The Bird of Light

by John Hay

"Joy Hay is one of our very best essayists on the natural world, and The Bird of Light is a fine example of his work."―Peter Matthiessen Here is an evocative, closely observed portrait of terns, as the noted naturalist John Hay has watched these "tirelessly flying, excitable, vulnerable birds" for years on Cape Cod. Celebrating their beauty, Hay describes all aspects of the birds' lives, from threats by enemies (including human beings' neglect of the environment) to mating rituals, the wild tumult of a crowded nesting site, and their long-range migrations.

Genres: Nature

160 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 1991

About the author

John Hay (August 31, 1915, Ipswich, Massachusetts – February 26, 2011, Bremen, Maine was an American author, naturalist, and conservation activist. Hay co-founded the Cape Cod Museum of Natural History in Brewster, Massachusetts and served as its president from 1955 to 1980. He composed 18 books from his "writing shack" on Dry Hill at his home in Brewster, Massachusetts, including two autobiographies, A beginner's faith in things unseen (1995) and Mind the Gap: The Education of a Nature Writer. (2004).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Ha...

Reviews

[mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

john hay surely has a knack for understanding bird migration and the how the birds learn by a sense so strong to continue the migration trail year after year and know when weather may change and how that effects the migration, he is gentle in his explanation and has studied the tern extensively

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful and visionary little book about terns, and their wisdom versus our narrow, exploitative civilization. This and other bird reading has got me looking up into the trees and onto the shorewaters with a tad more curiousity and understanding. I've also had about 6 "bird dreams" in the past two weeks, all with different very exotic bird species.