--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Learn from the birds what food the…" description: "\"Learn from the birds what food the thickets yield; Learn from the beasts the physic of the field; The arts of building from the bee receive; Learn of t..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a8d/alexander-pope-235_animals_learn-from-the-birds-what-food-the-thick_1801461.png" --- # Learn from the birds what food the thickets yield; Learn… ![“Learn from the birds what food the thickets yield; Learn from the beasts the physic of the field; The arts of building from the bee receive; Learn of the mole to plow, the worm to weave.” quote by Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a8d/alexander-pope-235_animals_learn-from-the-birds-what-food-the-thick_1801461.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a8d/alexander-pope-235_animals_learn-from-the-birds-what-food-the-thick_1801461.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a8d/alexander-pope-235_animals_learn-from-the-birds-what-food-the-thick_1801461.png) > “Learn from the birds what food the thickets yield; Learn from the beasts the physic of the field; The arts of building from the bee receive; Learn of the mole to plow, the worm to weave.” [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Observe nature’s diverse beings to learn practical lessons: birds reveal food sources, beasts show field physics, bees teach building, moles demonstrate plowing, worms illustrate weaving. **In simple terms:** Nature offers varied lessons for human skill and understanding. Key Takeaway Study nature to improve your craft and knowledge. Themes Learn from natural examples to enhance skills. Mood curious inspired thoughtful Type educational metaphorical When to use this quote - biology - ecology - metaphor - practical wisdom Key Concepts observation learning nature skill acquisition interconnectedness Practical Applications - gardening - engineering - education - environmental design - creative problem solving Questions to Reflect On - What natural skill can you apply today? - How does observing nature change your problem‑solving? A Different Perspective Nature’s lessons may not directly apply to complex human systems. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Animals](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animals/) [Art](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/art/) [Beast](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beast/) [Bees](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bees/) [Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bird/) [Building](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/building/) [Enviromental](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enviromental/) [Fields](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fields/) [Fitness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fitness/) [Food Thickets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/food-thickets-2035346/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Learn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learn/) [Learn Beasts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learn-beasts-2035345/) [Learn Birds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learn-birds-2035344/) [Moles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moles/) [Receive Learn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/receive-learn-2035347/) [Thickets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thickets/) [Worms](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/worms/) [Yield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/yield/) ## Related quotes > [Learn from the beasts the physic of the field.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/learn-from-the-beasts-the-physic-of-the-field/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) > [In the summer there are twelve cottonwoods around the pool, which in the winter become an elevated thicket. There is also a courtyard with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-judd/in-the-summer-there-are-twelve-cottonwoods-around-the-pool-which-in/) [Donald Judd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-judd/) > [There is a hill beside the silver Thames, Shady with birch and beech and odorous pine; And brilliant underfoot with thousand gems, Steeply the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-bridges/there-is-a-hill-beside-the-silver-thames-shady-with-birch-and-beech/) [Robert Bridges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-bridges/) > [What is now the foliage moving? Air is still, and hush'd the breeze, Sultriness, this fullness loving, Through the thicket, from the trees. Now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/what-is-now-the-foliage-moving-air-is-still-and-hush-d-the-breeze/) [Johann Wolfgang von Goethe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/johann-wolfgang-von-goethe/) > [God passes through the thicket of the world, and wherever His glance falls He turns all things to beauty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-of-the-cross/god-passes-through-the-thicket-of-the-world-and-wherever-his-glance/) [John of the Cross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-of-the-cross/) > [When, to gratify a private appetite, it is once resolved upon that an ignorant and helpless creature shall be sacrificed, it is an easy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-sterne/when-to-gratify-a-private-appetite-it-is-once-resolved-upon-that-an/) [Laurence Sterne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-sterne/) > [ \[Statistics are\] the only tools by which an opening can be cut through the formidable thicket of difficulties that bars the path of those… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-galton/statistics-are-the-only-tools-by-which-an-opening-can-be-cut-through/) [Francis Galton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-galton/) > [How often from the steep Of echoing hill or thicket have we heard Celestial voices to the midnight air, Sole, or responsive each to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-milton/how-often-from-the-steep-of-echoing-hill-or-thicket-have-we-heard/) [John Milton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-milton/) > [ Beyond \[known peoples of black West Africa\] to the south there is no civilization in the proper sense. There are only humans who are… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ibn-khaldun/beyond-known-peoples-of-black-west-africa-to-the-south-there-is-no/) [Ibn Khaldun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ibn-khaldun/) > [To most outsiders, modern mathematics is unknown territory. Its borders are protected by dense thickets of technical terms; its landscapes are a mass of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ivars-peterson/to-most-outsiders-modern-mathematics-is-unknown-territory-its-borders/) [Ivars Peterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ivars-peterson/) > [“There were many who went in huddled procession, They knew not wither, But, at any rate, success or calamity Would attend all in equality.