[2] At 14, Lawrence lied about his age so that he could join the Republicans in the Spanish Civil War, and killed a man on his first night to save himself.

During this period Lawrence also sold fur pelts, but he came to view animal trapping as cruel, and stopped.

[2] In 1957 Lawrence left the area and headed west, embarking on months-long wilderness excursions, which he supported by working for newspapers and living frugally.

[1] Lawrence was extremely dedicated to wildlife observation, and believed that his close but unobtrusive study provided new insight into animal behavior.

He said, for example, that he witnessed starving rabbits commit suicide by running their heads into trees, and saw herbivores like beavers consume flesh.

According to his wife, "Ron mentored hundreds of young people ... so they in turn could continue to educate and influence younger generations".

'"[2] He was concerned and angry about humankind's treatment of nature, but generally kept his opinions out of his writing; he opposed clear-cut logging and the hunts of bears and wolves that were organized to control deer populations.

[2] In his memoir (The Green Trees Beyond, 1994), he wrote of his preference for nature over civilization, and explained how (per one reviewer) "he was taught to love for the first time by a wolf".

Cry Wild (1970), a book about wolves, is Lawrence's most popular; a 1991 reprint in the United States sold 1.5 million copies in three months.

[1] Lawrence kept a low profile, which may explain his relative lack of fame in Canada, but his writing brought him much attention: he and Sharon received six thousand visitors to their Haliburton homestead over 12 years.