The forest opens its branches to us! As if on a walk, this book invites us to take our time, to observe everything that happens around us. In the forest, whether tropical, humid or temperate, life is teeming: there is so much to discover!

By diving into the heart of the forest, the reader will discover the diversity of forest environments around the world, how trees act as air conditioners for the atmosphere and become aware of its fragile balance.

Like humans, animal reproduction always starts with two reproductive cells. For mammals, everything happens in the female's belly: the fecundation and gestation. They're viviparous! Sometimes, fecundation takes place in the female's belly but then, the fetus grows up in an egg that the female lays. They're oviparous! And, for fish, how does it work? The female produces eggs but doesn't lay them, everything happens inside her body! They're ovoviparous!

The North Pole or the South Pole? We often tend to confuse them. Both at the extremities of the Earth, they are frequently covered in ice and their names are quite similar: Arctic and Antarctic!

With record cold temperatures, the South Pole is almost uninhabited. It is in the Antarctic waters that life is most abundant! In contrast, the North Pole hosts a wide variety of plant, animal, and insect species both on land and in its seas. Even humans have managed to establish themselves harmoniously in this icy region!

Children often dream of having a dog or a cat, and they’re right! These pets bring them joy and comfort. 

But how to choose? 

The dog has inherited the social nature of its ancestor, the wolf, while the cat loves its peace and freedom of movement.

What is intelligence? A tricky question...

 It does exist, and in different forms: verbal, emotional, practical, spatial...

 In animals, the ability to learn or to invent a way of adapting to a new situation

 defines intelligent behaviour.

 This is measured by their ability to use their memory, a tool or language, and by their ability to pass on a new skill to their young.

Our planet offers us many energy sources: fossil energies in limited quantity and very polluting, and renewable and cleaner energies! How are fossil energy pollutants and harmful to the future of the planet? How do men use the sunlight, the wind, or the waves to create energy? By explaining clearly and simply the different natural phenomena, the methods used, and their impact, this book allows us to better understand the energetic transition and its stakes!

For a long time, we believed that dinosaurs were heavy and clumsy monsters and that they were covered in scales. However, we now know that they were of all sizes, and they were very alert and active! And most of all, they had feathers! And as one of the functions of feathers is to protect from coldness, we suppose that they had the blood hot, just like mammals and birds...

Today, robots are everywhere: industrial robots, domestic robots, drones, self-driving cars... But do you know how they work? What's the difference between a machine, an automaton, and a robot?

And what about Artificial Intelligence? Progress keeps being made, so we can chat with a bot and a team of robots can beat real football players! Despite these exploits, robots do not have any feelings and cannot react to unpredictable situations. What's the future for robots? Will they replace mankind?

All animals leave droppings! Each has its own technique, shape, and special name! For example, we talk about "horse manure," "cow patties," "pellets" for goats or sheep, and "leavings" for wild boars.

Studying animal excrement helps us better understand how they live. Diet, health, sex, age, fertility period, DNA… it’s a true goldmine of information!

Once expelled, droppings are far from useless! On the contrary, they’re a delicacy for many insects and even larger animals, like reindeer! They also enrich the soil, making for fabulous fertilizers. Droppings can even be used as insulation or fuel.

From the lion to the squirrel, birds, fish, rampant... Everyone go home! To each their own habitat! Under or on the ground, between roots of the trees, in their trunks or at their top, at the bottom of the ocean to the summit of mountains... At all levels of nature, animals feed, sleep, reproduce, and look after their babies. But careful! Predators are prowling!

At night, the sky lives its life. Its life, full of stars and planets, galaxies, satellites... A universe that we cannot see when daylight appears. Planets ahead! There, we're approaching the unbearable heat of Mercury. Here, we admire the bright Venus or the incredibly red color of Mars. There again, we admire the powerful gigantic gaseous planets. We'll discover the graceful and cyclic movements of the planets around our star, the Sun; the white airy Milky Way, the natural satellites, and the strange orbital stations, made by Men.

Hibernation doesn't happen on a whim. Throughout the warm season, animals prepare for it by eating a lot to build up reserves and by arranging their shelter.

Burrows, hollowed-out tree stumps, crevices in rocks, old abandoned houses... Hibernating animals sleep in a very peculiar way.

Their heart beats slow down, they barely breathe, and they become very cold.

The marmot's body temperature drops to 8 degrees. The hedgehog can go an hour without breathing...

Spread the word: mushrooms aren't plants... But not animals either! They're part of a world named "Fungi". Microscopics, or as big as a soccer ball, of all colors, and diverse shapes, mushrooms are everywhere! But do we know them very well?

Explosive or effusive, volcanoes owe their origin to the movements of the Earth's crust.

