ean in and appreciate the details of every petal, leaf, and delicate wing. Erin E. Hunter’sLook Closer, featured on the front cover, is abuzz with 41 of California’s 1,600+ species of native bees. This masterwork took the artist more than two years to create, as she studied bees in Monterey County and painted each blossom during its peak season. Hunter’s art expresses her fascination with the cycle of life. From backyards to city park benches to botanic gardens, this scientific illustrator has reveled in the natural world, documenting such delights as hummingbirds, honeyeaters, and sunbirds sipping nectar from favored blossoms. A selection of Hunter’s botanicals has been gathered here as a veritable paean to pollinators.