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-crane/there-were-many-who-went-in-huddled-procession-they-knew-not-wither/) [Stephen Crane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-crane/) > [Variación / Variations El remanso de aire bajo la rama del eco. El remanso del agua bajo fronda de luceros. El remanso de tu…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/federico-garc-a-lorca/variaci-n-variations-el-remanso-de-aire-bajo-la-rama-del-eco-el/) [Federico Garcia Lorca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/federico-garc-a-lorca/) > [The Englishman foxtrots as he fox-hunts, with all his being, through thickets, through ditches, over hedges, through chiffons, through waiters, over saxophones, to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edna-st-vincent-millay/the-englishman-foxtrots-as-he-fox-hunts-with-all-his-being-through/) [Edna St. Vincent Millay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edna-st-vincent-millay/) > [Bill Clinton pandered by telling you what you wanted to hear. John Kerry panders by never telling you what you don't want to hear.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-brooks/bill-clinton-pandered-by-telling-you-what-you-wanted-to-hear-john/) [David Brooks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-brooks/) > [All quiet along the Potomac they say Except now and then a stray picket Is shot as he walks on his beat, to and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ethel-lynn-beers/all-quiet-along-the-potomac-they-say-except-now-and-then-a-stray/) [Ethel Lynn Beers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ethel-lynn-beers/) ## More by Alexander Pope > [How do we know that we have a right to kill creatures that we are so little above, as dogs, for our curiosity or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/how-do-we-know-that-we-have-a-right-to-kill-creatures-that-we-are-so/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) > [To wake the soul by tender strokes of art, To raise the genius, and to mend the heart; To make mankind, in conscious virtue…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/to-wake-the-soul-by-tender-strokes-of-art-to-raise-the-genius-and-to/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) > [A mighty maze! But not without a plan.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/a-mighty-maze-but-not-without-a-plan/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) > [Let such teach others who themselves excel, And censure freely who have written well.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/let-such-teach-others-who-themselves-excel-and-censure-freely-who/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) > [For I, who hold sage Homer's rule the best, Welcome the coming, speed the going guest.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/for-i-who-hold-sage-homer-s-rule-the-best-welcome-the-coming-speed/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) > [Like following life through creatures you dissect, You lose it in the moment you detect.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/like-following-life-through-creatures-you-dissect-you-lose-it-in-the/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) > [When two people compliment each other with the choice of anything, each of them generally gets that which he likes least.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/when-two-people-compliment-each-other-with-the-choice-of-anything/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) > [Such labour'd nothings, in so strange a style, Amaze th' unlearn'd and make the learned smile.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/such-labour-d-nothings-in-so-strange-a-style-amaze-th-unlearn-d-and/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) > [Charms strike the sight, but merit wins the soul.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/charms-strike-the-sight-but-merit-wins-the-soul/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) > [She went from opera, park, assembly, play, To morning walks, and prayers three hours a day. To part her time 'twixt reading and bohea,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/she-went-from-opera-park-assembly-play-to-morning-walks-and-prayers/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) > [I am satisfied to trifle away my time, rather than let it stick by me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/i-am-satisfied-to-trifle-away-my-time-rather-than-let-it-stick-by-me/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) > [The greatest advantage I know of being thought a wit by the world is, that it gives one the greater freedom of playing the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/the-greatest-advantage-i-know-of-being-thought-a-wit-by-the-world-is/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) > [Then say not Man's imperfect,Heav'n in fault; Say rather, Man's as perfect ashe ought:](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/then-say-not-man-s-imperfect-heav-n-in-fault-say-rather-man-s-as/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) > [First follow Nature, and your judgment frame By her just standard, which is still the same: Unerring nature, still divinely bright, One clear, unchanged,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/first-follow-nature-and-your-judgment-frame-by-her-just-standard/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) > [Who shall decide when doctors disagree, And soundest casuists doubt, like you and me?