The Bird Way, by Jennifer Ackerman, is not a dry, academic work on our avian cousins, but rather an exploration, usually by way of anecdote and personal observation, of the varied habits of birds. From hunting to courtship to raising offspring – or not – Ackerman provides a well-written and frequently fascinating exploration of the vast range of behaviors followed by birds – and explores the question of just how much of that is instinct, and how much of it is learned.
From the brush turkeys who get no parental care at all, the brood-parasites such as the infamous cuckoo, to the clowns of the mountains, the kea parrots who frolic in the snow and show impressive intelligence, this is an easy and interesting read.
