Songbird Journeys by Miyoko Chu
Songbird Journeys is a wonderfully written book about the life and especially the migration of North American songbirds and about people who are working hard to find out more about bird migration. The book covers the fascinating story of how scientists learned about bird migration over the Gulf of Mexico, what people saw on Oil platforms there or what radar pictures can tell us about bird migration. The author also covers how researchers followed thrushes by plain to learn more about their migration behavior or how scientists study woodland birds like Black-throated Blue Warblers and others. You will find information on the wintering of Bobolinks in South America or about birds that breed in the Arctic and Tundra of northern North America and migrate south to the United States during Winter. Mikoko Chu not only writes about the life of songbirds but also about their conservation and the threats they are facing like acid rain, habitat destruction and more but never sounding hopeless and she encourages the reader to participate in citizen-science projects like the Breeding Bird Survey. The book also contains information on how and where to watch bird migration and other useful tips, for example information on how to monitor bird nests. The book is written in an easy to read style and can be read by anyone interested in birds. It would also make a wonderful gift. The focus of the book is on North America, so it will be most interesting for birders there, but I think it is also very interesting for people who live outside of North America.
Book details:Songbird Journeys Four Seasons in the Lives of Migratory Birds Miyoko Chu Walker Books 320 pages ISBN: 0-8027-1468-4 ISBN 13: 978-0-8027-1468-8 |