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/who-shall-decide-when-doctors-disagree-and-soundest-casuists-doubt/) [Alexander Pope](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) [Explore all 850 Alexander Pope quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/) ## More Animals quotes > [I was 3-years-old - to this day it is a vivid memory. My family and I were on a boat, catching fish. As one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joaquin-phoenix/i-was-3-years-old-to-this-day-it-is-a-vivid-memory-my-family-and-i/) [Joaquin Phoenix](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joaquin-phoenix/) > [Animals know nothing of themselves, and they also know nothing of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/friedrich-nietzsche/animals-know-nothing-of-themselves-and-they-also-know-nothing-of-the/) [Friedrich Nietzsche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/friedrich-nietzsche/) > [Humans are animals too, but some do not like to work from expectations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mak-786/humans-are-animals-too-but-some-do-not-like-to-work-from-expectations/) [Mak\_786](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mak-786/) > [Practically all animals which move fast in a homogeneous medium have found means of giving their body a streamlined shape, thereby reducing friction to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/konrad-lorenz/practically-all-animals-which-move-fast-in-a-homogeneous-medium-have/) [Konrad Lorenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/konrad-lorenz/) > [“What does it mean to be a self-conscious animal? The idea is ludicrous, if it is not monstrous. It means to know that one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-becker/what-does-it-mean-to-be-a-self-conscious-animal-the-idea-is-ludicrous/) [Ernest Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-becker/) > [We must love animals in such a powerful way that we should reject to eat them!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/we-must-love-animals-in-such-a-powerful-way-that-we-should-reject-to/) [Mehmet Murat Ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [I bet plants go like 'Weeeeeeeee!' whenever they're swallowed by a giraffe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-bet-plants-go-like-weeeeeeeee-whenever-they-re-swallowed-by-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It’s a small thing to help one animal, but to that one animal it’s a big thing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gene-baur/it-s-a-small-thing-to-help-one-animal-but-to-that-one-animal-it-s-a/) [Gene Baur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gene-baur/) > [We animals are the most complicated things in the known universe.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/we-animals-are-the-most-complicated-things-in-the-known-universe/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“All these creatures spend their time explaining, realizing happily that they agree with each other.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-paul-sartre/all-these-creatures-spend-their-time-explaining-realizing-happily/) [Jean-Paul Sartre](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-paul-sartre/) > [We're not very dangerous animals; we don't have a horn like a rhino or quills like a porcupine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-fisher/we-re-not-very-dangerous-animals-we-don-t-have-a-horn-like-a-rhino-or/) [Helen Fisher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-fisher/) > [We need, in a special way, to work twice as hard to help people understand that animals are fellow creatures, that we must protect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cesar-chavez/we-need-in-a-special-way-to-work-twice-as-hard-to-help-people/) [Cesar Chavez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cesar-chavez/) > [“Plenty of animals had pets, but few were more devoted than the mouse, who owned a baby corn snake—“A rescue snake, she’d be quick…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-sedaris/plenty-of-animals-had-pets-but-few-were-more-devoted-than-the-mouse/) [David Sedaris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-sedaris/) > [No creature can attain a higher grade of nature without ceasing to exist.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ananda-coomaraswamy/no-creature-can-attain-a-higher-grade-of-nature-without-ceasing-to/) [Ananda Coomaraswamy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ananda-coomaraswamy/) > [Most people are sensitized to animals through their cats and dogs, but for me it was a flounder. I used to go fishing with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-mathews/most-people-are-sensitized-to-animals-through-their-cats-and-dogs-but/) [Dan Mathews](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-mathews/) [Browse all 6,813 Animals quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/animals/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Learn from the birds what food the thickets yield; Learn from the beasts the physic of the field; The arts of building from the bee receive; Learn of the mole to plow, the worm to weave.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Alexander Pope" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/learn-from-the-birds-what-food-the-thickets-yield-learn-from-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Animals" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/learn-from-the-birds-what-food-the-thickets-yield-learn-from-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a8d/alexander-pope-235_animals_learn-from-the-birds-what-food-the-thick_1801461.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a8d/alexander-pope-235_animals_learn-from-the-birds-what-food-the-thick_1801461.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a8d/alexander-pope-235_animals_learn-from-the-birds-what-food-the-thick_1801461.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Learn from the birds what food the thickets yield; Learn from the beasts the physic of the field; The arts…” — Alexander Pope", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Alexander Pope", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-pope/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Learn from the birds what food...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/learn-from-the-birds-what-food-the-thickets-yield-learn-from-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-pope/learn-from-the-birds-what-food-the-thickets-yield-learn-from-the/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```