The Owl Handbook: Investigating the Lives, Habits, and Importance of These Enigmatic Birds

This solid survey from nature photographer Shewey (The Hummingbird Handbook) contains trivia on all things owl. He explains that the tufts adorning the heads of such species as the great horned owl likely serve as camouflage, “making the owl’s head look... like a broken limb top,” and that owl eyes are tubular and locked in place, which the predators compensate for with extra neck vertebrae that allow them to rotate their heads 270 degrees. Profiling various North American species, Shewey notes that burrowing owls make their homes in the abandoned holes of prairie dogs, and that great gray owls have superb hearing that enables them to pinpoint prey under snow cover. Elsewhere, Shewey explores threats to owls, urging readers to refrain from using rodent poison since it often ends up ingested by the birds, and to take down soccer nets when not in use so owls don’t get ensnared in them. The plentiful photos and maps showing the range of each species will be a boon to birders, as will the suggestions on how to responsibly seek out owls in the wild. (Shewey recommends keeping one’s distance and refraining from luring the predators with food so they don’t become reliant on humans.) The result is a competent overview of the nocturnal predators. Photos. (Jan.)