Songbird Journeys: Four Seasons in the Lives of Migratory Birds
By Lynn Lozier (Walker and co. / $23.00)
Were the diminutive blackpoll warbler a gas-fueled car, it would log an astounding 720,000 miles to the gallon, making nonstop oceanic crossings of some 2,200 miles. Such astounding facts are simply facts of life for migratory songbirds, writes Miyoko Chu, editor of the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology’s Birdscope newsletter. Chu’s book tells the story of songbirds’ remarkable migrations and of ornithologists’ strides in understanding the birds’ habits and far-flung habitats. Appendices advise readers on spying songbirds in “metropolitan oases,” such as New York City’s Central Park, and on participating in songbird research through citizen-science projects.
Were the diminutive blackpoll warbler a gas-fueled car, it would log an astounding 720,000 miles to the gallon, making nonstop oceanic crossings of some 2,200 miles. Such astounding facts are simply facts of life for migratory songbirds, writes Miyoko Chu, editor of the Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology’s Birdscope newsletter. Chu’s book tells the story of songbirds’ remarkable migrations and of ornithologists’ strides in understanding the birds’ habits and far-flung habitats. Appendices advise readers on spying songbirds in “metropolitan oases,” such as New York City’s Central Park, and on participating in songbird research through citizen-science projects. 