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Nests
An exquisitely illustrated, one-of-a-kind celebration of the hidden beauty of nature and the ingenuity of birds
Susan Ogilvy started painting bird nests almost by accident. One day, while tidying up her garden after a storm, she found a chaffinch nest - a strange, sodden lump on the grass under a fir tree. She carried it inside and placed it on a newspaper; over the next few hours, as the water drained out of it, the sodden lump blossomed into a mossy jewel. She was amazed, and dropped everything to make a painting of the nest at exact life size.
This was the start of an obsession; Ogilvy has since painted more than fifty bird nests from life, each time marvelling at its ingenious construction. Every species of bird has its own vernacular, but sources its materials - most commonly twigs, roots, grasses, reeds, leaves, moss, lichen, hair, feathers and cobwebs, less usually, mattress stuffing and string - according to local availability. Ogilvy would, of course, never disturb nesting birds; instead she relies upon serendipity, which is why all her nests have either been abandoned after fulfilling their purpose, or displaced by strong winds.
Although Nests showcases the specimens she has found near her homes in Somerset and on the Isle of Arran, its subject matter is by no means only British, since these same birds can be found all over Europe, Scandinavia and as far afield as Russia, Turkey and North Africa. This wondrous book is all the more special for its rarity. Few modern books exist specifically on the subject of bird nests; the most recent among the author's reference works was published in 1932. Exquisitely designed and packaged, Nests will be an essential addition to the libraries of all nature lovers.
Susan Ogilvy started painting bird nests almost by accident. One day, while tidying up her garden after a storm, she found a chaffinch nest - a strange, sodden lump on the grass under a fir tree. She carried it inside and placed it on a newspaper; over the next few hours, as the water drained out of it, the sodden lump blossomed into a mossy jewel. She was amazed, and dropped everything to make a painting of the nest at exact life size.
This was the start of an obsession; Ogilvy has since painted more than fifty bird nests from life, each time marvelling at its ingenious construction. Every species of bird has its own vernacular, but sources its materials - most commonly twigs, roots, grasses, reeds, leaves, moss, lichen, hair, feathers and cobwebs, less usually, mattress stuffing and string - according to local availability. Ogilvy would, of course, never disturb nesting birds; instead she relies upon serendipity, which is why all her nests have either been abandoned after fulfilling their purpose, or displaced by strong winds.
Although Nests showcases the specimens she has found near her homes in Somerset and on the Isle of Arran, its subject matter is by no means only British, since these same birds can be found all over Europe, Scandinavia and as far afield as Russia, Turkey and North Africa. This wondrous book is all the more special for its rarity. Few modern books exist specifically on the subject of bird nests; the most recent among the author's reference works was published in 1932. Exquisitely designed and packaged, Nests will be an essential addition to the libraries of all nature lovers.
126 pages, Hardcover
First published October 7, 2021
3 people are currently reading
104 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
January 1, 2022
Susan Ogilvy is a botanical illustrator whose fascination with birds’ nests led her to compile this beautiful collection of illustrations, all life size, of passerine nests. It’s a Xmas gift from my partner who always manages to find unusual books for me.
I found it utterly fascinating and miraculous that such small birds can build such complex nests. They use a broad range of materials, depending on the habitat they’re in. Some, such as goldcrests, use spiders’ webs to bind the materials together. This gives them a very strong, elastic structure that can expand as their brood grows. We so rarely see birds’ nests because they’re so well camouflaged in trees, hedgerows, ditches, and so on but I’ll be keeping a closer lookout for them from now on.
The only improvement I can suggest would be to add an illustration of each bird opposite the nest. Although I’m interested in birds, I struggle to identify them and would have appreciated not having to look each one up. It would be churlish to deduct from a well deserved 5 stars for this reason though. A beautiful book and a beautiful, much appreciated gift.
I found it utterly fascinating and miraculous that such small birds can build such complex nests. They use a broad range of materials, depending on the habitat they’re in. Some, such as goldcrests, use spiders’ webs to bind the materials together. This gives them a very strong, elastic structure that can expand as their brood grows. We so rarely see birds’ nests because they’re so well camouflaged in trees, hedgerows, ditches, and so on but I’ll be keeping a closer lookout for them from now on.
