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A Most Remarkable Creature
"A fascinating, entertaining, and totally engrossing story."--David Sibley, author of What It's Like to Be a Bird
"Utterly captivating and beautifully written, this book is a hugely entertaining and enlightening exploration of a bird so wickedly smart, curious, and social, it boggles the mind."--Jennifer Ackerman, author of The Bird Way
"As curious, wide-ranging, gregarious, and intelligent as its subject."--Charles C. Mann, author of 1491
An enthralling account of a modern voyage of discovery as we meet the clever, social birds of prey called caracaras, which puzzled Darwin, fascinate modern-day falconers, and carry secrets of our planet's deep past in their family history.
In 1833, Charles Darwin was astonished by an animal he met in the Falkland Islands: handsome, social, and oddly crow-like falcons that were tame and inquisitive . . . quarrelsome and passionate, and so insatiably curious that they stole hats, compasses, and other valuables from the crew of the Beagle. Darwin wondered why these birds were confined to remote islands at the tip of South America, sensing a larger story, but he set this mystery aside and never returned to it.
Almost two hundred years later, Jonathan Meiburg takes up this chase. He takes us through South America, from the fog-bound coasts of Tierra del Fuego to the tropical forests of Guyana, in search of these birds: striated caracaras, which still exist, though they're very rare. He reveals the wild, fascinating story of their history, origins, and possible futures. And along the way, he draws us into the life and work of William Henry Hudson, the Victorian writer and naturalist who championed caracaras as an unsung wonder of the natural world, and to falconry parks in the English countryside, where captive caracaras perform incredible feats of memory and problem-solving. A Most Remarkable Creature is a hybrid of science writing, travelogue, and biography, as generous and accessible as it is sophisticated, and absolutely riveting.
"Utterly captivating and beautifully written, this book is a hugely entertaining and enlightening exploration of a bird so wickedly smart, curious, and social, it boggles the mind."--Jennifer Ackerman, author of The Bird Way
"As curious, wide-ranging, gregarious, and intelligent as its subject."--Charles C. Mann, author of 1491
An enthralling account of a modern voyage of discovery as we meet the clever, social birds of prey called caracaras, which puzzled Darwin, fascinate modern-day falconers, and carry secrets of our planet's deep past in their family history.
In 1833, Charles Darwin was astonished by an animal he met in the Falkland Islands: handsome, social, and oddly crow-like falcons that were tame and inquisitive . . . quarrelsome and passionate, and so insatiably curious that they stole hats, compasses, and other valuables from the crew of the Beagle. Darwin wondered why these birds were confined to remote islands at the tip of South America, sensing a larger story, but he set this mystery aside and never returned to it.
Almost two hundred years later, Jonathan Meiburg takes up this chase. He takes us through South America, from the fog-bound coasts of Tierra del Fuego to the tropical forests of Guyana, in search of these birds: striated caracaras, which still exist, though they're very rare. He reveals the wild, fascinating story of their history, origins, and possible futures. And along the way, he draws us into the life and work of William Henry Hudson, the Victorian writer and naturalist who championed caracaras as an unsung wonder of the natural world, and to falconry parks in the English countryside, where captive caracaras perform incredible feats of memory and problem-solving. A Most Remarkable Creature is a hybrid of science writing, travelogue, and biography, as generous and accessible as it is sophisticated, and absolutely riveting.
665 pages, Library Binding
First published March 30, 2021
543 people are currently reading
10282 people want to read
About the author
Jonathan Meiburg
1 book111 followersJonathan Meiburg is a writer and musician who lives in Texas.
In 1997, Jonathan Meiburg received a Thomas J. Watson Fellowship to travel to remote communities around the world, a year-long journey that sparked his enduring fascination with islands, birds, and the deep history of the living world. Since then, he’s written reviews, features, and interviews for print and online publications including The Believer, Talkhouse, and The Appendix on subjects ranging from a hidden exhibit hall at the American Museum of Natural History to the last long-form interview with author Peter Matthiessen.
But he’s best known as the leader of the band Shearwater and as a member of Sub Pop recording artists Loma, whose albums and performances have often been praised by NPR, The New York Times, The Guardian, and Pitchfork. His unique career between the sciences and the arts makes him an ideal guide for a journey that takes in the deep history and landscapes of an entire continent, from the lush forests of Guyana to the windswept Falkland Islands. He lives in central Texas.
In 1997, Jonathan Meiburg received a Thomas J. Watson Fellowship to travel to remote communities around the world, a year-long journey that sparked his enduring fascination with islands, birds, and the deep history of the living world. Since then, he’s written reviews, features, and interviews for print and online publications including The Believer, Talkhouse, and The Appendix on subjects ranging from a hidden exhibit hall at the American Museum of Natural History to the last long-form interview with author Peter Matthiessen.
But he’s best known as the leader of the band Shearwater and as a member of Sub Pop recording artists Loma, whose albums and performances have often been praised by NPR, The New York Times, The Guardian, and Pitchfork. His unique career between the sciences and the arts makes him an ideal guide for a journey that takes in the deep history and landscapes of an entire continent, from the lush forests of Guyana to the windswept Falkland Islands. He lives in central Texas.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 488 reviews
October 31, 2021
The day I started listening to the digital audio, read by the author himself, I received my regular Powell’s email announcing he would be having a Zoom event with them the next day. You guys—it was amazing. I was already half done with the book, which is ~full~ of delicious evolutionary facts. I was already obsessed. Already telling my nonfiction people. Now I’ve juuuuuust finished. Meiburg is a great storyteller—it's often better when the author reads their book aloud, but not always. In this case it was a huge win. His writing has all the care of someone who’s read a lot of good books and can step up to the plate. It’s a home run.
December 14, 2021
Crows or magpies? Put aside the question of which birds, for a second. First, let's focus on the word “journey.” This book is a journey back in time. Author Jonathan Meiburg transforms the landscapes of the present into portals to lost worlds.
One hundred million years ago, the single land mass, Pangea, began to split into northern and southern supercontinents, Laurasia and Gondwana, respectively. Thirty five million years ago, Antarctica was cut off from South America. Thirty million years ago, the Andes were in the midst of their upheaval, an event that would reverse the flow of rivers. Five million years ago, North and South America were reconnected. Thirty thousand years ago humans began to populate the Americas. Seventeen thousand years ago, glaciers caused the sea level to lower and the Falkland Islands were connected to South America by the now submerged Patagonian shelf. These were only a few of the geological events that shaped the puzzling distribution and unexpected behaviors of caracaras, the world's smartest birds of prey.
Meiburg begins his journey on Steeple Jason, a 3.367 square mile island in the Falklands group where he introduces us to the striated caracara (depicted on the cover). Their cousins are the chimango caracaras, humble brown scavengers which flourish on the Argentinian mainland. There are more journeys in both space and time. He travels by canoe up the Rema River into interior Guyana where we meet yellow-headed caracaras that harvest ticks from grateful tapirs, and belligerent territorial red-throated caracaras that live in flocks of 3-12 individuals and cooperatively destroy the nests of venomous wasps in order to eat the larvae.
Meiburg repeatedly returns to the writings of the Argentinian born naturalist William Henry Hudson (1841-1922), a man who, like the caracaras, dwelled in two worlds. Hudson came of age in the vanishing expanses of the Pampas, and was entranced by the idea of Patagonia, a remote landscape he had never seen. In 1874 he sailed for England. There, in the quiet countryside, he kept his memories alive through his writing. He recalls the pesky chimangos he admired for their resourcefulness and curiosity. Meiburg suggests a sense of psychological kinship:: “Chimangos' improvisational lives might also have struck a chord with him for a more personal reason: he, too, came from a family who'd adapted to a new life in an unpromising place.” (p. 36)
As a group, the caracaras are most closely related to falcons. However, whereas the archtypical peregrine falcon is a sharp-eyed predator uniquely armed to kill, the caracaras are omnivorous scavengers. Chimangos have been found to have the worst visual acuity ever measured in a bird of prey. In a sense, caracaras resemble us humans. Their survival has always depended on their problem-solving skills. They can learn from watching other caracaras. They can work cooperatively to accomplish a goal. They are curious. And they seem to indulge in useless activities merely to stave off boredom.
Survival has been part of the caracaras' story, but so has extinction. Meiburg travels to museum storerooms where specimens from the 19th century are carefully preserved and worries over the fate of the striated caracaras of the Falklands as global warming will inevitably submerge the islands completely. He contemplates the ultimate fate of interior Guyana where the animals have not yet learned to fear humans.
Most readers will never sail to the Falklands or paddle up the Rewa River. Of the aged Hudson he says: “he settled on a writer's compromise: if he couldn't return to the people and animals of his youth, he could at least bring them to life for his new countrymen and give them back some of the wildness he felt they had lost.” (p.257) One might say the same of this book. It gives us some sense of the wildness we still have and demands that we value these remote ecosystems before they, too, are forever lost.
