Today on Earth Day we celebrate the wealth of flora and fauna that have breathed life into our planet over its long history. These images from our Digital Collections, paired with books you'll love, will delight your inner naturalist.

If your inner naturalist prefers not to print these pages, make your way to the bottom of the post for a fully digital "Caption This" activity.

Hodgsonia Heteroclita, Hook. fil. et Thoms. (Female plant) by Sir Joseph Dalton Hooker. Illustrations of Himalayan Plants.

Travel to the Himalayas from the comfort of your couch with Illustrated Atlas of the Himalaya  by David Zurick and Julsun Pacheco.

Crane; Crane and Young by Kano Yeino and Ishiyama Moroka, 17th c. The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints, and Photographs. 

Pair with Thousand Cranes by Nobel Prize-winning author Yasunari Kawabata or perhaps do your own bird watching with a profanity-laden spoof, The Field Guide to the Dumb Birds of North America by Matt Kracht.

Mylodon. Illustration by R.T. Pritchett with text by Charles Darwin from the "Journal of Researches into the Natural History and Geology of the Countries Visited During the Voyage Around the World of H.M.S. 'Beagle'."  Science, Industry, and Business Library: General Collection.

Pair with the landmark On the Origin of Species by Charles Darwin or perhaps read up on contemporary applications of Darwin's theory of evolution in Darwin Comes to Town: How the Urban Jungle Drives Evolution  by Menno Schilthuizen.

Durer's Rhino by Joannas Jonstones, 1603-1675. Historiae Naturalis de Quadrupetibus Libri. 

Enjoy with Rhinoceros Giants: The Paleobiology of Indricotheres by Donald Prothero or The Pope's Rhinoceros: A Novel  by Lawrence Norfolk.

And the more whimsical With Blazoned Pennons From Each Spear, the Iris and the Flag Appear from Flora's Feast: A Masque of Flowers by Walter Crane, 1889. The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints, and Photographs. 

Take a page from Mary Oliver's book and try some blue on your iris bearers: Blue Iris: Poems and Essays.

CAPTION THIS

Download all four images here. Find the original captions and book pairings below.

Image 1
Pair with Pigeons: The Fascinating Saga of the Word's Most Revered and Reviled Bird by Andrew D. Blechman or explore Mauritius with Gerald Durrell in Golden Bats and Pink Pigeons.

Image 2
Reconsider your position on squirrels with Nuts About Squirrels by Richard E. Mallery or Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk: A Modest Bestiary by David Sedaris.

Image 3
Don't forget to show some appreciation for the sun today with Chasing the Sun: How the Science of Sunlight Shapes Our Bodies and Minds by Linda Geddes.

Image 4
Contemplate this blue dot that we call home with The Ends of the World by Peter Brannen and Earth: A Tenant's Manual by Frank H.T. Rhodes.