Bird watching is an odd pastime – not naturally sociable (birders tend to keep themselves to themselves) but one that gets you out in the fresh air, at one with nature. Yes, you can spend hours – literally – staring at a patch of water or a reed bed waiting for an elusive specimen to decide to show itself. But the wait is usually worth it even when you are rewarded with only a few short seconds with a flash of kingfisher blue or a majestic swoop from an osprey picking up its lunch.
To help us identify and learn about the birds we watch there are plenty of helpful books to study. Someone once calculated that there are over 100,000 books about birds in print at any time which is remarkable since there are only 10,000 species of birds in the world! Many of these publications follow a fairly standard format: picture of the bird; identification marks and sounds; habitat; migration paths and so on - all very helpful but rather academic and a bit soulless.
So enter Bill Bailey. As an unexpected Christmas present from my son, Rob, this holiday season I was presented with the wonderfully alliterative hardback: Bill Bailey’s Best of British Birds. Bailey is an established actor, musician and comedian so what was he doing? Just cashing in on a popular pastime, by using his name? Not a bit of it. His book is a delight. One reviewer says: “A visual feast - it is packed with illustrations, sketches and notes by Bailey - as well as informative, it is funny and insightful, and positively crackles with energy, knowledge and wit as he takes us on a journey around the British isles, zooming in on those birds that enthuse him the most. Whether it's what they eat, where they fly to or how they communicate, these birds are always fascinating, and Bailey introduces us to their weird and wonderful ways in a manner that is always entertaining.”
More than that: he has managed to add new facts that will surprise even the most experienced birders. Why didn’t I know that while most birds’ bones are hollow, the dipper’s leg bones are solid to reduce buoyancy and allow it to walk on the river bed?? Also magpies sometimes hold funerals! When one is killed on the road, a companion will squawk to get the attention of others; then they lay blades of grass next to the body before standing in silence for a few moments; then fly off.
It’s the sort of book that the hapless Manny from Black Books would be so happy to sell if he could do so without facing the wrath of Bernard the owner.
Anyhow, whether you have just a passing interest in this odd hobby, Bill Bailey’s book is highly recommended for dipping into on those days when a trip into the fresh air is just too much like hard work.....