NOTES:
The hardcover edition is beautifully crafted. Color photos are printed on heavy glossy stock and the jacket is a reproduction of a watercolor by George Forster made during Cook's second voyage. The notes section reads like related journal entries, and an index supplements the informative chapter headings.
An interesting discussion of the theory that the Aztec “golden eagle” was actually the crested caracara, a theory advanced in this book. https://txmn.org/lostpines/2018/12/15...
One hundred million years ago, the single land mass, Pangea, began to split into northern and southern supercontinents, Laurasia and Gondwana, respectively. Thirty five million years ago, Antarctica was cut off from South America. Thirty million years ago, the Andes were in the midst of their upheaval, an event that would reverse the flow of rivers. Five million years ago, North and South America were reconnected. Thirty thousand years ago humans began to populate the Americas. Seventeen thousand years ago, glaciers caused the sea level to lower and the Falkland Islands were connected to South America by the now submerged Patagonian shelf. These were only a few of the geological events that shaped the puzzling distribution and unexpected behaviors of caracaras, the world's smartest birds of prey.
Meiburg begins his journey on Steeple Jason, a 3.367 square mile island in the Falklands group where he introduces us to the striated caracara (depicted on the cover). Their cousins are the chimango caracaras, humble brown scavengers which flourish on the Argentinian mainland. There are more journeys in both space and time. He travels by canoe up the Rema River into interior Guyana where we meet yellow-headed caracaras that harvest ticks from grateful tapirs, and belligerent territorial red-throated caracaras that live in flocks of 3-12 individuals and cooperatively destroy the nests of venomous wasps in order to eat the larvae.
Meiburg repeatedly returns to the writings of the Argentinian born naturalist William Henry Hudson (1841-1922), a man who, like the caracaras, dwelled in two worlds. Hudson came of age in the vanishing expanses of the Pampas, and was entranced by the idea of Patagonia, a remote landscape he had never seen. In 1874 he sailed for England. There, in the quiet countryside, he kept his memories alive through his writing. He recalls the pesky chimangos he admired for their resourcefulness and curiosity. Meiburg suggests a sense of psychological kinship:: “Chimangos' improvisational lives might also have struck a chord with him for a more personal reason: he, too, came from a family who'd adapted to a new life in an unpromising place.” (p. 36)
As a group, the caracaras are most closely related to falcons. However, whereas the archtypical peregrine falcon is a sharp-eyed predator uniquely armed to kill, the caracaras are omnivorous scavengers. Chimangos have been found to have the worst visual acuity ever measured in a bird of prey. In a sense, caracaras resemble us humans. Their survival has always depended on their problem-solving skills. They can learn from watching other caracaras. They can work cooperatively to accomplish a goal. They are curious. And they seem to indulge in useless activities merely to stave off boredom.
Survival has been part of the caracaras' story, but so has extinction. Meiburg travels to museum storerooms where specimens from the 19th century are carefully preserved and worries over the fate of the striated caracaras of the Falklands as global warming will inevitably submerge the islands completely. He contemplates the ultimate fate of interior Guyana where the animals have not yet learned to fear humans.
Most readers will never sail to the Falklands or paddle up the Rewa River. Of the aged Hudson he says: “he settled on a writer's compromise: if he couldn't return to the people and animals of his youth, he could at least bring them to life for his new countrymen and give them back some of the wildness he felt they had lost.” (p.257) One might say the same of this book. It gives us some sense of the wildness we still have and demands that we value these remote ecosystems before they, too, are forever lost.
NOTES:
The hardcover edition is beautifully crafted. Color photos are printed on heavy glossy stock and the jacket is a reproduction of a watercolor by George Forster made during Cook's second voyage. The notes section reads like related journal entries, and an index supplements the informative chapter headings.
An interesting discussion of the theory that the Aztec “golden eagle” was actually the crested caracara, a theory advanced in this book. https://txmn.org/lostpines/2018/12/15...
April 22, 2022
This book is a lot of things - a deep dive into natural history, evolutionary biology, scientific history, and field notes / travels in The Falklands, Patagonia, and French Guiana and Guyana.
The "umbrella" subject is the caracara, a little known and little-studied group of birds of prey who inhabit the western hemisphere, and are concentrated on the South American continent. Worthy tangents lead to England, Australia, Mexico, Peru, and Antarctica.
Such a considerable list of subjects and such a long evolutionary timeline, and Meiburg does an admirable job guiding the reader through, and then bringing us right back to this amazing bird.
The "umbrella" subject is the caracara, a little known and little-studied group of birds of prey who inhabit the western hemisphere, and are concentrated on the South American continent. Worthy tangents lead to England, Australia, Mexico, Peru, and Antarctica.
Such a considerable list of subjects and such a long evolutionary timeline, and Meiburg does an admirable job guiding the reader through, and then bringing us right back to this amazing bird.
May 25, 2021
I’m willing to bet that unless you are a seasoned ornithologist; you have never heard of a ‘Striated Caracara’. “A Striated Cara-who?” you ask. Exactly, my point. Caracaras are what would be the love child between a crow, raven and falcon; calling the southern tip and islands of South America home (with the exception of some outliers). These charismatic birds of prey date back to dinosaur ancestors and skeletons have been found all over the Americas including the LaBrea Tar Pits in Los Angeles where I live. Observed by Charles Darwin and William Henry Hudson; these birds have fascinated humans for ages. More recently, caracaras have sparked the curiosity of nature and animal advocate Jonathan Meiburg. Meiburg was intrigued to study and observe these birds in their natural habitat and shares his experience in, “A Most Remarkable Creature: The Hidden Life and Epic Journey of the World’s Smartest Birds of Prey”.
Let’s make something clear: Jonathan Meiburg is not a researcher, scientist, biologist, ornithologist or animal behavior psychologist by education or trade. He is not a professor in aviary bird fields. In fact, Meiburg is a writer and the lead singer of the band, Shearwater. But don’t let this fool you into thinking he isn’t a self-taught expert: he is precisely that. Meiburg has been fortunate enough to mingle with leading figures in the study of birds of prey (specifically caracaras); and has traveled worldwide fortifying his research thanks to grants and fellowships. This means that the tapestry of “A Most Remarkable Creature” is founded in solid science co-mingled with Meiburg’s magnetic personality and incredible writing chops. This fella can write, ladies and gents, and he does it with illustrative, detailed, poised prose that is peppered with comedic timing and accessible familiarity. Meiburg would make an excelled fiction novel author who would fortify his pages with a deep narrative.
The issue, however, is a lack of clear aim with “A Most Remarkable Creature”. Although readers expect a heavy memoir packed with behavioral studies; “A Most Remarkable Creature” is less this and more of a choppy, disjointed, multi-threaded history report focusing on Charles Darwin and other notable figures who have interacted with birds of prey. Readers truly have to re-calibrate their expectations in order to take Meiburg’s work for what it is. The disappointing aspect is that this results in a piece that hardly discusses caracaras and little is gleaned from the material with the educational lesson being minimal. If an editor would have discarded the unnecessary content; “A Most Remarkable Creature” would be a very thin text.
Related to this, both the narrative and pace are inconsistent with some sections reading more compellingly than others. Each chapter is somewhat standalone (with some repetitive information) further decimating a cohesive strand. Admittedly, though, the parts that are ‘good’ are seriously quite good. Meiburg’s strongest lesson concerns animal evolution, dinosaurs and the changes in continental shifts and human kind. These discussions are captivating and illuminate the subject matter in a precise manner that is easy-to-understand but informative.
“A Most Remarkable Creature” works well as an as an introductory text to birds of prey and caracaras encouraging further research. In this context, Meiburg is quite successful in bringing attention to the topic. Meiburg’s passion and love for the subject also shines through adding an emotional element to “A Most Remarkable Creature”.
Meiburg’s conclusion to “A Most Remarkable Creature” feels incomplete, unclear and doesn’t summarize the entirety of the piece making it void of a strong, memorable endnote. This is somewhat redeemed by a pictorial graph of caracara evolution, heavily annotated notes and an extensive bibliography. “A Most Remarkable Creature” is also supplemented with a section of full-color photo plates.
“A Most Remarkable Creature” isn’t terrible and is well-written; but it is simply lacking continuity, meanders on tangents, is hardly about caracaras and isn’t memorable from either an educational or emotionally-emotive standpoint. “A Most Remarkable Creature” is a middle-ground average text recommended for those obsessed with birds of prey but the ‘Average Joe’ reader (or even light bird-lover) can skip this without missing much.