The only improvement I can suggest would be to add an illustration of each bird opposite the nest. Although I’m interested in birds, I struggle to identify them and would have appreciated not having to look each one up. It would be churlish to deduct from a well deserved 5 stars for this reason though. A beautiful book and a beautiful, much appreciated gift.
January 18, 2022
Susan Ogilvy has been a botanical illustrator for the past thirty years and has exhibited around the world. But it was only recently that she has begun painting nests. One day whilst tidying up her garden she came across a strangely shaped lump of vegetation under a tree. It was only after she had brought it inside and it had dried out that she realised that it was a chaffinch nest. And it was utterly beautiful.
This soon became an obsession, and she began to collect nests that had been abandoned or friends would find them for her, in particular, Deon who works for the British Trust for Ornithology would bring her examples that he would find on his walks observing the birds of Somerset.
The result is this book full of exquisite paintings of these nests. Ogilvy carefully measured each of the nests that she obtained and these small works of art are equal to these nests that the birds create. Each of the nests has a short essay about the bird, where the nest was found and some notes on the construction method and materials used.
Ogilvy is such a talented artist and her eye for the detail of each of the nests that she draws and paints makes this an incredibly beautiful book. I really liked it.
This soon became an obsession, and she began to collect nests that had been abandoned or friends would find them for her, in particular, Deon who works for the British Trust for Ornithology would bring her examples that he would find on his walks observing the birds of Somerset.
The result is this book full of exquisite paintings of these nests. Ogilvy carefully measured each of the nests that she obtained and these small works of art are equal to these nests that the birds create. Each of the nests has a short essay about the bird, where the nest was found and some notes on the construction method and materials used.
Ogilvy is such a talented artist and her eye for the detail of each of the nests that she draws and paints makes this an incredibly beautiful book. I really liked it.
October 29, 2022
Ogilvy's illustrations are truly fantastic. There is a staggering attention to detail that let's the beauty of the nests shine, from the shabby, old and reused, to the luxuriously lined ones. I'm not joking, there are a few nests in which I would love to take a nap, if only I were a lot smaller. My top three nest builders for maximum comfort are the great tit (Parus major), goldfinch (Carduelis carduelis) and chaffinch (Fringilla coelebs). Absolutely pick up this book and rank your own.
December 30, 2021
The most beautifully illustrated book. At the same time informing us of fascinating facts about the small garden, hedgerow, forest and reed bed nesting birds that surround us (many of them migratory) and which we might still be lucky enough to encounter.
March 8, 2022
Amazing paintings and very informative. Loved it 👌💕
October 7, 2023
Absolutely fascinating to read, beautiful illustrations and great attention to detail. It has inspired me to delve more into ornithology!
August 29, 2023
Wow, the research and time spent to obtain these images and then paint them must of been vast.
This book is a stunning compilation of her work which was inspired by her inquisitive mind and we are so lucky she shares them with us.
This book is a stunning compilation of her work which was inspired by her inquisitive mind and we are so lucky she shares them with us.
June 15, 2024
Absolutely beautiful watercolor renderings of common British birds in life-size format. I found this at my library, but want to purit so I can admire her watercolor. Also, comes with nesting behavior information of said birds. Highly recommended.
October 31, 2021
Simply beautiful.
January 18, 2022
What a beautiful book this is!
March 1, 2024
Beautifully illustrated, carefully thought out, I wish to be a bird in the next life 🕊️
November 26, 2024
OMG read this book
I can’t stop opening it
I never shut up about it
I force every visitor to my house to look at it
I will get those illustrations tattooed on my soul
10/10
Fr tho girl can paint
I can’t stop opening it
I never shut up about it
I force every visitor to my house to look at it
I will get those illustrations tattooed on my soul
10/10
Fr tho girl can paint
April 22, 2025
beautiful and I enjoyed reading where she'd found each nest
shorter than I expected
shorter than I expected
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews