mind-altering insight and discoveries. In essays that span several decades, Bernd Heinrich finds himself at his beloved camp in Maine, plays host to annoying visitors from Europe (the cluster fly) and more helpful guests from Asia (ladybugs), and unravels the far-reaching ecological consequences of elephants in Botswana bruising mopane trees.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Listen and See the World Anew!
- By Thoughtful Learner on 06-03-18
By: Bernd Heinrich
-
Fruitless Fall
- The Collapse of the Honey Bee and the Coming Agricultural Crisis
- By: Rowan Jacobsen
- Narrated by: Rowell Gormon
- Length: 6 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 46
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 40
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 41
Many people will remember that Rachel Carson predicted a silent spring, but she also warned of a fruitless fall, a time with no pollination and no fruit. The fruitless fall nearly became a reality when, in 2007, beekeepers watched 30 billion bees mysteriously die. And they continue to disappear. The remaining pollinators, essential to the cultivation of a third of American crops, are now trucked across the country and flown around the world, pushing them ever closer to collapse.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Compulsory Reading - Share with Everyone!
- By Charles Koenen on 04-12-20
By: Rowan Jacobsen
-
Gods, Wasps and Stranglers
- The Secret History and Redemptive Future of Fig Trees
- By: Mike Shanahan
- Narrated by: James Cameron Stewart
- Length: 4 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 34
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 29
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 29
They are trees of life and trees of knowledge. They are wish-fulfillers, rain forest royalty, more precious than gold. They are the fig trees, and they have affected humanity in profound but little-known ways. Gods, Wasps and Stranglers tells their amazing story. Fig trees fed our prehuman ancestors, influenced diverse cultures, and played key roles in the dawn of civilization.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Incredible research in a wonderful story
- By Alonsa Guevara on 11-24-22
By: Mike Shanahan
-
The Triumph of Seeds
- How Grains, Nuts, Kernels, Pulses & Pips Conquered the Plant Kingdom and Shaped Human History
- By: Thor Hanson
- Narrated by: Marc Vietor
- Length: 7 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,674
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,484
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,490
We live in a world of seeds. From our morning toast to the cotton in our clothes, they are quite literally the stuff and staff of life, supporting diets, economies, and civilizations around the globe. Just as the search for nutmeg and the humble peppercorn drove the Age of Discovery, so did coffee beans help fuel the Enlightenment and cottonseed help spark the Industrial Revolution. And from the fall of Rome to the Arab Spring, the fate of nations continues to hinge on the seeds of a Middle Eastern grass known as wheat.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Delightfully simplistic!
- By Adrian on 03-30-16
By: Thor Hanson
-
The Beak of the Finch
- A Story of Evolution in Our Time
- By: Jonathan Weiner
- Narrated by: Victor Bevine
- Length: 12 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 463
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 373
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 372
Rosemary and Peter Grant and those assisting them have spend 20 years on Daphne Major, an island in the Galapagos, studying natural selection. They recognize each individual bird on the island, when there are 400 at the time of the author's visit or when there are over a thousand. They have observed about 20 generations of finches - continuously.Jonathan Weiner follows these scientists as they watch Darwin's finches and come up with a new understanding of life itself.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Fascinating in-depth look at evolution in action
- By Philip on 05-15-11
By: Jonathan Weiner
-
Parasite Rex
- Inside the Bizarre World of Nature's Most Dangerous Creatures
- By: Carl Zimmer
- Narrated by: Charles Constant
- Length: 9 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 140
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 123
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 122
For centuries, parasites have lived in nightmares, horror stories, and the darkest shadows of science. In Parasite Rex, Carl Zimmer takes listeners on a fantastic voyage into the secret universe of these extraordinary life forms that are not only among the most highly evolved on Earth, but make up the majority of life's diversity. Traveling from the steamy jungles of Costa Rica to the parasite-riddled war zone of southern Sudan, Zimmer introduces an array of amazing creatures that invade their hosts, prey on them from within, and control their behavior.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Fascinating and Horrible
- By David A on 10-09-18
By: Carl Zimmer
-
The Tree
- A Natural History of What Trees Are, How They Live, and Why They Matter
- By: Colin Tudge
- Narrated by: Enn Reitel
- Length: 19 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 91
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 83
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 80
