{"id":2374,"date":"2025-03-24T12:21:00","date_gmt":"2025-03-24T12:21:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bookloves.com\/?p=2374"},"modified":"2025-03-24T12:21:00","modified_gmt":"2025-03-24T12:21:00","slug":"book-review-how-birds-fly-by-peter-cavanagh","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bookloves.com\/?p=2374","title":{"rendered":"Book Review: How Birds Fly by Peter Cavanagh"},"content":{"rendered":"
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How Birds Fly<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

by Peter Cavanagh<\/p>\n

Genre:<\/strong> Nonfiction \/ Birds<\/p>\n

ISBN: <\/strong>9780228104865<\/p>\n

Print Length:<\/strong> 336 pages<\/p>\n

Publisher:<\/strong> Firefly Books<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Reviewed by Toni Woodruff<\/em><\/p>\n

<\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong><\/strong>An abundance of knowledge & discovery\u00e2\u0080\u0094a full-color, action-shot book unraveling the mystery of bird flight<\/strong>\u00c2\u00a0<\/h2>\n

Peter Cavanagh might be an expert on aircraft flight aerodynamics, anatomy, and biomechanics, but he\u2019s also a first-rate bird photographer, capable of capturing birds in motion\u2014before, during, and after flight\u2014and adept at revealing the truth about how (most) birds fly. <\/p>\n

How Birds Fly<\/em> is conversational yet deeply informed, a book that\u2019s as useful (and gorgeous) for everyday birders as it is a resource for ornithologists. From bones to wingtips to wind breaks and beyond, birds take to the skies in constantly evolving ways; like history, this book starts with the dinosaurs and travels through time as the birds transform into the efficient aerialists we know today.<\/p>\n

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Each chapter ends with a one-page \u201cFrom the Lab\u201d study, where Cavanagh details a scientific study that answers a particular question about bird flight. One of the more fascinating conversations going on here is that which correlates to human-made flight, like gliders and planes. One particular \u201cFrom the Lab\u201d study does a remarkable job of discussing the morphing of wings and tails in drones to mimic successful bird flight.<\/p>\n

Cavanagh\u2019s expertise on aerodynamics makes this a one-of-a-kind resource; only this scientist with this set of motion photography skills can make a book both as visually and mentally stimulating as this one. We might not be able to ask the creatures how they do it, but at least we have Cavanagh to translate for us.<\/p>\n

As any birder would hope, this book is full of eclectic birds. From hummingbirds taking mid-air rests to whooping crane takeoffs and landings, we get to see a wide range of birds of varying sizes and discover what makes them work. You won\u2019t look at those thermal-coasting turkey vultures the same way again. I\u2019ve always been fascinated with the way they coast on thermals in such rapid, seemingly off-balance ways, and Cavanagh enhances that wonder with science.<\/p>\n

How Birds Fly<\/em> is exactly the resource you want it to be. There\u2019s beauty in the photographs and accessible knowledge in the prose, but it ultimately respects and prioritizes the science. Observatories, nature centers, and your living room will be better off with this thing sitting front and center on your coffee table.<\/p>\n

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Thank you for reading Toni Woodruff\u2019s book review of How Birds Fly <\/em>by Peter Cavanagh! If you liked what you read, please spend some more time with us at the links below.<\/p>\n

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The post Book Review: How Birds Fly by Peter Cavanagh<\/a> appeared first on Independent Book Review<\/a>.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

How Birds Fly by Peter Cavanagh Genre: Nonfiction \/ Birds ISBN: 9780228104865 Print Length: 336 pages Publisher: Firefly Books Amazon Bookshop Reviewed by Toni Woodruff An abundance of knowledge & discovery\u00e2\u0080\u0094a full-color, action-shot book unraveling the mystery of bird flight\u00c2\u00a0 Peter Cavanagh might be an expert on aircraft flight aerodynamics, anatomy, and biomechanics, but he\u2019s […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":2375,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2374","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bookreviews"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bookloves.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2374"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bookloves.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bookloves.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bookloves.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2374"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/bookloves.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2374\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bookloves.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2375"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bookloves.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2374"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bookloves.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2374"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bookloves.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2374"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}