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The Glitter in the Green
In Search of Hummingbirds
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- $ 42.900,00
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- $ 42.900,00
Descripción editorial
'[A] delightful hymn of praise to the most extraordinary of all the world's bird families – hummingbirds' STEPHEN MOSS
'A brilliant read' MARK AVERY
'Ever thoughtful and engaging, Jon Dunn pursues these dazzling creatures through dust and jungle' BENEDICT ALLEN
'A warm-hearted and enthusiastic triumph of nature writing' TIM DEE
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For centuries hummingbirds have captured our imaginations: revered by Native Americans, coveted by European collectors and admired worldwide for their jewel-like plumage, acrobatic flight and immense character.
Though their renown extends throughout the world, hummingbirds are found exclusively in the Americas. Small in stature yet fiercely tenacious, they have conquered every habitat imaginable: from boreal woodlands to deserts, mangrove swamps to volcanic slopes, and on islands both tropical and sub-polar. The Glitter in the Green takes us on an unforgettable journey in search of the most remarkable examples of this wildly variable family. There's the Bee Hummingbird in Cuba, the smallest species of bird to have ever lived; the diminutive Rufous Hummingbird, whose annual migration exceeds 3,000 miles; and the critically endangered Juan Fernández Firecrown, marooned on the remote Pacific island that inspired Robinson Crusoe.
Jon Dunn brings us closer than ever before to these magnificent creatures, exploring a heady mix of rare birds, a history redolent with mythology, and the colourful stories of the people obsessed with hummingbirds through the ages. With great passion for his subject and a taste for adventure, Dunn transports us to wondrous landscapes from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego, and invites us into the kaleidoscopic world of the hummingbird – the bird that has won the hearts and minds of mankind for millennia.
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Natural history writer Dunn (Orchid Summer) takes readers on a wondrous globe-trotting pilgrimage to seek out hummingbirds as their populations are threatened. He stops in Alaska to check on "the most northerly hummingbirds in the world" whose population is in decline (as are birds at the southernmost tip of South America), and visits Patagonia, Ariz., to see "a species at best scarce in the United States." Dunn points to climate change, habitat loss, and hunting as reasons "the clock of extinction is ticking loudly for them." Along the way, Dunn shares odd facts about the birds' physiognomy and behavior—their tongues are so long "that, when retracted, they coil inside the birds' heads around their skulls and eyes," and male Anna's Hummingbirds court prospective mates by making music with their tails. As in the best nature writing, Dunn paints striking pictures: he describes a bird "clad in an impossibly rich and overpowering imperial purple that, as traces of golden light from the lodge struck his breast, exploded into myriad sparks of palatinate life, each feather coruscating and glittering." Dunn's vivid prose, balanced with just the right amount of detail, will captivate birders and non-birders alike.