Return of the Osprey: A Season of Flight and Wonder

Imagine a fish hawk, its six-foot-wide black and white banded wings backstroking 40 to 100 feet above coastal waters. In a flash of feathers, it hurtles 80 miles per hour headlong toward its prey. Then, in a moment of near suspension, it reverses to dive completely beneath the waves, talons first. Usually it emerges with a wriggling meal, adjusts the fish to the most aerodynamically efficient position and returns to its high perch to share a meal with mate and nestlings. In search of such moments, Gessner (A Wild, Rank Place) explores the salt marshes near his Cape Cod home. In this chronicle of a spring and summer breeding season among four mated pairs of osprey, the author crafts a naturalist's jewel. Kayaking through brackish waters at the ocean's edge, he details life among diverse shore birds and other littoral creatures. Peopling the tale with noted avian authorities, family, friends and local fishermen, he supplements his own seamless writing with citations from his wide reading. After 15 million years of evolution, the osprey ranks high on the seaside food chain. It was nearly decimated in recent decades by DDT-poisoned plankton, nourishment for the herring and other fish this coastal raptor exclusively feeds upon. Now, as it returns to habitats long left vacant, it reoccupies its former ecological niche. Through textured anecdotes and graphic details, Gessner provides insights into the life and history of this great sea bird of prey that will delight both the committed birder and the general reader. BOMC Selection. (Mar. 30)