Paul A. Johnsgard

For anyone who has ever thrilled to a cloud of blackbirds or a solitary falcon against the prairie sky, Paul Johnsgard has written a book that will both inspire and inform. One of America's preeminent ornithologists, Johnsgard blends science, nature, and personal observations to tell the life histories of thirty-three grassland birds. Writing with precision and passion, he draws from his own observations to convey the magic of prairie birds, taking readers hawk-watching at Scotts Bluff or beside a prairie river on a spring evening with song sparrows in the willow thickets and cranes at the water's edge. In graceful prose, Johnsgard provides an overview of the history, current status, and uncertain future of prairie birds, from falcons and shorebirds to larks and sparrows. Some are intercontinental migrants that winter in South America, others sedentary species or short-distance travelers who may frequent the grasslands of Mexico. Johnsgard describes each species, its features, habits, habitats, migratory patterns, and breeding season ecology, with the knowledge and flair that has made his books indispensable for birders of every level of experience. graphic keys to birdsongs. Appendixes provide an annotated list of more than one hundred prairie preserves, bird checklists for primary refuges and sanctuaries, and a list of all birds and plants mentioned in the text. A list of more than 600 citations makes this a definitive reference as well as a pleasurable read. Prairie Birds is an essential books for readers everywhere who love birds and are concerned about their future. It invites us to stop and listen for the song of the pipit or longspur as it shows us America's grasslands in a new light. More than a book on birds, Prairie Birds is a compelling portrait of the native grasslands of the Great Plains, which constitute nearly a fifth of the continent and are the most imperiled of North America's terrestrial ecosystems. He tells how birds evolved along with this ""ancient sea of grass"" over eons of time and also warns of the effects of human interference on the future of grasslands and birds alike as grazing, burning, and agriculture threaten the native grasses on which many birds depend for survival. The book features forty-seven drawings by the author, including

"As I write this, I am sitting in a cabin at Cedar Point Biological Station in southwestern Nebraska.... The glorious elemental mixture of earth, water, and sky around me is the home of nearly three hundred species of birds, and comprises one of my favorite places in the world. Here no radio stations blare out the most recent results of meaningless sports events ... no traffic noises confound the senses. Instead the wind is the unquestioned dominating summer influence. The prairie grasses bend willingly and gracefully before it, and the leaves of the cottonwood trees convert its breezes into soft music." Paul Johnsgard is one of America's most prominent ornithologists and a world authority on waterfowl behavior. In these popularly written, often lyrical essays, he describes some of his most fascinating encounters with birds, from watching the annual mating displays of prairie-chickens on a hilltop in Pawnee County, Nebraska, to attempting to solve some of the mysteries surrounding Australia's nearly flightless musk duck. Reflecting his worldwide interests and travels, the birds Johnsgard describes inhabit many parts of the globe. Grouping the birds by the element they frequent most-earth, water, or sky-he weaves a wealth of accurate natural history into personal stories drawn from a lifetime of avian observation. And, as a bonus, Johnsgard's lovely pen-and-ink drawings illustrate each species he describes.

George Miksch Sutton is one of the best known and most beloved bird artists of the twentieth century. This marvelous book presents thirty-five paintigs of downy chicks, nestlings, and fledglings painted from life by Sutton. The exquisite watercolrs, housed in the Field Museum of Natural History, span three decades and depict nineteen species of North American birds. Many of the paintings are reproduced here for the first time. Sutton was fond of painting young birds from life and of recording their developmental changes. Marked by delicate bruskwork and subtle color variations, his paintings document characteristic features of the birds' species as well as capturing the poses and attributes that make each bird seem so unique. Some paintings show not only juvenal plumage but also head portraits of adult plumage. The nineteen species include familiar garden birds such as cardinals, Great Plains inhabitants such as the grassland sparrows, and upland and wetland birds, including bobwhites, moorhens, and sandpipers. In his introduction to the collection, ornithologist Paul Johnsgard discusses Sutton's contributions to bird art and to ornithology. And is essays accompanying the paintings, Johnsgard describes his and Sutton's personal encounters with the birds. A tribute to Sutton's genius as both an artist and an ornithologist, Baby Bird Portraits will be welcomed by ornithologists, bird enthusiasts, and Sutton's legion of admirers.

Obligatory brood parasites are birds that reproduce by laying their eggs in the nests of other species. This book discusses the ecological and evolutionary aspects of this remarkable behavioural adaptation.

For centuries the snow goose has signified the passing seasons to the Indians—its white feathers a symbol of the breadth of life and a reminder of the roles the birds played as messengers between heaven and earth. The importance of the geese in these roles is attested by their prominence in Indian lore and myth. As a boy growing up in North Dakota, Paul A. Johnsgard measured his winters not by conventional time units, but in the days it took for the snow geese to return from their wintering grounds to Lake Traverse. In this book he recounts the story of one year in the life of a pair of snow geese-the incubation and breeding of the young in the Arctic, their hazardous migration to winter quarters near the Gulf of Mexico, and the spring migration back to the Arctic.