“As a nature-lover and fact fan, I am proud to have this on my bookshelf.”
BOOK BLURB
Throughout the bird world, examples of strange and seemingly inexplicable behaviours abound. For example: Why do Male Fairywrens bring flowers to females as a nuptial gift in the pre-dawn darkness? Especially when the gift-givers are not the official mates of the females concerned, but visitors, and furthermore they may give these gifts in full view of the official mate. Why do gangs of White-winged Choughs 'kidnap' their neighbours' fledglings and them keep them in their 'gang'. Which bird is so big, strong and fierce that stories abound of it killing humans? This book looks at accounts of murderous Cassowaries and explains just what might have happened. What happens in an albatross 'divorce'? This book divides the world by continent and takes a series of extraordinary stories from each to illustrate a great diversity of bird behaviour. Each continent will have around five or six stories, each described in 1500 to 2000 words and examining the truths and the mythology behind each example. An intriguiguing book from an author with an author with an ability to engage with his audience.
WHAT I SAY
As soon as I picked up this book I knew I would love it. As well as being passionate about wildlife, I also love a random fact or two – this marries both up perfectly. Throw in some truly glorious photographs, and you have got yourself a book that ticks every box.
Couzens writes not just with authority but also with a warm tone that brings the birds to life. It truly is a celebration of fascinating bird behaviour, and takes five birds from every single continent, including Antarctica, to illustrate the wide-breadth of unique activities.
It’s a great book to either read avidly from cover to cover (I admit, I did this – I couldn’t put it down!) or to dip into whenever you fancy discovering a truly amazing snippet to stun friends with. What’s more, as well as learning about less well-known birds, I guarantee you will learn about the more familiar true. As a nature-lover and fact fan, I am proud to have this on my bookshelf.
THIS REVIEW CAN BE SEEN IN FULL ON WWW.GOBEWILD.CO.UK