BOOK OF THE MONTH: JULY 2011

                                                                                                
Title        : Avian Architecture: How Birds Design, Engineer, and Build
Author    : Peter Goodfellow
Publisher: Princeton University Press
Pages      : 160
Price       : Rs. 2096
ISBN      : 13: 9780691148496

Birds do incredible things. Bird nests themselves are marvelous feats of engineering. Some are larger than a car, while others would fit in a child’s hand. Many are made up of sticks and twigs, as one usually thinks of a nest. But many other types of building materials are used. There is one commonality, however, one question that begs an answer – how? How do birds build these elaborate structures? Finally we have the answer in Avian Architecture: How Birds Design, Engineer, and Build by Peter Goodfellow.

Birds are the most consistently inventive builders, and their nests set the bar for functional design in nature. Avian Architecture describes how birds design, engineer, and build their nests, deconstructing all types of nests found around the world using architectural blueprints and detailed descriptions of the construction processes and engineering techniques birds use. 

Peter Goodfellow, in his book Avian Architecture, sharpens the focus to explore nests only from the perspective of their architecture -- their form, function, construction materials, how they are made, and by whom. Goodfellow discusses each of a dozen distinct types of nests with a full set of blueprints for each. The blueprints – rendered like an architect’s blueprints for a building – reveal the intricate details of the nest construction.

The conceit of presenting details in this way is that they lead the reader (at least this reader) to speculate that nests could not have been constructed by an animal not possessed of discursive thought and a rich self-awareness. In pouring over Goodfellow’s blueprints I had to continually remind myself that the real plans exist only as firmware coded somewhere in the avian DNA.  

Avian Architecture is rich in well-presented detail that includes, besides the blueprints, a good introduction to each nest type, a spread (for each nest type) called “materials and features,” and an excellent selection of case studies which offer more detail about the construction process. 

Nests are an excellent perspective from which to explore of the subject of mating and parenting because they are (relatively) easy to find and because they seem so wondrous and so unlikely. Even the most casual bird watcher among us loves finding nests because they are , at once, so intricate and so simple. Simple in their fragility and exposure to elements. Complex in their construction. 

This spectacularly illustrated book features 300 full-color images and more than 35 case studies that profile key species worldwide. Each chapter covers a different type of nest, from tunnel nests and mound nests to floating nests, hanging nests, woven nests, and even multiple-nest avian cities. Other kinds of avian construction--such as bowers and harvest wells--are also featured.

Chapters:

1. Scrape Nests
2. Holes and Tunnels
3. Platform Nests
4. Aquatic Nests
5. Cup-shaped Nests
6. Domed Nests
7. Mud Nests
8. Hanging, Woven and Stitched Nests
9. Mound Nests
10. Colonies and Group Nests
11. Courts and Bowers
12. Edible Nests and Food Stores

Some inside pages can be viewed at: http://www.birdingisfun.com/2011/06/review-avian-architecture-how-birds.html

 
Review Text Courtesy: http://press.princeton.edu/titles/9422.html,  http://magblog.audubon.org/, http://www.birderslibrary.com/, http://www.amazon.com/