Explores practical advise for making your birding greener and offers insights into how you can bird "deeper" by sticking close to home and getting to know the birds in your local area better.
WINNER OF THE SCHNEIDER FAMILY BOOK AWARD A heartfelt and hopeful debut about a bird-loving autistic child whose family's special nest is in danger of falling apart. Axel loves everything about birds, especially eagles. No one worries that an eagle will fly too far and not come home—a fact Axel wishes his mother understood. Deep down, Axel knows that his mother is like an osprey—the best of all bird mothers—but it’s hard to remember that when she worries and keeps secrets about important things. His dad is more like a wild turkey, coming and going as he pleases. His dad’s latest disappearance is the biggest mystery of all. Despite all this, Axel loves his life—especially the time he spends with his friends observing the eagles’ nest in the woods near his home. But when a tornado damages not only Axel’s home but the eagles’ nest, Axel’s life is thrown into chaos. Suddenly his dad is back to help repair the damage, and Axel has to manage his dad’s presence and his beloved birds’ absence. Plus, his mom seems to be keeping even more secrets. But Axel knows another important fact: an eagle’s instincts let it soar. Axel must trust his own instincts to help heal his family and the nest he loves. (Cover image may vary.)
"In this elegant narrative, celebrated naturalist Ted Floyd guides you through a year of becoming a better birder. Choosing 200 top avian species to teach key lessons, Floyd introduces a new, holistic approach to bird watching and shows how to use the tools of the 21st century to appreciate the natural world we inhabit together whether city, country or suburbs." -- From book jacket.
A collection of articles celebrating David Lindo's short birding trips to many cities in Britain and around the world. Born and raised in London, David Lindo's passionate interest in the natural world, especially birds, began at an early age. His thriving curiosity opened a door for him into an unexplored world of urban birding. Years later he decided to champion the delights of birding in cities and reinvented himself as the Urban Birder. Using this illustrious alias David Lindo has brought urban birding back into the public consciousness, promoting its virtues at every opportunity and writing about it in the birding press. He urges people to look up when walking around in cities, or to stop and close your eyes in a busy street just to listen to the birds that may be singing. In his second book, David visits some of the world's most unnatural environments, revealing the astonishingly diverse range of wildlife that can be found when you take the time to look. Much more than a compendium of birding sites, each tale follows the Urban Birder in his enthralling pursuit of city birding. Accompanied by dedicated local conservationists and renowned birders, David gives a deeper insight into the true nature of each city. Featuring 70 locations to explore, Tales from Concrete Jungles is the perfect book to dip in to when on the move, or to hide away with on a rainy afternoon. Join David in his celebration of nature, pick up travel inspiration, and immerse yourself in his captivating quest for urban birding.
Texas boasts greater bird diversity than almost any state, with more than six hundred species living in or passing through during spring and fall migrations. Jennifer L. Bristol’s Parking Lot Birding speaks to people who would love to observe a wide variety of birds in easy access locations that don’t require arduous hikes or a degree in ornithology. As she explains, “I have personally trudged down hundreds of miles of trails in Texas, loaded down with gear, searching for birds, only to return to the parking lot to find what I was looking for.” Drawing on her experience as a former park ranger and lifelong nature enthusiast, Bristol explores ninety birding locations that are open to the public and accessible regardless of ability or mobility. Divided by geography, with each of the nine sections centered on a large urban area or defined ecoregion, Parking Lot Birding: A Fun Guide to Discovering Birds in Texas will take readers to birds in locales from the busy heart of Dallas to the remote Muleshoe Wildlife Refuge in the plains north of Lubbock. Each birding stop includes the name and address of a specific birding location, number of species that have been recorded, and types of birding amenities offered. Locational accounts end with a “Feather Fact” that provides interesting and relevant details about selected birds in a particular region. You never know what you might see when on the beaten path, especially in a state as big and ecologically diverse as Texas. So grab your binoculars and let’s go birding!
Teaches about the habitat, behaviors, appearance, and songs of seventy-five Eastern and Central North American birds, and includes basic birdwatching guidelines and audio samples.
In Bird Brother, Rodney Stotts shares his unlikely journey to becoming a conservationist and one of America's few Black master falconers. Rodney grew up in Washington, D.C. during the crack epidemic, with guns, drugs, and the threat of incarceration affecting the lives of everyone he knew. He was no exception, but he was also employed by the newly founded Earth Conservation Corps, helping to restore and conserve the polluted Anacostia River. This work eventually sent his life in a different direction, as he began to train to become a master falconer and to develop his own raptor education program and sanctuary. Eye-opening, witty, and moving, Bird Brother is a testament to the healing power of nature, and a reminder that no matter how much heartbreak we've endured, we still have the capacity to give back to our communities and follow our dreams.
Short listed for the Green Earth book award In early April, as Owen and his sister search the hickories, oaks, and dogwoods for returning birds, a huge group of birds leaves the misty mountain slopes of the Yucatan peninsula for the 600-mile flight across the Gulf of Mexico to their summer nesting grounds. One of them is a Cerulean warbler. He will lose more than half his body weight even if the journey goes well. Aloft over the vast ocean, the birds encourage each other with squeaky chirps that say, “We are still alive. We can do this.” Owen’s family watches televised reports of a great storm over the Gulf of Mexico, fearing what it may mean for migrating songbirds. In alternating spreads, we wait and hope with Owen, then struggle through the storm with the warbler. This moving story with its hopeful ending appeals to us to preserve the things we love. The backmatter includes a North American bird migration map, birding information for kids, and guidance for how native plantings can transform yards into bird and wildlife habitat.
Long-Legged Wading Birds Of The North American Wetlands combines Lucian Niemeyer's stunning color photography with Mark Riegner's broad scientific knowledge to produce both a beautiful and informative study of these magnificent birds.