In the past two decades, our understanding of the navigational and
physiological feats that enable birds to cross immense oceans, fly above
the highest mountains, or remain in unbroken flight for months at a
stretch has exploded. What we've learned of these key migrations--how
billions of birds circumnavigate the globe, flying tens of thousands of
miles between hemispheres on an annual basis--is nothing short of
extraordinary.
Bird migration entails almost unfathomable endurance, like a
sparrow-sized sandpiper that will fly nonstop from Canada to
Venezuela--the equivalent of running 126 consecutive marathons without
food, water, or rest--avoiding dehydration by drinking moisture from its
own muscles and organs, while orienting itself using the earth's
magnetic field through a form of quantum entanglement that made Einstein
queasy. Crossing the Pacific Ocean in nine days of nonstop flight, as
some birds do, leaves little time for sleep, but migrants can put half
their brains to sleep for a few seconds at a time, alternating
sides--and their reaction time actually improves.
These and other revelations convey both the wonder of bird migration and
its global sweep, from the mudflats of the Yellow Sea in China to the
remote mountains of northeastern India to the dusty hills of southern
Cyprus. This breathtaking work of nature writing from Pulitzer Prize
finalist Scott Weidensaul also introduces readers to those scientists,
researchers, and bird lovers trying to preserve global migratory
patterns in the face of climate change and other environmental
challenges.
Drawing on his own extensive fieldwork, in A World on the Wing
Weidensaul unveils with dazzling prose the miracle of nature taking
place over our heads.