There are redwoods in California that were ancient by the time Columbus first landed and pines still alive that germinated around the time humans invented writing. There are Douglas firs as tall as skyscrapers and a banyan tree in Calcutta as big as a football field. From the tallest to the smallest, trees inspire wonder in all of us, and in The Tree, Colin Tudge travels around the world - throughout the United States, the Costa Rican rain forest, Panama and Brazil, India, New Zealand, China, and most of Europe - bringing to life stories and facts about the trees around us.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Not the book described in the Audible summary
- By E. Miller on 04-28-17
By: Colin Tudge
-
Mother Nature Is Trying to Kill You
- A Lively Tour Through the Dark Side of the Natural World
- By: Dan Riskin
- Narrated by: Dan Riskin
- Length: 5 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 77
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 63
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 63
It may be a wonderful world, but as Dan Riskin explains, it's also a dangerous, disturbing, and disgusting one. At every turn, it seems, living things are trying to eat us, poison us, use our bodies as their homes, or have us spread their eggs. In Mother Nature Is Trying to Kill You, Riskin is our guide through the natural world at its most gloriously ruthless. Using the seven deadly sins as a road map, Riskin offers dozens of jaw-dropping examples that illuminate how brutal nature can truly be.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Just a bunch of random animal behaviors.
- By Goddess on 05-18-23
By: Dan Riskin
-
Superlative
- The Biology of Extremes
- By: Matthew D. LaPlante
- Narrated by: George Newbern
- Length: 9 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 85
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 71
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 71
The world's largest land mammal could help us end cancer. The fastest bird is showing us how to solve a century-old engineering mystery. The oldest tree is giving us insights into climate change. The loudest whale is offering clues about the impact of solar storms. For a long time, scientists ignored superlative life forms as outliers. Increasingly, though, researchers are coming to see great value in studying plants and animals that exist on the outermost edges of the bell curve.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Fascinating survey of amazing biology
- By Nerd's-eye view on 12-06-19
-
The Galápagos
- A Natural History
- By: Henry Nicholls
- Narrated by: James Adams
- Length: 5 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 91
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 81
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 80
The Galapagos were once known to the sailors and pirates who encountered them as Las Encantadas: the enchanted islands, home to exotic creatures and dramatic volcanic scenery. In The Galapagos, science writer Henry Nicholls offers a lively natural and human history of the archipelago, charting its evolution from deserted wilderness to scientific resource (made famous by Charles Darwin) and global ecotourism hot spot.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Thought-Provoking
- By Jean on 10-23-18
By: Henry Nicholls
-
Silent Earth
- Averting the Insect Apocalypse
- By: Dave Goulson
- Narrated by: Dave Goulson
- Length: 9 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 29
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 24
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 24
In the tradition of Rachel Carson’s groundbreaking environmental classic Silent Spring, an award-winning entomologist and conservationist explains the importance of insects to our survival and offers a clarion call to avoid a looming ecological disaster of our own making.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Important book for all
- By Wren Jen on 03-24-24
By: Dave Goulson
-
The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating
- By: Elisabeth Tova Bailey
- Narrated by: Renee Raudman
- Length: 3 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 320
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 276
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 278
Elisabeth Tova Bailey tells the intimate and inspiring story of her year-long encounter with a snail. While an illness keeps her bedridden, she becomes an astute and amused observer of the snail's surprising nocturnal adventures as it lives in a flowerpot on her nightstand. Intrigued by the snail’s clear decision making abilities, hydraulic locomotion, mysterious courtship, and molluscan anatomy, Bailey takes the listener deep into the life of this tiny amazing animal. With wit and grace, The Sound of a Wild Snail Eating recounts a remarkable journey of human and gastropod survival and resilience, and shows how the natural world illuminates our own human existence. Winner of the William Saroyan International Prize for Nonfiction, the John Burrough Medal Award for Natural History, and a National Outdoor Book Award. If you enjoyed Wesley the Owl, The Guest Cat, and Marley & Me, you'll enjoy this unique interspecies audiobook listen.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
This is an unexpected wonder. The quiet virtues of the snail reflect the quiet voyage of the author.
- By Frances on 08-03-15
-
The Wonder of Birds
- What They Tell Us About Ourselves, the World, and a Better Future
- By: Jim Robbins
- Narrated by: Danny Campbell
- Length: 11 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 79
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 75
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 73
Birds, Jim Robbins posits, are our most vital connection to nature. They compel us to look to the skies, both literally and metaphorically, draw us out into nature to seek their beauty, and let us experience vicariously what it is like to be weightless. Birds have helped us in so many of our human endeavors: learning to fly, providing clothing and food, and helping us better understand the human brain and body.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Stories about birds with something for everyone
- By D on 07-24-17
By: Jim Robbins
-
How to Read Nature
- An Expert's Guide to Discovering the Outdoors You've Never Noticed
- By: Tristan Gooley
- Narrated by: Qarie Marshall
- Length: 3 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 122
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 100
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 99
Nobody wakes up in the morning and decides to shut down their senses and stumble through each day in an oblivious bubble, and yet some people end up having much richer experiences than others. In this guidebook, natural navigator Tristan Gooley strives to reawaken our senses to help us understand and deepen our personal experience of nature. His message is to connect - however we can and to whatever draws us in.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
A fool sees not the same tree a wise man sees
- By Mark A Bleakley on 08-07-18
By: Tristan Gooley
-
Letters to a Young Scientist
- By: Edward O. Wilxon
- Narrated by: Joe Barrett
- Length: 4 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 312
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 268
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 270
Edward O. Wilson has distilled sixty years of teaching into a book for students, young and old. Reflecting on his coming-of-age in the South as a Boy Scout and a lover of ants and butterflies, Wilson threads these twenty-one letters, each richly illustrated, with autobiographical anecdotes that illuminate his career - both his successes and his failures - and his motivations for becoming a biologist.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Long on biography, short on advice
- By A. Mandelin on 08-02-18
By: Edward O. Wilxon
-
The Thing with Feathers
- The Surprising Lives of Birds and What They Reveal About Being Human
- By: Noah Strycker
- Narrated by: Paul Boehmer
- Length: 8 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 99
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 85
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 84
Birds are highly intelligent animals, yet their intelligence is dramatically different from our own and has been little understood. As we learn more about the secrets of bird life, we are unlocking fascinating insights into memory, relationships, game theory, and the nature of intelligence itself. The Thing with Feathers explores the astonishing homing abilities of pigeons, the good deeds of fairy-wrens, the influential flocking abilities of starlings, the deft artistry of bowerbirds, the extraordinary memories of nutcrackers, and other mysteries.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Interesting book, terrible reader
- By MGM123 on 03-16-18
By: Noah Strycker
People who viewed this also viewed...
-
Tales from the Ant World
- By: Edward O. Wilson
- Narrated by: Jonathan Hogan
- Length: 5 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 134
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 108
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 107
"Ants are the most warlike of all animals, with colony pitted against colony.... Their clashes dwarf Waterloo and Gettysburg", writes Edward O. Wilson in his most finely observed work in decades. In a myrmecological tour to such far-flung destinations as Mozambique and New Guinea, the Gulf of Mexico's Dauphin Island and even his parents' overgrown yard back in Alabama, Wilson thrillingly evokes his nine-decade-long scientific obsession with more than 15,000 ant species.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Terrible narration, pointless rambling writing.
- By Kara on 12-09-21
By: Edward O. Wilson
-
In the Company of Crows and Ravens
- By: John M. Marzluff, Tony Angell, Paul Ehrlich - foreword
- Narrated by: Danny Campbell
- Length: 8 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 32
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 28
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 28
From the cave walls at Lascaux to the last painting by Van Gogh, from the works of Shakespeare to those of Mark Twain, there is clear evidence that crows and ravens influence human culture. Yet this influence is not unidirectional, say the authors of this fascinating book: people profoundly influence crow culture, ecology, and evolution as well. John Marzluff and Tony Angell examine the often surprising ways that crows and humans interact. The authors contend that those interactions reflect a process of "cultural coevolution."
