The Birder's Companion

Answers to 450 common (and uncommon) questions about birds.

Did you know that an extraordinary six million mallard ducks have been banded? And that an even more extraordinary one million of those have been recovered? Or that the female of a species, not the male, usually chooses a mate? Or that birds are hardly "bird-brained" but actually quite smart?

This friendly, fact-filled browser is perfect for birders, bird enthusiasts, students and the curious. Accurate, comprehensive and fun to read, the author's answers reveal a compelling world of feathers, beaks, flight, mating, nesting, migration, sleep, song and much, much more.

Bird expert Stephen Moss responds to 450 queries submitted by birders, beginners and experts alike. For example:

• Do birds have knees?
• How many feathers does a bird have?
• Why do many birds have dark wingtips?
• Why are our songbirds declining?
• Do birds ever fly backwards?
• Does weather affect migrating birds?
• Why don't ducks' feet freeze in winter?
• Are birds dinosaurs, or were dinosaurs birds?
• Why don't flying birds collide?
• Which senses help a bird find food?
• Do birds sing the same song all the time?
• Why do birds sing mainly at dawn?
• Are all eggs the same shape?

The author's responses are informative, surprising and often entertaining, and the illustrations are appropriately lighthearted. This lively new book is a birder delight.

Stephen Moss is the author of several books on birds, including The Birdfriendly Garden and A Bird in the Bush: A Social History of Birdwatching. He lives in London, where he produces a wildlife series for BBC radio.

Clive Dobson is a versatile artist and illustrator with many books to his credit, including Tex and Watersheds. He lives near Peterborough, Ontario.