THE BIRD DETECTIVE: INVESTIGATING THE SECRET LIVES OF BIRDS.

Stutchbury, Bridget.

ISBN 10: 1554683475 / ISBN 13: 9781554683475

Published by HarperCollins, Toronto, 2010

About this Item

247 pp, large 8vo (9 1/4" H). B&w drawings, graphs, colour plates. "(The author) roams forests and jungles studying the social lives and sexual antics of birds. She reveals the curious reasons for their strange behaviour, bright colouring and elaborate songs, explaining the science behind their surprisingly sophisticated and often amusing habits. In the course of her research for (this book, she) affixed small backpacks containing geolocators to songbirds, which yielded headline-making revelations about the amazing speed with which birds travel when they migrate. (She) explains why some birds readily 'divorce', why parents don't treat their sons and daughters as equals, why many females sneak in quick sex with neighbouring males and why some adults forego breeding altogether. She writes about the territorial nature of birds and describes their nesting habits, revealing why some species choose solitude, while others prefer to live in overcrowded groups. Perhaps most importantly, she illuminates how climate change and other pressures of the modern world are forcing birds to change their habits as they fight for their very survival." Very small bump at top/bottom of spine, two very small shallow dents at top edge of rear board. Dust jacket has some areas of very light edge wrinkling, minor rubbing.

Seller Inventory # 25644

Bibliographic Details

• Title: THE BIRD DETECTIVE: INVESTIGATING THE SECRET LIVES OF BIRDS.
• Publisher: HarperCollins, Toronto
• Publication Date: 2010
• ISBN 10: 1554683475
• ISBN 13: 9781554683475
• Binding: Hard Cover
• Edition: First Edition.
• Condition: Very Good +
• Dust Jacket Condition: Very Good+
• Seller catalogs:
  • Natural History

About this title

Synopsis

A Yale-educated professor of biology and a GG finalist for Silence of the Songbirds, Bridget Stutchbury roams forests studying the social lives and sexual antics of birds, sharing with us the curious reasons for their strange behaviour, bright colouring and elaborate songs. Are birds truly faithful to their mates? Stutchbury explains the science behind the surprisingly sophisticated and often amusing habits of birds, drawing on examples from around the world.
      In The Bird Detective, the author explains why some birds readily “divorce,” why parents don’t treat their sons and daughters equally, why females sneak in quick sex with neighbouring males and why some adults forgo breeding altogether. Stutchbury writes about the territorial nature of birds and describes their nesting habits, revealing why some species prefer to live in over-crowded groups. Perhaps most important, she illuminates how climate change and other pressures of the modern world are forcing birds to change their habits as they fight for their very survival.

About the Author

Bridget Stutchbury completed her Master’s of Science at Queen’s University and her Ph.D. at Yale, and was a fellow and research associate at the Smithsonian Institute. She is now professor of biology at York University and is affiliated with more than a dozen organizations that seek to preserve bird habitats. In 2005, Stutchbury was named one of the Toronto Star’s “People to Watch” after her groundbreaking research into the sexual antics of birds made international headlines. Her book The Silence of the Songbirds was shortlisted for the Governor General’s Award for Nonfiction. She lives in Woodbridge, Ontario.