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
learned stuff
- By DragonsWynd on 03-06-21
By: John M. Marzluff, and others
-
The Hidden Lives of Owls
- The Science and Spirit of Nature's Most Elusive Birds
- By: Leigh Calvez
- Narrated by: Karen White
- Length: 6 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 76
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 66
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 65
In this New York Times best seller, a naturalist probes the forest to comprehend the secret lives of owls. Leigh Calvez takes listeners on an adventure into the world of owls: owl-watching, avian science, and the deep forest - often in the dead of night. These birds are a bit mysterious, and that's part of what makes them so fascinating.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Too self absorbed
- By Helen L. Phillips on 07-28-19
By: Leigh Calvez
-
Dance of the Dung Beetles
- Their Role in Our Changing World
- By: Marcus Byrne, Helen Lunn
- Narrated by: Dennis Kleinman
- Length: 7 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 7
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 7
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 7
In this sweeping history of more than 3,000 years, beginning with ancient Egypt, scientist Marcus Byrne and writer Helen Lunn capture the diversity of dung beetles and their unique behavior patterns. Dung beetles' fortunes have followed the shifts from a world dominated by a religion that symbolically incorporated them into some of its key concepts of rebirth, to a world in which science has largely separated itself from religion and alchemy.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
an interesting insight into a bug's life
- By Megan on 02-15-21
By: Marcus Byrne, and others
-
The Sting of the Wild
- By: Justin O. Schmidt
- Narrated by: L. J. Ganser
- Length: 9 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 69
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 61
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 62
Entomologist Justin O. Schmidt is on a mission. Some say it's a brave exploration, others shake their heads in disbelief. His goal? To compare the impacts of stinging insects on humans, mainly using himself as the gauge. In The Sting of the Wild, the colorful Dr. Schmidt takes us on a journey inside the lives of stinging insects, seeing the world through their eyes as well as his own.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
An interesting look at stinging insects
- By Colin Mc on 04-13-17
-
Our Native Bees
- North America’s Endangered Pollinators and the Fight to Save Them
- By: Paige Embry
- Narrated by: Emily Durante
- Length: 5 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 94
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 76
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 76
Honey bees get all the press, but the fascinating story of North America's native bees - an endangered species essential to our ecosystems and food supplies - is just as crucial. Our Native Bees is the result of Paige Embry's yearlong quest to learn more about these forgotten, yet fundamental, creatures. Through interviews with farmers, gardeners, scientists, and bee experts, Embry explores the importance of native bees and focuses on why they play a key role in gardening and agriculture.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Meh
- By Kim on 02-27-19
By: Paige Embry
-
Tales from the Ant World
- By: Edward O. Wilson
- Narrated by: Jonathan Hogan
- Length: 5 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 134
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 108
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 107
"Ants are the most warlike of all animals, with colony pitted against colony.... Their clashes dwarf Waterloo and Gettysburg", writes Edward O. Wilson in his most finely observed work in decades. In a myrmecological tour to such far-flung destinations as Mozambique and New Guinea, the Gulf of Mexico's Dauphin Island and even his parents' overgrown yard back in Alabama, Wilson thrillingly evokes his nine-decade-long scientific obsession with more than 15,000 ant species.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Terrible narration, pointless rambling writing.
- By Kara on 12-09-21
By: Edward O. Wilson
-
In the Company of Crows and Ravens
- By: John M. Marzluff, Tony Angell, Paul Ehrlich - foreword
- Narrated by: Danny Campbell
- Length: 8 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 32
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 28
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 28
From the cave walls at Lascaux to the last painting by Van Gogh, from the works of Shakespeare to those of Mark Twain, there is clear evidence that crows and ravens influence human culture. Yet this influence is not unidirectional, say the authors of this fascinating book: people profoundly influence crow culture, ecology, and evolution as well. John Marzluff and Tony Angell examine the often surprising ways that crows and humans interact. The authors contend that those interactions reflect a process of "cultural coevolution."
