Of a Feather: A Brief History of American Birding

by Scott Weidensaul

Book Overview

Arriving in the New World, Europeans were awestruck by a continent awash with birds. Today tens of millions of Americans birders have made a once eccentric hobby into something so mainstream it's... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0151012474
• ISBN13: 9780151012473
• Release Date: January 2007
• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
• Length: 358 Pages
• Weight: 1.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.3" x 9.3"

Customer Reviews

ONE OF THE BEST OF THE BEST. YOU REALLY MUST READ THIS ONE!

I am so lucky to have run across this wonderful book. I have a number of interests; no, actually passions in life and this single volume encompasses three of them; birding, history and good nature writing. Of the well over one hundred and fifty books I go through each year, this by far has been one of the most enjoyable, productive and informative reads I have had for, well I must say, a long, long time. Scott Weidensaul, the author of this delight is one of the most skilled and passionate (for his subject) of the many writers in this genre I have ever read. His story telling abilities that are finely entwined with a vast reserve of pure knowledge of his subject matter enable him to bring us not only a surprisingly scholarly work, but a work that infuses you with his passion and has you marveling at the simply readable of his work. He has the ability via his written word to pass along to the reader his enthusiasm for nature, birding, natural history; indeed, life in general. Like a good football coach, who at half time has you chomping at the bit to go out and hit someone and play your heart out, Scott causes you to want to grab your bird books, glasses and the junk you usually carry on your trips, dash out the front door and hit the woods, lakes, streams, mountains, desert or where every you might ply and practice your hobby or, in some cases, your obsession and keep going back for more. This work gives an account of the history of birding from the early days, days before even the God of Birders John James Audubon. From the earliest wondering naturalists to the leaders in the field of today, the author covers them all. Now keep in mind and read the full title of this work carefully! Of a Feather: A Brief History of American Birding is indeed just that. For the most part, there have been (lucky for us) many wonderful biographies written of these earlier naturalists and birders. This little work cannot hope to match a 300 plus page biography on Audubon for details, nor does it try. We have here a brief, survey type of look at these great men and women and the events that surrounded their lives. It does however, create in you the curiosity to go, seek out and read these many wonderful biographies which are available. The author has not only covered individuals who have had an impact in the field of ornithology, but has discussed the various field guides; who developed them and how and why they did so, at great length. Drawing, painting, photography, optical and the method of written documentation are all addressed and placed in a coherent manner which allows the reader to get the most from each chapter and page. I was particularly delighted with the discussion on the various field guides that have developed down through the years (yes, I fear to report that books are another of my passions). I gained much knowledge in this area from reading this work. The author also discusses, at length, the motivation behind this activity, a

History That Won't Put You To Sleep.

Scott Weidensaul's brief history is engaging,stylish and personal.From the shotgun birders to dorky Miss Hathaway,to Roger Tory Peterson and his followers,surely NEVER dressed in white- you will find yourself turning pages to learn more. Weidensaul does what many scientists aren't able to do,and that is, turn his study and work into a work of Art as he sweeps us through centuries and personalities with grace and accuracy.His prose is always clear,but has music to it nevertheless.As always,he is the voice of reason as he shares with us his life and his research. Painter Who Reads

A pick recommended not just for public lending libraries but for any high school to college level co

Author Scott Weidensaul has traveled the world tracking and writing about birds and has already written several notable nature books about them, but OF A FEATHER: A BRIEF HISTORY OF AMERICAN BIRDING is much more than just another ornithological study of a passionate hobby. It's a survey of the history of American birding, from early European arrival in North America to its modern popularity among general birdwatchers. From ornithological scientists who early on collected eggs on the frontier to some of the first conservation movements and those who participated them - including a range of unlikely characters - OF A FEATHER is a pick recommended not just for public lending libraries but for any high school to college level collection including ornithological references; especially at the introductory level. Diane C. Donovan California Bookwatch

