The Secret Perfume of Birds: Uncovering the Science of Avian Scent

Evolutionary biologist Whittaker blends science writing and memoir to explore how birds make use of odors in her delightful debut. “The conventional wisdom stated that birds gave up the ability to smell in exchange for superior eyesight,” Whittaker writes, though, in fact, her research on the junco, a common North American sparrow, refuted that notion: she discovered that the birds do in fact use scent, for such purposes as finding their nests and picking mates. It comes down to odor-producing bacteria, she writes, which are stored in birds’ preen oil and communicate information about the birds’ “identity and quality.” She also entertainingly recounts her unconventional career path: as an undergrad, she was an “indoorsy” English major before she switched to study evolutionary primatology in graduate school, followed by “several more years in the laboratory coaxing DNA out of gibbon poop,” which led to a study of genes responsible for sexual attraction in animals—these genes, in turn, led to her work challenging centuries of thinking about avian scent. Whittaker’s a natural explainer, and her willingness to poke fun at herself only enhances her fascinating account. Fans of Jon Dunn and Jonathan Meiburg will be charmed. (Mar.)