This book, first published in 1960 and long out of print though still available, is the perfect companion for the bird lover, as useful at the fireside as it is in the field. It is in itself a little work of art. The illustrations are each reproductions of paintings rather than photographs, some in colour but many in black and white. Though they seem a little posed and lack something of the 'high definition clarity we expect now, nevertheless they give an impression of the vitality of each bird that is quite captivating. 

Though the pictures are wonderful for me it is the text that accompanies the pictures that is so thrilling. Each one presents a short general description followed by a sentence each on haunt, nest, eggs, food and notes. The writing is superb and often poetic. The Goldfinch, for example, is described as having "A high tinkling twitter, reminiscent of Japanese wind-bells. Song, similar and fairy like." Or that of the Chaffinch: " ...a high rollicking cadence ending up with a flourish." Such eloquence is based on long practised observation.

In hindsight, the book also offers a fascinating insight into social attitudes towards the natural world. The preface, for example, contains an affectionate recollection of how the author rescued a Guillemot that was covered in oil. It is a description from a time when such things were of less concern than they are now, and marks an early example of ecological activism that perhaps we are too used to reading about. The Foreword is written by Frances, Countess of Warwick, a supporter of the Bird Lovers' League and admirer of "the Misses Benson." Though it is not uncommon now, nor was then, for such books to contain little peons of praise from some distinguished figure, this seems to me to particularly reflect the long standing association in Britain between the aristocracy and their (assumed) natural guardianship of the environment. She acutely observes the then growing interest in animal and bird life from that of "a very small section of the community...whose circumstances enabled them to indulge their inclination..." to something more widespread. It contains an irony that would seem to have been missed, perhaps due to a peculiar sort of myopia that is characteristic of those who pursue certain causes out of sentiment. The Countess notes that the members of the League have each "pledged himself or herself never to keep a bird in a cage..." while at the same time noting that she has "over four hundred in my aviary here...rescued from unsuitable conditions." No doubt they were kept with good intention and were better off than before, but I cannot imagine anyone making such a remark or failing to spot such an irony now.

Handy in its size and scope for the task of practical bird-watching, this book is a product of solid field craft that opened the eyes of a generation to the birds around them. It is one of the treasures of British naturalism.

 
 


Comments




Leave a Reply