Let’s make something clear: Jonathan Meiburg is not a researcher, scientist, biologist, ornithologist or animal behavior psychologist by education or trade. He is not a professor in aviary bird fields. In fact, Meiburg is a writer and the lead singer of the band, Shearwater. But don’t let this fool you into thinking he isn’t a self-taught expert: he is precisely that. Meiburg has been fortunate enough to mingle with leading figures in the study of birds of prey (specifically caracaras); and has traveled worldwide fortifying his research thanks to grants and fellowships. This means that the tapestry of “A Most Remarkable Creature” is founded in solid science co-mingled with Meiburg’s magnetic personality and incredible writing chops. This fella can write, ladies and gents, and he does it with illustrative, detailed, poised prose that is peppered with comedic timing and accessible familiarity. Meiburg would make an excelled fiction novel author who would fortify his pages with a deep narrative.
The issue, however, is a lack of clear aim with “A Most Remarkable Creature”. Although readers expect a heavy memoir packed with behavioral studies; “A Most Remarkable Creature” is less this and more of a choppy, disjointed, multi-threaded history report focusing on Charles Darwin and other notable figures who have interacted with birds of prey. Readers truly have to re-calibrate their expectations in order to take Meiburg’s work for what it is. The disappointing aspect is that this results in a piece that hardly discusses caracaras and little is gleaned from the material with the educational lesson being minimal. If an editor would have discarded the unnecessary content; “A Most Remarkable Creature” would be a very thin text.
Related to this, both the narrative and pace are inconsistent with some sections reading more compellingly than others. Each chapter is somewhat standalone (with some repetitive information) further decimating a cohesive strand. Admittedly, though, the parts that are ‘good’ are seriously quite good. Meiburg’s strongest lesson concerns animal evolution, dinosaurs and the changes in continental shifts and human kind. These discussions are captivating and illuminate the subject matter in a precise manner that is easy-to-understand but informative.
“A Most Remarkable Creature” works well as an as an introductory text to birds of prey and caracaras encouraging further research. In this context, Meiburg is quite successful in bringing attention to the topic. Meiburg’s passion and love for the subject also shines through adding an emotional element to “A Most Remarkable Creature”.
Meiburg’s conclusion to “A Most Remarkable Creature” feels incomplete, unclear and doesn’t summarize the entirety of the piece making it void of a strong, memorable endnote. This is somewhat redeemed by a pictorial graph of caracara evolution, heavily annotated notes and an extensive bibliography. “A Most Remarkable Creature” is also supplemented with a section of full-color photo plates.
“A Most Remarkable Creature” isn’t terrible and is well-written; but it is simply lacking continuity, meanders on tangents, is hardly about caracaras and isn’t memorable from either an educational or emotionally-emotive standpoint. “A Most Remarkable Creature” is a middle-ground average text recommended for those obsessed with birds of prey but the ‘Average Joe’ reader (or even light bird-lover) can skip this without missing much.
January 16, 2022
Blending memoir, travelogue, science, and natural history, Jonathan Meiburg introduces readers to the little-known striated caracara, a large, endangered bird of prey found in the Falkland Islands. They are intelligent, curious, mischievous, and social. He traces their history, and the history of birds in general, back to the dinosaurs. He relates their encounters with Charles Darwin and William Henry Hudson. He also takes readers on a journey to various parts of the world to find close relatives of these birds.
Meiburg is obviously passionate about his subject, and it shows in his writing. He beautifully describes his sleuthing in the wilderness of South America and the thrill of making discoveries in the natural world. He describes the impact of climate change on birds, and caracaras in particular. If you are interested in ornithology or natural history, this remarkable book is well worth reading.
Meiburg is obviously passionate about his subject, and it shows in his writing. He beautifully describes his sleuthing in the wilderness of South America and the thrill of making discoveries in the natural world. He describes the impact of climate change on birds, and caracaras in particular. If you are interested in ornithology or natural history, this remarkable book is well worth reading.
December 16, 2022
Another wonderful addition to my Natural History shelf! This is definitely my kind of book: a deep dive into a specific topic, in this case the South American birds known as caracaras, with a nice assortment of informative, engaging digressions.
So why does a bird of prey that is relatively unknown in the northern hemisphere merit an entire book? Well, because it’s unique. The caracara looks as if it should be related to hawks, but is actually a member of the falcon family, and more closely related to parrots than hawks, vultures or condors. But unlike most falcons, it’s omnivorous, likes to walk as much as fly, and is madly curious about everything in its environment.
Which is what fascinated Charles Darwin about striated caracaras when he encountered them on the Falkland Islands in 1832. They made off with anything from the ship or the crew that they could carry in their clever talons, taking items apart to determine whether there were any edible components, completely unafraid of the humans from whom they were thieving. Their behaviors and very existence raised all kinds of questions in Darwin’s mind that he was unable to answer. Fortunately for today’s reader, Jonathan Meiburg has some answers.
To get to those answers, Meiburg goes back in history - waaaaay back, to the time that the earth’s land masses consisted of Gondwana and Laurasia. He necessarily spends some time on the meteor-based extinction of all the dinosaurs except for birds, and most other creatures that lived above ground. He relates this part of his story so fluidly that at no point did I feel my eyes (well, I guess it would have been my ears) glaze over in confusion trying to keep the timing of various events sorted out.
A touchstone throughout the book is the story of William Henry Hudson, a Victorian era naturalist and author who was born to American parents living in Argentina and later emigrated to England. Hudson was fascinated with the natural world from his childhood on, regardless of where he lived, and his memories of South America featured prominently in his writings. His most successful book was Green Mansions.
I read Green Mansions one summer when I was about 14 or 15 years old. I don’t remember much of the story, but my impressions of the jungle world that was home to Rima, the bird girl, were vivid and have stayed with me all these years. It’s not considered great literature by any means, but apparently those images of Guyanese forest have merited praise from many readers besides my teenage self.
Meiburg himself spent a couple of months in Guyana looking for a particular, difficult to find, species of caracara and his own descriptions of the region are compelling, although less romantic given that he does not gloss over the plate-sized spiders, the anacondas, jaguars and other menacing residents of the region. He traveled throughout South America, from the jungles to the Andes to the pampas as he tracked down different species. He also spent time in England where there are a number of striated caracaras in captivity, forming close bonds with their falconer handlers and amazing audiences with their remarkable skills.
One last thing. When I started listening I wondered why the author chose to narrate the book himself. Eventually I figured it out. It is unlikely that any professional narrator, whatever their acting skills, could have mimicked the calls of assorted caracaras as effectively as he did!
So why does a bird of prey that is relatively unknown in the northern hemisphere merit an entire book? Well, because it’s unique. The caracara looks as if it should be related to hawks, but is actually a member of the falcon family, and more closely related to parrots than hawks, vultures or condors. But unlike most falcons, it’s omnivorous, likes to walk as much as fly, and is madly curious about everything in its environment.
Which is what fascinated Charles Darwin about striated caracaras when he encountered them on the Falkland Islands in 1832. They made off with anything from the ship or the crew that they could carry in their clever talons, taking items apart to determine whether there were any edible components, completely unafraid of the humans from whom they were thieving. Their behaviors and very existence raised all kinds of questions in Darwin’s mind that he was unable to answer. Fortunately for today’s reader, Jonathan Meiburg has some answers.
To get to those answers, Meiburg goes back in history - waaaaay back, to the time that the earth’s land masses consisted of Gondwana and Laurasia. He necessarily spends some time on the meteor-based extinction of all the dinosaurs except for birds, and most other creatures that lived above ground. He relates this part of his story so fluidly that at no point did I feel my eyes (well, I guess it would have been my ears) glaze over in confusion trying to keep the timing of various events sorted out.
A touchstone throughout the book is the story of William Henry Hudson, a Victorian era naturalist and author who was born to American parents living in Argentina and later emigrated to England. Hudson was fascinated with the natural world from his childhood on, regardless of where he lived, and his memories of South America featured prominently in his writings. His most successful book was Green Mansions.
I read Green Mansions one summer when I was about 14 or 15 years old. I don’t remember much of the story, but my impressions of the jungle world that was home to Rima, the bird girl, were vivid and have stayed with me all these years. It’s not considered great literature by any means, but apparently those images of Guyanese forest have merited praise from many readers besides my teenage self.
Meiburg himself spent a couple of months in Guyana looking for a particular, difficult to find, species of caracara and his own descriptions of the region are compelling, although less romantic given that he does not gloss over the plate-sized spiders, the anacondas, jaguars and other menacing residents of the region. He traveled throughout South America, from the jungles to the Andes to the pampas as he tracked down different species. He also spent time in England where there are a number of striated caracaras in captivity, forming close bonds with their falconer handlers and amazing audiences with their remarkable skills.
One last thing. When I started listening I wondered why the author chose to narrate the book himself. Eventually I figured it out. It is unlikely that any professional narrator, whatever their acting skills, could have mimicked the calls of assorted caracaras as effectively as he did!