Earth is the only known planet that trembles! What strange phenomenon causes these famous earthquakes? How are they measured? Can they be prevented? So many questions that children (and adults) wonder about!

Earthquakes are caused by the movement of tectonic plates, which, like pieces of a puzzle, make up the Earth's crust and the ocean floor.

Mâchoires puissantes, griffes acérées, bec crochu... des félins aux rapaces, de la chouette au cormoran, les carnivores sont équipés pour tuer, déchiqueter la chair ou l’avaler tout cru !

Dans la grande famille des végétariens, les herbivores broutent chacun à leur façon : la vache rumine l’herbe, le cheval se régale d’écorces et de bourgeons.

Les oiseaux granivores picorent à l’intérieur des cônes de pin. A force de grignoter noix et noisettes, les rongeurs liment leurs incisives qui ne cessent de pousser.

While walking along a river, you encounter many animals: fish, insects, birds, rodents… All it takes is a keen eye!

Indeed, lakes and freshwater rivers have a very unique ecosystem. Every living being has its role to play; plants provide oxygen to the water and shade for the fish, while insects help keep the river clean…

If you’re lucky enough to be there at the right time, you may witness the dance of the salmon swimming upriver to lay their eggs among the pebbles.

When we picture them, we see endless sand dunes and overwhelming heat. However, the time when we thought of deserts as… deserted is long gone!

In reality, they are abundantly populated, with plants and animals helping each other survive the harsh, arid conditions.

When it finally rains, succulents and cacti fill their leaves and stems, the acacia draws moisture through its roots, and the giant saguaro acts like an accordion, soaking up water. Slurp!

They've been on Earth for 140 million years, and yet they still have surprises for us. Don’t let their small size fool you; ants have extraordinary abilities: they are very fast and can carry up to 50 times their own weight.

But that’s not all! They are also very intelligent. In the ant colony, everyone has their place and role.

The queen lays all the eggs of the colony, which will become larvae, then pupae enclosed in cocoons before turning into ants. The workers are divided into several castes: soldiers, nurses, foragers, and guards. As for the males, their role is to reproduce.

To communicate, they use scents called pheromones. An intruder? A threat? A food source nearby? The message spreads quickly, and everyone is aware!

Butterflies first take their “steps” as caterpillars. They then enclose themselves in a chrysalis. After a few days, the cocoon cracks open, and a butterfly spreads its wings... the metamorphosis is complete!

To achieve this transformation, caterpillars use various tricks to evade predators: itchy hairs, subtle colors, or, on the contrary, bright colors to scare them off; some even disguise themselves!

Certain butterflies, like hawk moths, can reach speeds of up to 80 km/h! Others travel thousands of kilometers! Cocoons are even used to make silk!

Plants, flowers... The seeds need protection. The fruits are their cocoon. When the fruit is ripe, it lands on the ground. The pit or seed sinks into the ground and goes through the sleeping period.

At the beginning, an island... It's just a confetti of land in the middle of the sea. Over time, it's colonized by birds, plants, insects, animals... who will grow up, live, and reproduce.

Little by little the species evolve at their own pace, without interfering with the outside world. Isolated, each island becomes unique with a distinct and unique ecosystem. It was by studying these original places that Darwin developed his famous evolution theory.

Immediate boarding to a world tour of islands, to meet komodos, lemurs, giant tortoises, and other endemic species.

Children lift off from Earth in a kind of glassy spaceship shaped like a planet, containing a miniature model of our world inside. They set out to discover space and its wonders. Along the way, they encounter both the present world and the past, as well as the unsettling future of our galaxy.

In this highly colorful book presented as an adventure, there’s an accessible documentary for everyone: young children will find vibrant illustrations and enjoy spotting the explorers' ship on each page, while older readers will gain a better understanding of celestial phenomena. The journey fluidly moves from the history of our understanding of astronomy to the Big Bang, the naming of constellations, and ultimately to the end of Earth and an explanation of its foreseeable demise… but without fear, as this won’t happen anytime soon, and perhaps by then, our world will have found a new planet to inhabit. At least, this is the suggestion of this documentary, which ends with Lavoisier's famous maxim: "Nothing is lost, nothing is created… everything is transformed…"

Underwater life is organized by "levels" depending on the sun's penetration in the ocean. Near the surface: big nurseries. Hidden in the sand: crustaceans, flatfish, and shells. In the open sea, sardines live in shoals to protect themselves from predators... In the deep sea, creatures with huge mouths and sharpened teeth roam looking for their prey. How does everyone find their place in the big and beautiful sea? Who eats what?

Spiders aren’t always popular; they scare more than a few people! And yet, we have much to learn from these master weavers… Although spiders have eight legs, they’re often mistaken for insects. Wrong! They belong to the arachnid family, alongside scorpions and mites. Today, there are nearly 50,000 species of spiders worldwide.