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Ospreys: A Natural and Unnatural History
The osprey is a major symbol of international bird conservation, with its populations once threatened but now restored in New England and Scotland. Poole takes an up-to-date look at the natural history and status of this popular bird. The text is augmented with photographs and with line drawings by the noted bird artist Margaret LaFarge. The foreword is by Roger Tory Peterson. Annotation copyright Book News, Inc. Portland, Or.
270 pages, Hardcover
First published April 1, 1989
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
May 4, 2019
Published in 1989, this has long been the standard reference on ospreys and the body of international research on ospreys. It now is a sort of milepost. The rebound of the osprey population after the banning of DDT was already well underway and documented in research, and a popular campaign to protect ospreys from shooting and egg poaching in Scotland had already led to reestablishing a breeding population, but these were harbingers of the widespread progress that has followed. If the osprey had no other value, its history of population crash and rebound due to the effects of human pollutants has helped to bring profound positive changes to our relationship to the natural world.
Back in the 1980s I stood on a butte in Jackson Hole Wyoming, watching my brother fly a radio controlled sailplane. Above it in the sky 2 ospreys circled, shadowing this intruder upon the airspace over their nest on a utility pole in the flats hundreds of feet below.
10 years later, in Michigan, where I live, a joint program of the state DNR, the Detroit Zoological Society, DTE Energy and regional parks was a major success in reestablishing a breeding population of 30 pairs in Southeast Michigan in half the projected 20 year timeframe. My fascination with the osprey has been reawakened as I observe their nests on utility poles along the freeway as I drive to and from the airport each day as a taxi driver. These birds could very well be offspring of the reintroduction program.
Poole discusses the unique role of the osprey as a conspicuous, charismatic, adaptable animal that can thrive in coexistence with human society. My favorite anecdotes are about discarded utility poles being repurposed as nesting platforms: "New Jersey wildlife personnel carried such nesting poles aloft by helicopter, dropping them like giant darts onto soft marsh peat where they stuck, some at crazy angles. Ospreys used nearly all of them anyway... I have seen Ospreys circle nesting poles as these were being installed, only to start building nests minutes after the workers departed."
Michiganders often disparage the "mud season", when the weather is harsh and variable and the landscape is devoid of winter snow or spring foliage. Now this is an exciting time of year for me as the woods and countryside are a transparent stage for the return and nesting of raptors like the Ospreys and Great Horned Owls. This book is a great companion to my appreciation, and one of my alltime best Father's Day presents. Published by the International Council for Bird Preservation.
Back in the 1980s I stood on a butte in Jackson Hole Wyoming, watching my brother fly a radio controlled sailplane. Above it in the sky 2 ospreys circled, shadowing this intruder upon the airspace over their nest on a utility pole in the flats hundreds of feet below.
10 years later, in Michigan, where I live, a joint program of the state DNR, the Detroit Zoological Society, DTE Energy and regional parks was a major success in reestablishing a breeding population of 30 pairs in Southeast Michigan in half the projected 20 year timeframe. My fascination with the osprey has been reawakened as I observe their nests on utility poles along the freeway as I drive to and from the airport each day as a taxi driver. These birds could very well be offspring of the reintroduction program.
Poole discusses the unique role of the osprey as a conspicuous, charismatic, adaptable animal that can thrive in coexistence with human society. My favorite anecdotes are about discarded utility poles being repurposed as nesting platforms: "New Jersey wildlife personnel carried such nesting poles aloft by helicopter, dropping them like giant darts onto soft marsh peat where they stuck, some at crazy angles. Ospreys used nearly all of them anyway... I have seen Ospreys circle nesting poles as these were being installed, only to start building nests minutes after the workers departed."
Michiganders often disparage the "mud season", when the weather is harsh and variable and the landscape is devoid of winter snow or spring foliage. Now this is an exciting time of year for me as the woods and countryside are a transparent stage for the return and nesting of raptors like the Ospreys and Great Horned Owls. This book is a great companion to my appreciation, and one of my alltime best Father's Day presents. Published by the International Council for Bird Preservation.
August 22, 2015
I got a hold of this book through inter-library loan from Bergen County Community College. It's a good textbook on the Osprey (a.k.a. "fish hawk" "sea hawk", "sea eagle") written by one of the world's finest authorities on the subject. I had previously read David Gessner's two books on Ospreys and in both of those Gessner liberally cites this book by Alan Poole. It's chock-full of interesting information about one of my favorite bird species.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews