Birdwatching with Your Eyes Closed: An Introduction to Birdsong

Description

"Most of us can see, but not everyone looks. Most of us can hear, but not everyone listens. This book will help you do both. And, above all, it will tell you how to enjoy." Bill Oddie "He'll tune your ears to winter's lonely voices - robins, wrens, long-tailed tits - before preparing you for the exultant sounds of spring." The Times Learning to identify birdsong is not just a way to become a better bird-spotter. It is tuning in: a way of hearing the soundtrack of Planet Earth... Why do birds sing? What are they trying to say? Birdsong is not just about natural history. It is also about our history. We got melody from birds as we got rhythm from the womb. This vital book, with an accompanying podcast available online, takes you from winter into deepest spring, teaching you how to recognise song after song as the chorus swells. Beginning with the thin, soft song of the robin and ending with the life-affirming melody of nightingales. Along the way, you will learn the science of birdsong the difference between song and call, the physiology of songbirds, what birdsong tells us about evolution, and indeed the very beginnings of life itself. The aim is to give you a flying start in birdsong so that, after reading this book, you'll be listening to order, not chaos, to Bach, not white noise. You will be more aware of the wild world, and better able to understand it.

Simon Barnes is the multi-award-winning chief sportswriter for the Times. He is also a novelist, nature writer and horseman, and the author of a dozen books, including the bestselling How to be a Bad Birdwatcher and The Meaning of Sport (Short Books). He lives in Suffolk with his family.

Most of us can see, but not everyone looks. Most of us can hear, but not everyone listens. This book will help you do both. And, above all, it will tell you how to enjoy. A gem... All day, I've been fighting the urge to drop everything so I can devour this eloquent book in one siting... exquisite. * The Guardian * He'll tune your ears to winter's lonely voices - robins, wrens, long-tailed tits - before preparing you for the exultant sounds of spring. * The Times * Become a bird listener, says Barnes, and tune in to the special podcast of airborne song that comes free with this book, and you will better understand the lives of birds and identify the wild notes that first inspired human music. A delight. A beguiling love song to our feathered friends. Brilliant. * Glasgow Herald * An excellent book from the irrepressible Simon Barnes... a must-buy for any birdwatcher. * The Times * Do you struggle with identifying birds by song? Yes? Good! Then there's a delightful journey, just waiting for you thanks to this book... This spring should be a special one for you. * Birds Magazine * He'll tune your ears to winter's lonely voices - robins, wrens, long-tailed tits - before preparing you for the exultant sounds of spring. * The Times * This is very good indeed. Barnes's approach is humorous, chatty and pragmatic... He can't do the listening for you, but boy, does he help you sharpen your ears. * Irish Times *