A History of a Hobby of Importance

Birdwatching, now usually called "birding", is no longer funny. You may remember Miss Jane Hathaway in "The Beverly Hillbillies", for instance, but the stock character of the bumbling, bespectacled, binocular-wearing birdwatcher no longer fits. Birdwatchers are no longer silly. Miss Hathaway is one example cited by Scott Weidensaul in his delightful _Of a Feather: A Brief History of American Birding_ (Harcourt). Not only are birders sensible people, they have a sensitive interest in the environment, an attitude that is both fashionable and justified, and also they are too numerous to be considered a eccentric fringe. Depending on the definition (and some definitions include anyone who puts birdseed in the backyard to watch the subsequent feasting), there are something around fifty million birders in America. Even if you can't define a particular number, there are statistics that show, by rolls of official birding organizations, sales of bird identification books, or participation in bird counts, that birding is booming, possibly the fastest-growing outdoor hobby in the country. Weidensaul has written books about birds before, and he is a federally licensed bird bander, and he loves his subject, an affection he easily conveys to the reader. Everyone, even the city dweller, pays some attention to the ubiquitous feathered creatures, so it is not hard, really, to accept that birding is increasingly popular, and Weidensaul's history tells how this came to be. Audubon's colossal project and resultant elephant folio didn't do much for birdwatchers, even when the book was reduced in size. Weidensaul provides a history of field guides to birds, winding up with profiles of Roger Tory Peterson, who revolutionized the way the books were organized, and of his successors, David Sibley and Kenn Kaufman. The first popular field guide to birds came out in 1889, from Florence Merriam, a 26-year-old woman who muscled her way into a male-dominated field. She loved nature as much as her brother did, and was the first female member of the American Ornithological Union. She felt that nature study was an antidote to "that most abhorred and abhorrable occupation of plain sewing, with housekeeping and bookkeeping." Her _Birds through an Opera Glass_ (they didn't call them binoculars back then) was a relaxed guide on how to identify living birds in the field. This does not sound revolutionary, but it was. We take for granted that birdwatchers are going to be doing their identification of birds they see flitting around, but in the nineteenth century, the way to identify a bird was to shoot it so that all the details of its body could be consulted. The brilliant Elliott Coues railed against the "opera glass fiends" because, as Weidensaul says, he "remained firm in his belief that the path to ornithological wisdom issued from the muzzle of a shotgun." Coues's own _Key to North American Birds_ of 1872 was a guide to identifying bird carcasses. Collecting and

An Excellent History of Birding

As a mostly casual birder- my life list is less than 300 - who still finds watching birds fascinating, I like to occasionally read about the science and sport of birding. Some of Roger Tory Peterson's non-field guide books come to mind. However these were not so much histories as collections of essays. I know of only one or two other writers who have tackled this subject and Scott Weidensaul has now surpassed them all with "Of a Feather: A Brief History of American Birding." This book is a treat for anyone interested in birds, birding or ornithology. In 314 pages of text and 40 plus more pages of Acknowledgements, Notes and Bibliography, Weidensaul covers the period from pre-Colombian Native American myths and the early work of such naturalists as Mark Catesby and John Bartram to Kenn Kaufman and David Sibley, and the modern field guide. Of course Roger Tory Peterson, Frank Chapman, Cleveland Bent and Ludlow Griscom get their due, as do the many women (who seldom did get credit in publications on the subject), such as Harriet Lawrence Hemenway, Florence Merriam Bailey and Rosalie Edge, among others. Bird study has come a long way and despite the occasional bore described by Weidensaul, who tallies what the group has found without actually even bothering to look, many birders are genuinely involved in scientific work and/or important conservation efforts. There is a great thrill in watching birds, or in any other pursuit of natural history (butterfly watching, botanizing, etc.), that many miss in their pursuit of success or (in many cases) of just daily bread. We are lucky in the United States to have both a beautiful land and a high biotic diversity. It is up to us to both conserve and enjoy it. Reading this book would be a good start!