May 13, 2021
Bird lovers, animal lovers, and adventure enthusiasts will enjoy this book about the Caracara. You will learn about all the different varieties of this “walking falcon” also known as “Johnny Rook”. These birds live in the Southern Hemisphere and some varieties live in the jungles and hunt along rivers and streams. Others live on the plains and in the mountains.
As you probably know, falcons hunt, kill, and eat live prey, but the Caracaras are what I would call creative eaters. They steal eggs, eat road kill, and scavenge all types of bugs. Many of these varieties are threatened by habitat loss from encroaching water due to global warming.
The author weaves tales of others bird lovers through the narrative. William Henry Hudson is the most present because he spent his earliest years growing up in the home of a variety of Caracaras. You will also read about the intelligence of the caracara which seems to rival that of crows.
An enjoyable read.
As you probably know, falcons hunt, kill, and eat live prey, but the Caracaras are what I would call creative eaters. They steal eggs, eat road kill, and scavenge all types of bugs. Many of these varieties are threatened by habitat loss from encroaching water due to global warming.
The author weaves tales of others bird lovers through the narrative. William Henry Hudson is the most present because he spent his earliest years growing up in the home of a variety of Caracaras. You will also read about the intelligence of the caracara which seems to rival that of crows.
An enjoyable read.
December 11, 2022
I would have liked a lot more information about caracaras and a lot less about William Henry Hudson. I mean, he’s a cool guy but if I wanted his whole life story and synopses of all his books, I would have chosen a book specifically about him not a book that’s supposed to be about birds, you know?
May 20, 2022
Perfect type of book to receive as a gift, as I did: a topic that obviously interests me but probably not something I would have known about/sought out on my own.
Wanted to be able to say that this puts Helen Macdonald in the shithouse, but not really the case. Has a lot more about people who study caracaras than actual content on these most remarkable creatures. Maybe that was just going to be a given because there hasn't been a whole lot of research on the caracaras to draw on. And reading about Hudson, Darwin, etc was interesting, it's just that the parts describing their behaviours or human encounters with them was way more interesting.
Wanted to be able to say that this puts Helen Macdonald in the shithouse, but not really the case. Has a lot more about people who study caracaras than actual content on these most remarkable creatures. Maybe that was just going to be a given because there hasn't been a whole lot of research on the caracaras to draw on. And reading about Hudson, Darwin, etc was interesting, it's just that the parts describing their behaviours or human encounters with them was way more interesting.
January 9, 2022
Click here to hear my thoughts on this book over on my Booktube channel, abookolive.
April 28, 2021
Very little of this book is actually about birds. It's mostly about the activities and personalities of Darwin and others like him. The book is written well, but not as advertised in terms of topic.
February 24, 2021
A most remarkable blend of history, science, natural science, and birdwatching!
Caracara is a genus of falcons, and Jonathan Meiburg’s descriptions of them makes it clear why he calls them “remarkable.” Their appearance varies, but many sound stunningly beautiful. Describing the red-throated caracaras, he says the “bare skin of their faces and throats is scarlet; their eyes are an even deeper shade of red; the tips of their bluish beaks are bright yellow; and their plumage is black except for a spray of white feathers above their red legs---an outfit that makes them both striking and slightly ridiculous, like weaponized chickens.” They have adapted to their varying environments in notable ways. For example, they manage to avoid a lot of conflict with other animals by living on odd diets like venomous wasps and carrion that other animals shun. Their curiosity reveals a surprising intelligence, and they seem to be adept at solving puzzles as well as keen on exploring new things, often to the consternation of researchers, who find the “cheeky pests” stealing their hats, pens, and other items.
Caracaras have attracted the interest of many people over the centuries, and Meiburg tells about people like Charles Darwin, whom we all know, and turn-of-the-century naturalist and author William Henry Hudson .
Meiburg’s observations and experiences as he travels through some of the most remote parts of the Americas looking for caracaras are awe-inspiring. The wonderful sights and sounds are extremely appealing…until you hear about the conditions under which he traveled. Better him than me; I’ll just read about it.
There is so much wide-ranging information in A Most Remarkable Creature that occasionally I wanted it to focus more on the caracaras themselves, but the side trips were usually relevant and always interesting.
Aside from the descriptions of the beautiful, intelligent , delightful birds, my favorite part of the book was the discussion of phylogeography, which is the connection of the biological journeys of living things with the geological history of the earth. It was fascinating to read about caracaras (and other life) during the period when North America was separated from South America and the Great American Biotic Interchange (GABI) when tectonic drift reunited the continents.
Other readers might be drawn more to the history or the beauty of the areas the birds inhabit, but for anyone with curiosity about our natural world there will be a lot to like in this book and in these remarkable creatures.
I received an advance review copy of this book from the publisher, Alfred A Knopf, and Edelweiss.
Caracara is a genus of falcons, and Jonathan Meiburg’s descriptions of them makes it clear why he calls them “remarkable.” Their appearance varies, but many sound stunningly beautiful. Describing the red-throated caracaras, he says the “bare skin of their faces and throats is scarlet; their eyes are an even deeper shade of red; the tips of their bluish beaks are bright yellow; and their plumage is black except for a spray of white feathers above their red legs---an outfit that makes them both striking and slightly ridiculous, like weaponized chickens.” They have adapted to their varying environments in notable ways. For example, they manage to avoid a lot of conflict with other animals by living on odd diets like venomous wasps and carrion that other animals shun. Their curiosity reveals a surprising intelligence, and they seem to be adept at solving puzzles as well as keen on exploring new things, often to the consternation of researchers, who find the “cheeky pests” stealing their hats, pens, and other items.
Caracaras have attracted the interest of many people over the centuries, and Meiburg tells about people like Charles Darwin, whom we all know, and turn-of-the-century naturalist and author William Henry Hudson .
Meiburg’s observations and experiences as he travels through some of the most remote parts of the Americas looking for caracaras are awe-inspiring. The wonderful sights and sounds are extremely appealing…until you hear about the conditions under which he traveled. Better him than me; I’ll just read about it.
There is so much wide-ranging information in A Most Remarkable Creature that occasionally I wanted it to focus more on the caracaras themselves, but the side trips were usually relevant and always interesting.
Aside from the descriptions of the beautiful, intelligent , delightful birds, my favorite part of the book was the discussion of phylogeography, which is the connection of the biological journeys of living things with the geological history of the earth. It was fascinating to read about caracaras (and other life) during the period when North America was separated from South America and the Great American Biotic Interchange (GABI) when tectonic drift reunited the continents.
Other readers might be drawn more to the history or the beauty of the areas the birds inhabit, but for anyone with curiosity about our natural world there will be a lot to like in this book and in these remarkable creatures.
I received an advance review copy of this book from the publisher, Alfred A Knopf, and Edelweiss.
January 4, 2022
The striated caracara is indeed a remarkable creature. Native to the Falkland Islands, and variously referred to as “Walking Falcons” and “Johnny Rooks,” their behavior is markedly different than other birds of prey. Rather than specializing in a specific raptor-like hunting technique, they are very inquisitive and adaptive, seemingly enjoying exploring their surroundings and puzzling out new ways of obtaining meals. This natural curiosity is a double-edged sword however, leading to the kind of risk-taking that has contributed to their becoming endangered.
Some people are convinced that the caracara is the smartest species of bird on earth, and the evidence supporting this assertion is amazing and makes for entertaining reading.
I loved the first 40% of this book in which Meiburg describes what is known about these fascinating birds and the theories of their evolution. But then it gets derailed by a 90-page travelogue recounting Meiburg’s largely irrelevant trip through the forests of Guyana. Thankfully, the final section does get back to the topic of interest.
So 5 stars for the caracaras, 3.5 for the book.
Some people are convinced that the caracara is the smartest species of bird on earth, and the evidence supporting this assertion is amazing and makes for entertaining reading.
I loved the first 40% of this book in which Meiburg describes what is known about these fascinating birds and the theories of their evolution. But then it gets derailed by a 90-page travelogue recounting Meiburg’s largely irrelevant trip through the forests of Guyana. Thankfully, the final section does get back to the topic of interest.
So 5 stars for the caracaras, 3.5 for the book.
April 1, 2022
I learned very quickly I did not give a fig about birds lol however, it’s very thorough and is grounded in an interesting narrative around a personal trip. The author narrates it themselves and makes bird calls often… and, I mean, I’ve no idea if they were good—but it was endearing and funny. I don’t know if they were meant to be, though. Was he injecting humour or was he just like straight up filled with bird love and wanted the reader to know the calls? I suspect the later.
For people who are interested in the subject and nature and the narrative premise rooting this flight of fancy, I suspect people would adore this. Not for me, though it is successful.
For people who are interested in the subject and nature and the narrative premise rooting this flight of fancy, I suspect people would adore this. Not for me, though it is successful.
