Synopses & Reviews
Tim Gallaghers role as co-rediscoverer of the Ivory-Billed Woodpecker, a
bird long thought to be extinct, in a swamp in Arkansas in 2004 received tremendous media attention. In Search of Birds and Wild Places, a collection of his short writings before that momentous event, shows the breadth and variety of Gallaghers spirit of adventure and passion for birds. With a particular focus on raptors and the Arctic, this book of adventure birding” recounts the authors daring as he gives the reader an extraordinary lookat the world of birds few have the opportunity to witness.
Join Gallagher as he dangles on ropes at Gyrfalcon nest cliffs in northern Greenland and Iceland, traps migrating Arctic Peregrine Falcons on barrier islands in the Gulf of Mexico, journeys in an open boat for hundreds of miles up the west coast of Greenland to survey bird colonies, and learns about the continuing efforts to save the endangered California Condor. With a stunning full-color insert of Gallaghers finest photographs, In Search of Birds & Wild Places is an extraordinary look into an unexplored world.
Review
"We all dream about 'parts unknown" when we are young. Tim Gallagher never gave up his dreams, and in this fine book, he takes you with him. Whether climbing cliffs in Iceland, photographing shorebirds in Manitoba, or banding peregrine falcons on Padre Island, Gallagher's combination of adventure and observation will entertain and inform." -- Stephen Bodio, author of A Rage For Falcons "[This] may be the story of one man's forays into the natural world, but Tim Gallagher's writing is so engaging that the recountings assume an air of real-time adventure; readers are companions, not bystanders. Hats off to Tim Gallagher." --Pete Dunne, author of Feather Quest, The Wind Masters, and Tales of a Low-Rent Birder. "For more than twenty years Tim Gallagher has tracked raptors and other birds in the most stirring places that they live -- Gyrfalcons in Iceland, Peregrines in Texas, Bald Eagles on Catalina Island, Ferruginous hawks in Alberta. In this wonderful collection of stories we visit those places with him--to learn how the world's most fascinationg birds are faring and to meeet the peole who have dedicated themselves to ensuring their survival."--Jack Connor, author of The Complete Birder: A Guide to Better Birding
Synopsis
The birder who rediscovered the Ivory-Billed Woodpecker takes the reader on daring journeys to the arctic, distant islands, and high deserts in search of spectacular raptors -- peregrine falcons, eagles, gyrfalcons, and condors -- as well as to a few locations closer to home.
About the Author
Tim Gallagher is editor in chief of
Living Bird magazine (circ. 35,000), flagship publication of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.
Table of Contents
Introduction I. Parts UnknownIceland JournalTrue NorthGreenland DiaryReturn to UummannaqThe Peregrines of Padre IslandBriding at the Edge of the Arctic II. Rare RaptorsSaving California's Peregrine FalconsMission AccomplishedLast Chance for the California CondorAloft AgainThe Eagles ReturnDesert FalconHome on the RangeOpen-Country HunterLost and Found III. Birding and OrnithologyWith the Sapsuchers in New JerseyA Little Night MusiicShorbirds in SpringSleuthLove Among the RednecksThe Birds of Santa CatalinaExploring Elk IslandA Back Bay RambleCan the Everglades Endure? Index