Birds, Beaches, and Biologists

Flamingos, snowy egrets, ospreys, terns, black skimmers: These are nature stories. What is it like to follow white-tailed tropicbirds in a small plane, miles from land, over the vast Caribbean Sea? Or capture wintering common terns from a small shark fishing boat in southern Trinidad? Chesapeake Bay, Puerto Rico, Trinidad, Guyana, Suriname, Southern France: This is a travelogue. How does a "flamingo roundup" in France include people from seven countries (and five languages) working in unison? How did a disappearing island (now being restored) in Chesapeake Bay once sheltering Native Americans, British troops, and a fishing village become a wildlife mecca? Searing heat, hungry insects, boat problems, rescuing men at sea. This is a true-life adventure. Learn how fieldwork in Green Bay, Wisconsin on night herons ends with saving two fishermen from drowning. They are all part of Dr. Michael Erwin's 40-plus-year career as a wildlife biologist. He brings his colorful experiences - the discoveries, the challenges, the dangers, and the joys - back to life in this riveting recollection of his love affair with our Planet Earth.