August 5, 2024
Good good book! Some parts I didn’t understand the inclusion of, but I loved the writing about Guyana and thought overall it was a really interesting take on a cool ass bird I knew nothing about
January 5, 2022
You might also enjoy:
✱ Mind of the Raven
✱ Ravens in Winter
✱ The Seabird's Cry
✱ Raptor: A Journey through Birds
✱ Owls of the Eastern Ice
✱ Mind of the Raven
✱ Ravens in Winter
✱ The Seabird's Cry
✱ Raptor: A Journey through Birds
✱ Owls of the Eastern Ice
March 17, 2023
I thought this was going to be a breakdown of biology and behavior, but Jonathan talks about the evolutionary history, the choices the bird's ancestors made to reach this critical point today, possible historical inspirations, and historical naturalists that have met and were amazed by this fascinating bird of prey.
If they truly becomes common, the caracaras will give ravens a run for their money.
If they truly becomes common, the caracaras will give ravens a run for their money.
April 16, 2024
‘A Most Remarkable Creature: The Hidden Life of the World’s Smartest Birds of Prey’ by Jonathan Meiburg is well-written and full of interesting geological history as well as a natural history of the caracaras, a bird that looks like a mashup of crows, vultures and falcons.
There are several family branches of caracaras. Each area of South America which hosts one of the types of caracaras often call them by a local name, not the official ones designated them by scientists and naturalists. It is posited there are many types of caracaras because of the past history of how South America formed into the continent it now is from billions of years ago to today. The way South America was geologically formed basically boxed animals into separated areas, which permitted animals with a common ancestor to evolve into different varieties. The caracaras are differentiated primarily by the colors of the feathers on their throats, wings, feet, and chest, but they share common genetic traits. The one people notice the most is caracaras SEE you. They really LOOK. AT. YOU. They appear to want to know all about you and, most of all, your stuff. And they are noisy, very very noisy.
This is a link to YouTube video about one extremely popular type known as Johnny Rooks who live in the Falklands:
https://youtu.be/Czx5HW6m54A?si=rz5yJ...
The Johnny Rooks were also seen as an incredibly annoying bird that is and was always into your things, stealing foodstuffs, and competing for critters with a high market value (they eat almost anything, especially other critters dead or alive). In earlier centuries, they had a price on their heads and were hunted almost into extinction in the Falklands.
The author writes about all of the types of caracaras mentioned in this video:
https://youtu.be/NPMM7Epwa98?si=Xs5JW...
-The Northern Crested Caracaras
-Black Caracaras
-The White-Throated Caracara
-Striated Caracara
-Mountain Caracara
-Southern Crested Caracara
-Chimango Caracara
-Carunculated Caracara
-Yellow-headed Caracara
-Red-Throated Caracara
While the video is a grocery list, the book is more of a travelogue memoir of a naturalist author, as well as a geological history of South America.
Meiburg is a master at describing the landscapes through which he travels while venturing into the habitats caracaras are rumored or verified to be. Not a fool, he hires and asks experts about the jungles or mountains he wants to visit to accompany or guide him. He sprinkles portions of a biography of William Henry Hudson throughout the book as well. Hudson was an author and naturalist who wrote many books about wildlife and landscapes in the early twentieth century. Meiburg describes him as “the revered author of a raft of essays, novel, and memoirs that combined a naturalist’s eye with a literary mind.” Imho, this also describes Meiburg’s writing style. He includes the writings of a number of historical naturalists besides Hudson if they wrote of caracaras in their natural landscape. Meiburg traveled into the jungles, plains and mountains of South America personally, apparently with great vigor and happiness, seeking the natural habitats of caracaras despite terrifying animals, lizards and insects. He of course, had to travel and stay in the Falklands, which is where most people go to see the popular Striated Caracaras known as Johnny Rooks locally.
I have copied the book blurb:
”An enthralling account of a modern voyage of discovery as we meet the clever, social birds of prey called caracaras, which puzzled Darwin, fascinate modern-day falconers, and carry secrets of our planet's deep past in their family history.
In 1833, Charles Darwin was astonished by an animal he met in the Falkland Islands: handsome, social, and oddly crow-like falcons that were "tame and inquisitive…quarrelsome and passionate," and so insatiably curious that they stole hats, compasses, and other valuables from the crew of the Beagle. Darwin wondered why these birds were confined to remote islands at the tip of South America, sensing a larger story, but he set this mystery aside and never returned to it. Almost two hundred years later, Jonathan Meiburg takes up this chase. He takes us through South America, from the fog-bound coasts of Tierra del Fuego to the tropical forests of Guyana, in search of these birds: striated caracaras, which still exist, though they're very rare. He reveals the wild, fascinating story of their history, origins, and possible futures. And along the way, he draws us into the life and work of William Henry Hudson, the Victorian writer and naturalist who championed caracaras as an unsung wonder of the natural world, and to falconry parks in the English countryside, where captive caracaras perform incredible feats of memory and problem-solving. A Most Remarkable Creature is a hybrid of science writing, travelogue, and biography, as generous and accessible as it is sophisticated, and absolutely riveting.”
Some quotes from the book:
”But if you visit them, they refuse to behave like a species on the verge of extinction. They’ll pluck the cap from your head, tug at the zippers of your backpack, and meet your eye with a forthright, impish gaze—and it’s this earnest, playful quality, not their rarity or remoteness, that caught and held me when I met them twenty-five years ago. Striated caracaras seem disarmingly conscious, and they prod at the turf with their bills and feet and crane their necks to peer at everything with keen but slightly dubious interest, as if they’ve just emerged from the ark and wonder what else the world might have to offer.”
“All the while, I’d be thinking of Darwin’s unanswered questions [about the caracaras], and a few of my own: Why are you like this? Why are there so few of you? How did you come to be?”
“I walked Sea Lion’s coast all morning and sat down to rest on its southern cliffs, looking down on colonies of rockhopper penguins and cormorant-like birds called imperial shags. The shags turned their slender beaks and bright blue eyes toward me for a moment, then resumed fortifying their nests with beakfuls of mud and seaweed. Their long curved necks and functional wings distinguished them from the squat, flightless penguins, but they’d been to the same tailor: both species were black and above and white below, with whimsically ornamental ted heads: a curlicue of black feathers and orange nasal wattles for the shags, a spiky yellow crest for the red-eyed rockhoppers. As long as I didn’t move, the birds acted as if I wasn’t there, and at the base of the cliff, long coils of giant kelp curled and uncurled in the foaming waves.”
“I was contemplating the blue-black water stretching away toward Antarctica when I heard a rush of wings and a faint clicking of talons on the shale, and turned to face a pair of young striated caracaras—the first I’d ever seen. Unlike the penguins and shags, they were unmistakably interested in me; one took a few steps in my direction and cocked its head like a dog. A gift seemed appropriate, but I didn’t have any food, so I fished a pen from my pocket and dropped it on the ground. The two birds gazed at it for a moment, as if deciding what to do, and then one stepped forward to seize the pen with its large dexterous foot—an almost parrot-like gesture—and looked up at me, as if to say Is this all you’ve got? Then its companion lunged for the pen, flapping its wings and screeching, and the tumbling pair chased each other over the lip of the cliff.”
“Birds of prey—hawks, owls, falcons, eagles, vultures, and secretary birds—account for only 5 percent of all bird species, but if we pull their bulging file down from the shelf and spread its contents on a table, you might be surprised by how big the table needs to be; 5 percent of ten thousand is still about five hundred species. They live on every continent but Antarctica and include some of the most impressive animals on Earth: Andean condors, the heaviest flying birds, have ten-foot wingspans; twenty-five pound harpy eagles prey on monkeys and sloths in the tropics of the Americas; Steller’s sea eagles, orange-beaked catchers of full-grown salmon, nest on the remote costs of the Kamchatka Peninsula and the Sea of Okhotsk; red-eyed Siberian eagle owls, twice the size of their great horned cousins, sneak up on smaller owls in the frosty silences of the taiga; and the unique secretary birds of sub-Saharan Africa are four-foot-tall snake stompers with orange faces and long black crests that stride across the savanna like living griffins.”
The author traveled on one trip with Sean McCann, a red-throated caracara expert and an entomologist. His guides into the Guyana jungle were Jose George, cook and polyglot, Ramnall “Rambo” Roberts, fisherman and boat captain, and Brian Duncan, leader of the trip up the river Rewa in southern Guyana. The author describes their journey and the animals they saw with interesting details and literary finesse.
“No two performances were the same. One morning I spent a half hour listening to a pair of calling sunbitterns—squat but delicate birds, like a cross between a heron and a hen, who paced along the shore with hypnotic smoothness, swiveling their striped bodies and unfurling golden wing feathers when they flew. Their song was equally beautiful and odd: a set of hollow notes that ascended by quarter tones, so airy and diffuse that they seemed to come from everywhere. As the sun broke through the canopy, they were joined by a bird I couldn’t place, singing a descending countermelody in the same octave, then another, whose sparkling seven-note song was like a peal of tiny bells.”
“Above the falls, a sense that we’d entered a different version of the river and its forest was immediate and striking. The trees were shorter, smaller, and closer, the water nearly level with the shore, the wildlife every more bold and abundant. Flotillas of giant otters poked their wild-eyed faces out of the river while legions of macaws cackled and rasped, and every few hours we heard the screams of red-throated caracaras warning their rivals and laying siege to cities of wasps [caracaras can attack wasp nests without harm!!!!!]. Howler monkeys peered down from the crowns of the tales trees while bands of squirrel monkeys raced along lower branches and vines, carrying babies on their backs. Rambo pointed out a sloth dangling from a high snag, its ever-smiling face turned to the sun.”
“Our breath condensed in the cool, wet air seeping down the channel, and the trees above us blotted out the star-filled sky. The steep walls of the creek glittered with iridescent droplets, which I thought at first were dew. Then I saw they were the eyes of tropical wolf spiders, and the blood drained from my face, Some were nearly the size of my hand. Brian brushed past them without concern, pointing out another Theraphosa crouched beneath a rotting log.”
Surrounded by thousands of wolf spiders???? Omg!!!!
Anyway, gentler readers, I hope I’ve given you some idea of what the book is about. I enjoyed it very much, so much so, I bought it. I knew I was going to like it enough to own a copy when the author mentions we ARE living currently in a dinosaur age! After all, that is what birds are.
The book has lots of photos (black and white only unfortunately), and large Notes and Bibliography sections, as well as an Index.
There are several family branches of caracaras. Each area of South America which hosts one of the types of caracaras often call them by a local name, not the official ones designated them by scientists and naturalists. It is posited there are many types of caracaras because of the past history of how South America formed into the continent it now is from billions of years ago to today. The way South America was geologically formed basically boxed animals into separated areas, which permitted animals with a common ancestor to evolve into different varieties. The caracaras are differentiated primarily by the colors of the feathers on their throats, wings, feet, and chest, but they share common genetic traits. The one people notice the most is caracaras SEE you. They really LOOK. AT. YOU. They appear to want to know all about you and, most of all, your stuff. And they are noisy, very very noisy.
This is a link to YouTube video about one extremely popular type known as Johnny Rooks who live in the Falklands:
https://youtu.be/Czx5HW6m54A?si=rz5yJ...
The Johnny Rooks were also seen as an incredibly annoying bird that is and was always into your things, stealing foodstuffs, and competing for critters with a high market value (they eat almost anything, especially other critters dead or alive). In earlier centuries, they had a price on their heads and were hunted almost into extinction in the Falklands.
The author writes about all of the types of caracaras mentioned in this video:
https://youtu.be/NPMM7Epwa98?si=Xs5JW...
-The Northern Crested Caracaras
-Black Caracaras
-The White-Throated Caracara
-Striated Caracara
-Mountain Caracara
-Southern Crested Caracara
-Chimango Caracara
-Carunculated Caracara
-Yellow-headed Caracara
-Red-Throated Caracara
While the video is a grocery list, the book is more of a travelogue memoir of a naturalist author, as well as a geological history of South America.
Meiburg is a master at describing the landscapes through which he travels while venturing into the habitats caracaras are rumored or verified to be. Not a fool, he hires and asks experts about the jungles or mountains he wants to visit to accompany or guide him. He sprinkles portions of a biography of William Henry Hudson throughout the book as well. Hudson was an author and naturalist who wrote many books about wildlife and landscapes in the early twentieth century. Meiburg describes him as “the revered author of a raft of essays, novel, and memoirs that combined a naturalist’s eye with a literary mind.” Imho, this also describes Meiburg’s writing style. He includes the writings of a number of historical naturalists besides Hudson if they wrote of caracaras in their natural landscape. Meiburg traveled into the jungles, plains and mountains of South America personally, apparently with great vigor and happiness, seeking the natural habitats of caracaras despite terrifying animals, lizards and insects. He of course, had to travel and stay in the Falklands, which is where most people go to see the popular Striated Caracaras known as Johnny Rooks locally.
I have copied the book blurb:
”An enthralling account of a modern voyage of discovery as we meet the clever, social birds of prey called caracaras, which puzzled Darwin, fascinate modern-day falconers, and carry secrets of our planet's deep past in their family history.
In 1833, Charles Darwin was astonished by an animal he met in the Falkland Islands: handsome, social, and oddly crow-like falcons that were "tame and inquisitive…quarrelsome and passionate," and so insatiably curious that they stole hats, compasses, and other valuables from the crew of the Beagle. Darwin wondered why these birds were confined to remote islands at the tip of South America, sensing a larger story, but he set this mystery aside and never returned to it. Almost two hundred years later, Jonathan Meiburg takes up this chase. He takes us through South America, from the fog-bound coasts of Tierra del Fuego to the tropical forests of Guyana, in search of these birds: striated caracaras, which still exist, though they're very rare. He reveals the wild, fascinating story of their history, origins, and possible futures. And along the way, he draws us into the life and work of William Henry Hudson, the Victorian writer and naturalist who championed caracaras as an unsung wonder of the natural world, and to falconry parks in the English countryside, where captive caracaras perform incredible feats of memory and problem-solving. A Most Remarkable Creature is a hybrid of science writing, travelogue, and biography, as generous and accessible as it is sophisticated, and absolutely riveting.”
Some quotes from the book:
”But if you visit them, they refuse to behave like a species on the verge of extinction. They’ll pluck the cap from your head, tug at the zippers of your backpack, and meet your eye with a forthright, impish gaze—and it’s this earnest, playful quality, not their rarity or remoteness, that caught and held me when I met them twenty-five years ago. Striated caracaras seem disarmingly conscious, and they prod at the turf with their bills and feet and crane their necks to peer at everything with keen but slightly dubious interest, as if they’ve just emerged from the ark and wonder what else the world might have to offer.”
“All the while, I’d be thinking of Darwin’s unanswered questions [about the caracaras], and a few of my own: Why are you like this? Why are there so few of you? How did you come to be?”
“I walked Sea Lion’s coast all morning and sat down to rest on its southern cliffs, looking down on colonies of rockhopper penguins and cormorant-like birds called imperial shags. The shags turned their slender beaks and bright blue eyes toward me for a moment, then resumed fortifying their nests with beakfuls of mud and seaweed. Their long curved necks and functional wings distinguished them from the squat, flightless penguins, but they’d been to the same tailor: both species were black and above and white below, with whimsically ornamental ted heads: a curlicue of black feathers and orange nasal wattles for the shags, a spiky yellow crest for the red-eyed rockhoppers. As long as I didn’t move, the birds acted as if I wasn’t there, and at the base of the cliff, long coils of giant kelp curled and uncurled in the foaming waves.”
“I was contemplating the blue-black water stretching away toward Antarctica when I heard a rush of wings and a faint clicking of talons on the shale, and turned to face a pair of young striated caracaras—the first I’d ever seen. Unlike the penguins and shags, they were unmistakably interested in me; one took a few steps in my direction and cocked its head like a dog. A gift seemed appropriate, but I didn’t have any food, so I fished a pen from my pocket and dropped it on the ground. The two birds gazed at it for a moment, as if deciding what to do, and then one stepped forward to seize the pen with its large dexterous foot—an almost parrot-like gesture—and looked up at me, as if to say Is this all you’ve got? Then its companion lunged for the pen, flapping its wings and screeching, and the tumbling pair chased each other over the lip of the cliff.”
“Birds of prey—hawks, owls, falcons, eagles, vultures, and secretary birds—account for only 5 percent of all bird species, but if we pull their bulging file down from the shelf and spread its contents on a table, you might be surprised by how big the table needs to be; 5 percent of ten thousand is still about five hundred species. They live on every continent but Antarctica and include some of the most impressive animals on Earth: Andean condors, the heaviest flying birds, have ten-foot wingspans; twenty-five pound harpy eagles prey on monkeys and sloths in the tropics of the Americas; Steller’s sea eagles, orange-beaked catchers of full-grown salmon, nest on the remote costs of the Kamchatka Peninsula and the Sea of Okhotsk; red-eyed Siberian eagle owls, twice the size of their great horned cousins, sneak up on smaller owls in the frosty silences of the taiga; and the unique secretary birds of sub-Saharan Africa are four-foot-tall snake stompers with orange faces and long black crests that stride across the savanna like living griffins.”
The author traveled on one trip with Sean McCann, a red-throated caracara expert and an entomologist. His guides into the Guyana jungle were Jose George, cook and polyglot, Ramnall “Rambo” Roberts, fisherman and boat captain, and Brian Duncan, leader of the trip up the river Rewa in southern Guyana. The author describes their journey and the animals they saw with interesting details and literary finesse.
“No two performances were the same. One morning I spent a half hour listening to a pair of calling sunbitterns—squat but delicate birds, like a cross between a heron and a hen, who paced along the shore with hypnotic smoothness, swiveling their striped bodies and unfurling golden wing feathers when they flew. Their song was equally beautiful and odd: a set of hollow notes that ascended by quarter tones, so airy and diffuse that they seemed to come from everywhere. As the sun broke through the canopy, they were joined by a bird I couldn’t place, singing a descending countermelody in the same octave, then another, whose sparkling seven-note song was like a peal of tiny bells.”
“Above the falls, a sense that we’d entered a different version of the river and its forest was immediate and striking. The trees were shorter, smaller, and closer, the water nearly level with the shore, the wildlife every more bold and abundant. Flotillas of giant otters poked their wild-eyed faces out of the river while legions of macaws cackled and rasped, and every few hours we heard the screams of red-throated caracaras warning their rivals and laying siege to cities of wasps [caracaras can attack wasp nests without harm!!!!!]. Howler monkeys peered down from the crowns of the tales trees while bands of squirrel monkeys raced along lower branches and vines, carrying babies on their backs. Rambo pointed out a sloth dangling from a high snag, its ever-smiling face turned to the sun.”
“Our breath condensed in the cool, wet air seeping down the channel, and the trees above us blotted out the star-filled sky. The steep walls of the creek glittered with iridescent droplets, which I thought at first were dew. Then I saw they were the eyes of tropical wolf spiders, and the blood drained from my face, Some were nearly the size of my hand. Brian brushed past them without concern, pointing out another Theraphosa crouched beneath a rotting log.”
Surrounded by thousands of wolf spiders???? Omg!!!!
Anyway, gentler readers, I hope I’ve given you some idea of what the book is about. I enjoyed it very much, so much so, I bought it. I knew I was going to like it enough to own a copy when the author mentions we ARE living currently in a dinosaur age! After all, that is what birds are.
The book has lots of photos (black and white only unfortunately), and large Notes and Bibliography sections, as well as an Index.
May 1, 2021
During his voyage on the Beagle, Charles Darwin encountered a bird in the Falklands, a falcon, but oddly crow-like. It was unwary of people, extremely curious, and prone to rather aggressively stealing anything that caught its interest, whether potential food, or not. And the bird's view of what's "potential food" was quite broad. Darwin was puzzled by this crow-like falcon that existed nowhere but in a fairly narrow range of South America, but it was one of many mysteries he noted on his voyage, and this wasn't one he returned to.
Jonathan Meiburg did return to the mystery, and gives us a fascinating account of, not just the striated caracara, commonly called the "Johnny Rook" by the people in its territory, but of its near relatives. There are other species of caracara over mostly southern South America, including one that feasts on wasps' nests with seeming impunity.
The striated caracara, or Johnny Rook, itself is a a wily, curious, opportunistic bird who will investigate the food possibilities of literally anything, try to strip boots down into small, edible bits, raid nests of larger birds of prey, scavenge dead animals, attack live sheep. It's because of its willingness to attack and injure, especially go after existing injuries on sheep, that the Falklands government put a bounty on them, and they were almost hunted to extinction before a naturalist got the bounty lifted and a conservation plan implemented. Now, however, the Johnny Rooks do well only on a few islands that aren't suitable for sheep farming.
Meiburg gives us the history and the puzzles of the striated caracara, but also fascinating accounts of other caracara species, and glimpses of caracara species that are barely known, documented to exist but rarely photographed and never really studied. It's a fascinating look at a piece of avian history and evolution most of us will never observe directly, and this are truly fascinating birds.
Recommended.
I bought this audiobook.
Jonathan Meiburg did return to the mystery, and gives us a fascinating account of, not just the striated caracara, commonly called the "Johnny Rook" by the people in its territory, but of its near relatives. There are other species of caracara over mostly southern South America, including one that feasts on wasps' nests with seeming impunity.
The striated caracara, or Johnny Rook, itself is a a wily, curious, opportunistic bird who will investigate the food possibilities of literally anything, try to strip boots down into small, edible bits, raid nests of larger birds of prey, scavenge dead animals, attack live sheep. It's because of its willingness to attack and injure, especially go after existing injuries on sheep, that the Falklands government put a bounty on them, and they were almost hunted to extinction before a naturalist got the bounty lifted and a conservation plan implemented. Now, however, the Johnny Rooks do well only on a few islands that aren't suitable for sheep farming.
Meiburg gives us the history and the puzzles of the striated caracara, but also fascinating accounts of other caracara species, and glimpses of caracara species that are barely known, documented to exist but rarely photographed and never really studied. It's a fascinating look at a piece of avian history and evolution most of us will never observe directly, and this are truly fascinating birds.
Recommended.
I bought this audiobook.
July 1, 2021
A wonderful adventure/birding tale of following the family of caracaras, mostly through South America, although one species comes into North America, so there are a couple of nods that way. Meiburg did the work, went out on the trips to almost inaccessible places to see the birds. He reflects long on the evolutionary history of the birds in South America (nothing really new there, but always good to read it again, particularly when it's well written). Also some interesting speculation on the future of this bird, so intelligent, so adaptable, so omnivorous. He also reads W. H. Hudson closely and places him in his line of reference.
I knew Meiburg from his interview with Peter Matthiessen. And that influence is certainly all through this. Sadly, I do not know his music, but will try to correct that.
35 years ago I read everything I could find by W. H. Hudson, searching through all the used bookshops to find books published early in the 20th century that had not yet been reprinted. And in 2016 I had a 3 caracara species year (two -- southern caracara and chimango caracara -- in Uruguay; and one-- crested caracara -- way out of place on the southern shore of Lake Superior, where I watched it pick apart a dead gull for almost an hour). So I was the audience for this book. And I was not disappointed.
I knew Meiburg from his interview with Peter Matthiessen. And that influence is certainly all through this. Sadly, I do not know his music, but will try to correct that.
35 years ago I read everything I could find by W. H. Hudson, searching through all the used bookshops to find books published early in the 20th century that had not yet been reprinted. And in 2016 I had a 3 caracara species year (two -- southern caracara and chimango caracara -- in Uruguay; and one-- crested caracara -- way out of place on the southern shore of Lake Superior, where I watched it pick apart a dead gull for almost an hour). So I was the audience for this book. And I was not disappointed.
February 26, 2021
What is a Caracara? I, like many others had never heard of this creature prior to picking up “A Most Remarkable Creature” by Jonathan Meiburg.
A book dedicated to the study of a specific bird may not sound like an exciting read, but Meiburg manages to keep our interest by interspersing stories of scientists’ first encounters with it. The mix of history and scientific knowledge is balanced and so you are entertained as you are learning more about the Caracara, (which is quite an intriguing creature in and of itself).
Meiburg first met the Caracara during his “adventurous youth” on one of the Falkland Islands. Shocked by their lack of fear (and a propensity to steal his belongings), he becomes intrigued and seeks to learn more about them.
If you are a fan of Darwin, travel, birds, or just want to read an interesting story of a man’s quest to learn more about the world around him, I would highly recommend reading this book.
I received an advanced copy of this book from Knopf.
A book dedicated to the study of a specific bird may not sound like an exciting read, but Meiburg manages to keep our interest by interspersing stories of scientists’ first encounters with it. The mix of history and scientific knowledge is balanced and so you are entertained as you are learning more about the Caracara, (which is quite an intriguing creature in and of itself).
Meiburg first met the Caracara during his “adventurous youth” on one of the Falkland Islands. Shocked by their lack of fear (and a propensity to steal his belongings), he becomes intrigued and seeks to learn more about them.
If you are a fan of Darwin, travel, birds, or just want to read an interesting story of a man’s quest to learn more about the world around him, I would highly recommend reading this book.
I received an advanced copy of this book from Knopf.
January 22, 2023
There's a lot to like in this book and I'm glad to know about Caracaras. They are now one of my favorite animals!
This book skips around too much and the author put in EVERY interesting detail and tangent they came across. Was anything cut out? I enjoy a good tangent now and then, but this was a bit much. There's also a whole section in the third quarter of this book where it turns into a travel memoir. The author inserts himself into the book a lot, but I didn't come to read about him, I came for the birds.
Overall, I liked it a lot though. I enjoyed learning about the effects of tectonic shifts on animal life.
This book skips around too much and the author put in EVERY interesting detail and tangent they came across. Was anything cut out? I enjoy a good tangent now and then, but this was a bit much. There's also a whole section in the third quarter of this book where it turns into a travel memoir. The author inserts himself into the book a lot, but I didn't come to read about him, I came for the birds.
Overall, I liked it a lot though. I enjoyed learning about the effects of tectonic shifts on animal life.
February 13, 2022
The author might not have set out this way but I’d say the “Most Remarkable Creature” of his focus might not be the various Caracaras, but rather William Henry Hudson. It gets to the point where it seems half the book is just block quotes from Hudson. Some fascinating situations and overall an interesting read, but would gain about two stars if the approach mirrored the epilogue instead of the heavy insistence on Hudson. Woof.