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
learned stuff
- By DragonsWynd on 03-06-21
By: John M. Marzluff, and others
-
The Hidden Lives of Owls
- The Science and Spirit of Nature's Most Elusive Birds
- By: Leigh Calvez
- Narrated by: Karen White
- Length: 6 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 76
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 66
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 65
In this New York Times best seller, a naturalist probes the forest to comprehend the secret lives of owls. Leigh Calvez takes listeners on an adventure into the world of owls: owl-watching, avian science, and the deep forest - often in the dead of night. These birds are a bit mysterious, and that's part of what makes them so fascinating.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Too self absorbed
- By Helen L. Phillips on 07-28-19
By: Leigh Calvez
-
Dance of the Dung Beetles
- Their Role in Our Changing World
- By: Marcus Byrne, Helen Lunn
- Narrated by: Dennis Kleinman
- Length: 7 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 7
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 7
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 7
In this sweeping history of more than 3,000 years, beginning with ancient Egypt, scientist Marcus Byrne and writer Helen Lunn capture the diversity of dung beetles and their unique behavior patterns. Dung beetles' fortunes have followed the shifts from a world dominated by a religion that symbolically incorporated them into some of its key concepts of rebirth, to a world in which science has largely separated itself from religion and alchemy.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
an interesting insight into a bug's life
- By Megan on 02-15-21
By: Marcus Byrne, and others
-
The Sting of the Wild
- By: Justin O. Schmidt
- Narrated by: L. J. Ganser
- Length: 9 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 69
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 61
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 62
Entomologist Justin O. Schmidt is on a mission. Some say it's a brave exploration, others shake their heads in disbelief. His goal? To compare the impacts of stinging insects on humans, mainly using himself as the gauge. In The Sting of the Wild, the colorful Dr. Schmidt takes us on a journey inside the lives of stinging insects, seeing the world through their eyes as well as his own.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
An interesting look at stinging insects
- By Colin Mc on 04-13-17
-
Our Native Bees
- North America’s Endangered Pollinators and the Fight to Save Them
- By: Paige Embry
- Narrated by: Emily Durante
- Length: 5 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 94
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 76
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 76
Honey bees get all the press, but the fascinating story of North America's native bees - an endangered species essential to our ecosystems and food supplies - is just as crucial. Our Native Bees is the result of Paige Embry's yearlong quest to learn more about these forgotten, yet fundamental, creatures. Through interviews with farmers, gardeners, scientists, and bee experts, Embry explores the importance of native bees and focuses on why they play a key role in gardening and agriculture.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Meh
- By Kim on 02-27-19
By: Paige Embry
-
In Defense of Plants
- An Exploration into the Wonder of Plants
- By: Matt Candeias PhD
- Narrated by: Matthew Boston
- Length: 6 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 121
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 106
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 105
Since his early days of plant restoration, amateur plant scientist Matt Candeias has been enchanted with flora and the greater environmental ecology of the planet. Now, he looks at the study of plants through the lens of his ever-growing houseplant collection.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Great book - mediocre narration
- By Brenda Mendoza on 05-15-21
-
The Secret Life of Fungi
- Discoveries from a Hidden World
- By: Aliya Whitely
- Narrated by: Alison Larkin
- Length: 3 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 25
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 22
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 22
Fungi can appear anywhere, from desert dunes to frozen tundra. They can invade our bodies and live between our toes or our floorboards. They are unwelcome intruders or vastly expensive treats, and symbols of both death and eternal life. But despite their familiar presence, there’s still much to learn about the eruption, growth, and decay of their secret interconnected world. From fields, feasts, and fairy rings to death caps, puffballs, and ambrosia beetles, this is an intoxicating journey into the life of an extraordinary organism, one that we have barely begun to understand.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Intro to understanding fungi. Must Have
- By Must Haves by Dawnlarae on 02-27-24
By: Aliya Whitely
-
Squid Empire
- The Rise and Fall of the Cephalopods
- By: Danna Staaf
- Narrated by: Emily Durante
- Length: 7 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 172
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 156
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 157
Before there were mammals on land, there were dinosaurs. And before there were fish in the sea, there were cephalopods - the ancestors of modern squid and Earth's first truly substantial animals. Cephalopods became the first creatures to rise from the seafloor, essentially inventing the act of swimming. With dozens of tentacles and formidable shells, they presided over an undersea empire for millions of years. But when fish evolved jaws, the ocean's former top predator became its most delicious snack. Cephalopods had to step up their game.
-
3 out of 5 stars
-
Affected and tedious
- By Kate on 07-28-18
By: Danna Staaf
-
Oxygen
- The Molecule That Made the World
- By: Nick Lane
- Narrated by: Nigel Patterson
- Length: 16 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 209
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 165
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 163
Oxygen takes the listener on an enthralling journey, as gripping as a thriller, as it unravels the unexpected ways in which oxygen spurred the evolution of life and death.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
A Story About Pretty Much Everything
- By ZebraBear on 09-09-20
By: Nick Lane
-
Alien Worlds
- The Secret Lives of Insects
- By: Steve Nicholls
- Narrated by: Alan Turton
- Length: 15 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 3
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 3
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 3
Insects are the busy, teeming arthropods on whose activities much of life on earth depends, and whose global populations are currently under the gravest of threats—with unimaginable consequences for us all. In Alien Worlds, Steve Nicholls explores what insects are, and why there are so many of them; the impact on insects (the only flying invertebrates) of the possession of wings; and the extraordinary sensory world of insects.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Wonderful exploration of the world of terrestrial invertebrates
- By Kristin on 01-22-24
By: Steve Nicholls
-
The Breath of a Whale
- The Science and Spirit of Pacific Ocean Giants
- By: Leigh Calvez
- Narrated by: Karen White
- Length: 7 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 45
-
Performance3.5 out of 5 stars 41
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 41
Leigh Calvez has spent a dozen years researching, observing, and probing the lives of the giants of the deep. Here, she relates the stories of nature's most remarkable creatures, including the familial orcas in the waters of Washington State and British Columbia; the migratory humpbacks; and the ancient, deep-diving blue whales, the largest animals on the planet.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
I couldn't handle the narration
- By Sophie Krupp on 04-06-20
By: Leigh Calvez
-
The Rise of Yeast
- How the Sugar Fungus Shaped Civilization
- By: Nicholas P. Money
- Narrated by: David Colacci
- Length: 6 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 54
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 48
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 47
In The Rise of Yeast, Nicholas P. Money argues that we cannot ascribe too much importance to yeast, and that its discovery and controlled use profoundly altered human history. Humans knew what yeast did long before they knew what it was. It was not until Louis Pasteur's experiments in the 1860s that scientists even acknowledged its classification as a fungus. A compelling blend of science, history, and sociology, The Rise of Yeast explores the rich, strange, and utterly symbiotic relationship between people and yeast.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
awesome
- By Nicholas C. Phelan on 11-09-18
-
Honeybee Democracy
- By: Thomas D. Seeley
- Narrated by: Keith Sellon-Wright
- Length: 8 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 277
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 243
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 242
Honeybees make decisions collectively-and democratically. Every year, faced with the life-or-death problem of choosing and traveling to a new home, honeybees stake everything on a process that includes collective fact-finding, vigorous debate, and consensus building. In fact, as world-renowned animal behaviorist Thomas Seeley reveals, these incredible insects have much to teach us when it comes to collective wisdom and effective decision making.
-
1 out of 5 stars
-
Most Annoying Book Ever!!
