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Summary: Bird Brains: The Intelligence of Crows, Ravens, Magpies Jays
Review: Absolutely fascinating with both pictures and text. Leaves you wanting more. Shows concrete proof that corvids (especially ravens)are possibly one of the top three most intelligent species on the planet. Even if you can't possibly bring it in yourself to believe that, it's still a great book to read and use as a reference, especially if you are interested in drawing birds. The glimpses of the signifigance of corvids in religions, folklore and literature are eye-opening, but they are glimpses and not really fleshed out. It's a small quibble--this is one of the most beautiful AND thought-provoking books I own
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Summary: Great book, fun to read
Review: I have long enjoyed watching crows. This book is helpful to show other people why I have found crows so fascinating. This not a heavy scientific read. It is lite but very enjoyable. If you like crows or want to know more about crows this is a good starting place. I have also found that kids enjoy this book.
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Summary: Great book, fun to read
Review: I have long enjoyed watching crows. This book is helpful to show other people why I have found crows so fascinating. This not a heavy scientific read. It is lite but very enjoyable. If you like crows or want to know more about crows this is a good starting place. I have also found that kids enjoy this book.
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Summary: Magpies, & Ravens, and Crows, Oh My!
Review: I loved this book, simple as that. Yes, it is a coffee table-type book, but it's a great coffee table-type book. I became interested in corvids when a very young blue jay flew into my house one day only to discover that in flying into a human's home, there might be fat cats waiting to pounce. The Blue Jay ("Sky")learned quickly and never flew in again. He also learned which cat was the Hunter and which cat was the lazy cat. He avoids the Hunter at all costs, but knows the lazy one's habits so well, that he will brazenly drop down next to the comatose cat and hide his peanuts in the grass, just inches from the feline. Amazing. That's a form of identity branding, which means Sky has a mind. I also learned more about my neighborhood crows and why they'll engage in conversation with me every morning. Thanks to this book, I am indeed wiser regarding my local flying friends and will treat them with the respect they deserve.
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Summary: Good idea, flawed execution
Review: Ravens, Crows, Jays, Nutcrackers, and - of course - magpies (corvids to you!) are among the most intelligent of living creatures. Ravens are probably the smartest of the group and, at least in terms of ability to evaluate the meaning of a new situation, may even be comparable to apes and dolphins. This book offers a very basic generalist's look at these birds and their intelligence. Its virtues are a nice layout, clearly-written, though superficial, text and some beautiful photographs. If you don't expect too much substance, it is a passable introduction to the subject. On the other hand, there are annoying flaws. Some of the photographs (the ones at the heads of chapters) are neither credited nor captioned). There's a two page spread describing "typical members of the crow family" that gives thumbnail descriptions of 15 corvids, but the descriptions are maddeningly inconsistent. The American Crow is "almost twice the size of an American Robin", but the Common Raven is "as big as a large hawk" and the Rook is "two-thirds the size of a raven". Quick, which is bigger, a Rook or an American Crow? And is that Raven that the Rook is two-thirds the size of an Eastern Raven, a Western Raven, a European Raven, or a Raven Maniac from trying to figure this chart out? Obviously author and editor could have used some help from corvids in figuring out how to make this a more user-friendly book. The index promises more than it delivers. What's eating these creatures anyhow? Well, if you look up predators in the index, you'll be led to (among other things) a photograph of a splatter of raven parts and a caption saying that a goshawk ate the raven. This is about as detailed as it gets. Do goshawks usually eat ravens (they're about the same size)? How about vice-versa (Bernd Heinrich has an account of how he once foolishly put a harrier [marsh hawk] and a raven in the same cage overnight and found nothing left of the hawk the next morning except a feather or two)? Where do the various corvids fit in the food chains in their ecosystems? It wouldn't have taken much space to address the issue. There was certainly space for it, even if some of the more vapid musing had to give way. Or maybe I'm expecting too much and this is really nothing more than a coffee table book with some text to soothe the conscience and all of its intelligence in the fourth word of the title... If you want a sense of the real wonders of corvid intelligence, find one of the Bernd Heinrich raven books and you will marvel at what you read. As for this one, it's disappointingly shallow. I found it, except for the photographs and the odd gem of insight that I could, magpie-like, pluck out and carry with me, a waste of time and money.
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Summary: Lively writing, spectacular pictures
Review: Savage's entertaining book explores the behaviors of the most intelligent of birds: the crows, ravens, magpies and jays. Beautifully illustrated with 61 color photographs, this large-format volume uses the latest scientific and anecdotal evidence to show how these birds, slaves to instinct in such things as nest-building, will, nevertheless, use their powers of learning and observation to improvise repairs.She explores the social and family lives of jays who apprentice younger birds in rearing new families, ravens showing off flying expertise in courtship games, crows evaluating food. While perfectly willing to speculate about the mental processes behind bird decisions, Savage is always careful to separate fancy from scientific fact. The writing is clear and entertaining and the pictures are spectacular.
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Summary: A picture can be worth a hundred thousand words
Review: The photographs in this book absolutely shine, and in my mind more than compensate for any shortcomings in the slightly cursory text. How could photographs give one insight into the minds of animals? I still don't understand how, but I now know it to be possible.
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Summary: Depends on what you are looking for
Review: This book has some interesting anecdotes on Crows, Ravens & Jays, and it does also describe much of the day to day life of these birds. The book is more than 50% full page photographs, and the photography is excellent. There are a few Brandenburg photos that have the Brandenburg touch, an animal filmed intimately close. But if you are trying to do reseach on animal intelligence, this book is too shallow for that. It glosses over some reseach and incidents that I've read about more thouroughly in other sources. I wanted to say but but there's more... or yes but that has only been observed in two locations. If you are looking for photography and some general knowledge on corvids, this is the book. If you are researching animal intelligence, try George Page for a solid introduction. I think the title is Animal Minds. And if you already know quite a bit about this subject, you know where to look better than I do.
Rating:
Summary: Depends on what you are looking for
Review: This book has some interesting anecdotes on Crows, Ravens & Jays, and it does also describe much of the day to day life of these birds. The book is more than 50% full page photographs, and the photography is excellent. There are a few Brandenburg photos that have the Brandenburg touch, an animal filmed intimately close. But if you are trying to do reseach on animal intelligence, this book is too shallow for that. It glosses over some reseach and incidents that I've read about more thouroughly in other sources. I wanted to say but but there's more... or yes but that has only been observed in two locations. If you are looking for photography and some general knowledge on corvids, this is the book. If you are researching animal intelligence, try George Page for a solid introduction. I think the title is Animal Minds. And if you already know quite a bit about this subject, you know where to look better than I do.
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Summary: Imagery for the corvid lover
Review: This book has some of the most spectacular images of crows, ravens, and magpies that Ive ever seen. Some may come across this book searching for a scientific tome rather than a beautifully constructed photo oriented coffee table book. But even the most staunch scientific mind will appreciate the beauty of these pictures. Buy it, you wont regret anything.
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