September 12, 2023
Once again, a book touting itself as the hidden life of an animal, which quickly turns into tangents about the author's life, history of discovery that has nothing to do with the animal, and very little substance about the animal itself. This could've been maybe 30 pages without all the fluff. Very disappointing.
July 28, 2021
An excellent natural history of the Caracara and its relatives, jungle travelogue, and paean to William Henry Hudson.
[• There are some interesting notes before the bibliography. They are linked back to the text, but they are not indicated in the text so you can only read them afterward.
• This is specifically recommended for LMN and GCC since they might usually ignore the various oddities that I read.]
[• There are some interesting notes before the bibliography. They are linked back to the text, but they are not indicated in the text so you can only read them afterward.
• This is specifically recommended for LMN and GCC since they might usually ignore the various oddities that I read.]
May 1, 2021
A superb and rollicking book of natural history and evolutionary ecology, focused on the fascinatingly inquisitive and adaptable family of South American falcons known as caracaras. Full disclosure: I know Meiburg primarily through my great fondness for his work as bandleader, songwriter, and singer for the band Shearwater. But in the years of my familiarity with the band I became very aware of his ornithological fieldwork in South America (the first record I heard was Palo Santo, named after the aromatic shrubbery found in the Galapagos). And in March 2020, in the final days of public events before the pandemic shutdown, I heard Meiburg reading and lecturing about the caracara and his fieldwork at George Washington University in DC.
Meiburg expertly weaves together the stories of his own fieldwork and expeditions in the Americas with the evolutionary ecology that explains the ecological niches that the caracaras filled. These inquisitive and adaptable birds, malleable as humankind ourselves, found homes in the high Andes, the Guyana rainforest, and the Falkland Islands — where Meiburg first encountered them — following the great predators like the dire wolves and big cats and the two-legged bipeds that mastered fire and projectile hunting, all leaving lots of tasty tidbits for an adaptable scavenger and hunter. The expeditions are both gripping and vividly and lovingly detailed with Meiburg’s engaging and periodically whimsical tone, and he shifts back and forth from the field to the more philosophical discussions about what the evolutionary life history of the caracara might mean to us.
Really wonderful work altogether.
Meiburg expertly weaves together the stories of his own fieldwork and expeditions in the Americas with the evolutionary ecology that explains the ecological niches that the caracaras filled. These inquisitive and adaptable birds, malleable as humankind ourselves, found homes in the high Andes, the Guyana rainforest, and the Falkland Islands — where Meiburg first encountered them — following the great predators like the dire wolves and big cats and the two-legged bipeds that mastered fire and projectile hunting, all leaving lots of tasty tidbits for an adaptable scavenger and hunter. The expeditions are both gripping and vividly and lovingly detailed with Meiburg’s engaging and periodically whimsical tone, and he shifts back and forth from the field to the more philosophical discussions about what the evolutionary life history of the caracara might mean to us.
Really wonderful work altogether.
July 14, 2021
I'd been aware of our local (northern) Crested Caracaras, but was completely unaware that there were a) a whole bunch of caracara species and b) that they were so cool and adaptive!
The main stars of this book are Striated Caracaras from the Falkland Islands, which the author became aware of after visiting there. But he takes us on a tour of most of the South American caracara species through discussions of 19th and early 20th century naturalist and novelist William Henry Hudson (another discovery for me), a beautifully described trip up a river in Guyana to observe Red-throated Caracaras, and the sad tale of the Guadalupe Caracara, extinct since 1900.
Meiburg writes about the history of these birds and the unique niche they fill. Related to falcons, but behaviorally more like crows and ravens, they hang out with (and seem to befriend) vultures, are highly inquisitive, and very intelligent. His descriptions of the trip through Guyana, and his clear respect and admiration for his local guides, could have been a book all on its own. He also outlines the place of caracara species in the Great American Biotic Interchange - a topic I found fascinating and which I'd like to know more about.
I love a book that introduces me to new ideas, animals and historical figures.
The main stars of this book are Striated Caracaras from the Falkland Islands, which the author became aware of after visiting there. But he takes us on a tour of most of the South American caracara species through discussions of 19th and early 20th century naturalist and novelist William Henry Hudson (another discovery for me), a beautifully described trip up a river in Guyana to observe Red-throated Caracaras, and the sad tale of the Guadalupe Caracara, extinct since 1900.
Meiburg writes about the history of these birds and the unique niche they fill. Related to falcons, but behaviorally more like crows and ravens, they hang out with (and seem to befriend) vultures, are highly inquisitive, and very intelligent. His descriptions of the trip through Guyana, and his clear respect and admiration for his local guides, could have been a book all on its own. He also outlines the place of caracara species in the Great American Biotic Interchange - a topic I found fascinating and which I'd like to know more about.
I love a book that introduces me to new ideas, animals and historical figures.
March 20, 2024
I don't normally write reviews. I give my stars rating and move on. But I really want to plug this book because I can't convince friends to read it when I tell them it's about a bird. I picked it up because I love author Jonathan Meiburg's band, Shearwater. (Backchannels is maybe the most beautiful song I can think of.) I loved this book. The writing is as beautiful as Meiburg's songwriting. And while these birds are fascinating, this was so much more than a book about a bird. It was about evolution, history, climatology, ecology, humans and their relationships with animals and nature. I despise the cold but I now desperately want to someday journey to Patagonia to see these silly birds and the ends of the earth. It was just lovely and 10/10 would recommend.
January 15, 2022
Birds are smarter than what most people give them credit for. It's commonly accepted, however, that crows and parrots are the brainiest of birds. And they are indeed brainy. And we can add another brainy bird. The caracara. It is a type of falcon, sometimes referred to as the walking falcon, and a bunch of other names. It is so wickedly clever and curious that Meiburg considers it the smartest of all raptors.
Meiburg takes us on a voyage through geography and history as he introduces us to the different species of caracara. Some are rare and threatened with extinction; some are abundant. None are migratory. Yet their cleverness is astounding. We read examples of their feats and wonder why we don't see them nearly everywhere, as we see crows.
Meiburg's book is not a simple story of caracaras. He hitches one aside after another to the narrative, so we learn other fascinating stories that somehow bring us back to caracaras. You might wonder what the near absence of gingko trees in the wilds have to do with these birds. Maybe nothing. Meiburg's interesting meanderings are detours, side trips that present us with interesting and informative views as we glide our way back to the main subject.
Consequently, the book resembles a small encyclopedia. It's filled with everything there is to know about caracaras, from different points of view. And if you learn something on a side trip through the pages, well, it's not time wasted. I am left with a feeling of awe for these magnificent birds. I hope, someday, to see the northern crested caracara, which is expanding its range into the US and Canada.
Meiburg takes us on a voyage through geography and history as he introduces us to the different species of caracara. Some are rare and threatened with extinction; some are abundant. None are migratory. Yet their cleverness is astounding. We read examples of their feats and wonder why we don't see them nearly everywhere, as we see crows.
Meiburg's book is not a simple story of caracaras. He hitches one aside after another to the narrative, so we learn other fascinating stories that somehow bring us back to caracaras. You might wonder what the near absence of gingko trees in the wilds have to do with these birds. Maybe nothing. Meiburg's interesting meanderings are detours, side trips that present us with interesting and informative views as we glide our way back to the main subject.
Consequently, the book resembles a small encyclopedia. It's filled with everything there is to know about caracaras, from different points of view. And if you learn something on a side trip through the pages, well, it's not time wasted. I am left with a feeling of awe for these magnificent birds. I hope, someday, to see the northern crested caracara, which is expanding its range into the US and Canada.
June 16, 2022
I can't get over how good this book is! It is fascinating and enthralling. I have never heard of the caracaras before and, like many, believed that crows are the smartest birds ever. Well, not anymore. These fascinating creatures are so unnervingly smart and interesting, and their history is fascinating to say the least.
Meiburg does a fantastic job of stringing the evolutionary history, geography, and society into an amazing tapestry that portrays the life of these incredible birds.
I love when someone finds something so interesting and obscures, spends so much time researching it, and then gifts it to the world in form of a book. I don't know that I would have ever learned about caracaras if it weren't for this book. Their habitat covers the Falkland Islands and some parts of South America, far away from where I live.
A wonderful book full of surprising facts and well worth the read!
Meiburg does a fantastic job of stringing the evolutionary history, geography, and society into an amazing tapestry that portrays the life of these incredible birds.
I love when someone finds something so interesting and obscures, spends so much time researching it, and then gifts it to the world in form of a book. I don't know that I would have ever learned about caracaras if it weren't for this book. Their habitat covers the Falkland Islands and some parts of South America, far away from where I live.
A wonderful book full of surprising facts and well worth the read!
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