- By Spaceman on 06-18-19
By: Thomas D. Seeley
-
Underland
- A Deep Time Journey
- By: Robert Macfarlane
- Narrated by: Matthew Waterson
- Length: 12 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,338
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,125
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,123
Hailed as "the great nature writer of this generation" (Wall Street Journal), Robert Macfarlane is the celebrated author of books about the intersections of the human and the natural realms. In Underland, he delivers his masterpiece: an epic exploration of the Earth's underworlds as they exist in myth, literature, memory, and the land itself.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Wonderful book, disappointing narrator
- By Clare Woods on 07-05-19
-
Mind of the Raven
- Investigations and Adventures with Wolf-Birds
- By: Bernd Heinrich
- Narrated by: Norman Dietz
- Length: 16 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 247
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 216
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 212
Bernd Heinrich involves us in his quest to get inside the mind of the raven. But as animals can be spied on only by getting quite close, Heinrich adopts ravens, thereby becoming a "raven father", as well as observing them in their natural habitat. He studies their daily routines and, in the process, paints a vivid picture of the ravens' world. At the heart of this book are Heinrich's love and respect for these complex and engaging creatures, and through his keen observation and analysis we become their intimates, too.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
16+ hours of Ravens, great stories & narration
- By Diana on 11-09-16
By: Bernd Heinrich
-
Silent Earth
- Averting the Insect Apocalypse
- By: Dave Goulson
- Narrated by: Dave Goulson
- Length: 9 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 29
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 24
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 24
In the tradition of Rachel Carson’s groundbreaking environmental classic Silent Spring, an award-winning entomologist and conservationist explains the importance of insects to our survival and offers a clarion call to avoid a looming ecological disaster of our own making.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Important book for all
- By Wren Jen on 03-24-24
By: Dave Goulson
-
Great Adaptations
- Star-Nosed Moles, Electric Eels, and Other Tales of Evolution's Mysteries Solved
- By: Kenneth Catania
- Narrated by: Chris Sorensen
- Length: 7 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 25
-
Performance3 out of 5 stars 21
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 22
From star-nosed moles that have super-sensing snouts to electric eels that paralyze their prey, animals possess unique and extraordinary abilities. In Great Adaptations, Kenneth Catania presents an entertaining and engaging look at some of nature's most remarkable creatures. Telling the story of his biological detective work, Catania sheds light on the mysteries behind the behaviors of tentacled snakes, tiny shrews, zombie-making wasps, and more.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Excellently written!
- By Kindle Customer on 11-11-20
By: Kenneth Catania
What listeners say about Empire of Ants
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars
-
Performance3 out of 5 stars
-
Story4 out of 5 stars
- Jason Gross
- 10-29-21
Ant facts aplenty
Overall a good listen. While the narrator did a fine job I did find myself wishing for a bit more emotion in the delivery.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars
-
Performance2 out of 5 stars
-
Story4 out of 5 stars
- Ali
- 06-11-23
fine facts, didn't like reader
The facts about about ants were interesting. Although the overall organization of the book wasn't my favorite. I did not care for the sing song voice of the person who read it at all. Every sentence ended on a pointed down note.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Alexandra
- 01-20-24
All the things I didn't know I needed to know about ants!
Not my favourite narrator: the performance was kind of dryand robotic, but it was a pleasure after all.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars
-
Story4 out of 5 stars
- Amazon Customer
- 05-17-21
Take a breath between chapters
That is the only complaint I have. It give wonderful scientific information about ant species and biology and behavior. Communication is investigated well. Actual research is described including the scientists’ names.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Pete M.
- 12-07-23
A new favorite book of mine!
I lived how fun this book was to listen to without being silly or anything less than very educational. I can never look at ants without respect again.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Jody Rivera
- 02-28-24
Great and very educational 
The narrator is very good and was great at keeping it entertaining while teaching about ants
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- wolfe
- 12-29-21
underrated
I understand some of the reviews saying it was hard to listen to, but I dont agree at all. this book is excellent. it reads like a collection of summaries of the author's research projects with ants. I'd love to meet the author, I feel like we may be soul mates
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story4 out of 5 stars
- Dreamweaver
- 03-06-23
Amazing.
Exhaustive, brilliant, in amazing detail, describing thousand of greatly varied ant behaviors around the world. Colorful! Expressive but calm narrator. Slaves, parasites, disguises, murders, coups, mating, ants do all we do and more!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Scott J Heraty
- 04-24-24
Good all around
Very cool facts, makes me love ants more. Good reader too. Short chapters that make it fun to read.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars
-
Story5 out of 5 stars
- Seo-Woo Choi
- 05-30-21
Hellish recording
The quality of recording cannot be worse. The sibilance is very, very harsh. Not sure if it is the recording device or the voice actor, but the sibilance is extremely prominent - I learned what the word 'sibilance' means after listening to this because I wanted to know how to filter out that excruciating hissing sound. I own a dozen Audible audiobook, and none were even close to this. Absolutely painful to listen.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful