From Ravens to Jackdaws and Choughs to Jays, crows are among some of Britain's most familiar, abundant and opinion-dividing birds. The UK's eight crow species all belong to the Corvidae family, and they have been deeply intertwined in our lives and culture since prehistoric times. Crows have long attracted a bad press. Reviled as scavengers, crop raiders and jewellery thieves, these birds – known to scientists are corvids – have often found themselves on the wrong end of a shotgun. Yet behind crows' supposed misdemeanours lies exceptional intelligence and resourcefulness, which both explain their success and have taught us much about animal behaviour. In Spotlight Crows, Mike Unwin introduces the UK's eight corvid species, outlining their fascinating natural history and offering essential identification tips. He also explores the mythology and folklore that have embedded these remarkable birds so deeply in our culture, from nursery rhymes to horror movies. The Spotlight series introduces readers to the lives and behaviour of our favourite animals with eye-catching colour photography and informative expert text.

RSPB Spotlight Crows is packed with eye-catching, informative colour photos and features succinct, detailed text written by a knowledgeable naturalist. In Spotlight Crows, Mike Unwin looks at the biology and ecology of all eight UK corvids and investigates why these birds have become deeply embedded in our culture, from children's rhymes and Norse mythology to Shakespeare's plays and the poems of Edgar Allen Poe. Most of the UK's crow species--carrion crow, hooded crow, rook, jackdaw, raven, chough, magpie and jay--are very familiar birds to urban householder and countryside dweller alike. Together they make up the Corvidae family, and they have been deeply intertwined in our lives and culture since prehistoric times. However, familiarity often breeds contempt, and crows--also known as corvids--have long attracted a bad press. Reviled as raiders of crops, feeders on carrion, thieves of jewelry and bullies of smaller birds, crows have often found themselves on the wrong end of a shotgun. Yet the more we learn about them, the more fascinating they become. Behind the behavior some find objectionable lie exceptional intelligence and resourcefulness. These qualities have long captivated scientists and excited the admiration of anyone who takes the time to know crows better.

Robins is packed with eye-catching, informative colour photos and succinct, detailed text written by a knowledgeable expert. Our most iconic bird, the Robin, is one of the most characterful and familiar of all our garden visitors. Their melodious voices, bright red breasts and cheeky attitudes always endear them to us, but how much do we really know about them? Despite their cute appearance, Robins are aggressively territorial and hold their territories all year. Their year-round presence has helped them become a beloved and instantly recognisable species. In this delightful book, Marianne Taylor provides a revealing account of their life cycle, behaviour and breeding, what they eat and how they hold their territories, and she looks into the many cultural representations of these much-loved little birds. The Spotlight series introduces readers to the lives and behaviour of our favourite animals.

RSPB Spotlight: Frogs and Toads is packed with eye-catching, informative colour photos, and features succinct and detailed text written by an expert on these amphibians. They were bestowed with magical properties in folklore, they were sought after as ingredients of witches' broth, and they are comic characters that have invaded popular culture, from Kermit the Frog to Toad of Toad Hall. Frogs and toads are charismatic members of Britain's wildlife. But what do you really know about them? Scratch beneath the surface, and you will discover some of nature's weirdest creatures, amphibians whose ecology we are only now coming to understand. Spotlight Frogs and Toads is a compelling account of Britain's four native amphibian species: the Common Frog, the Pool Frog, the Common Toad and the rare and secretive Natterjack Toad. New research suggests that, in the next ten years, three out of four UK species are likely to be listed as threatened. Revealing a host of secrets, including how they migrate, what they eat, and how they got to the UK in the first place, Jules Howard inspires us all to look down, rather than up, in spring. The Spotlight series introduces readers to the lives and behaviour of our favourite animals with eye-catching colour photographs and informative expert text.

Though not generally perceived as graceful, crows are remarkably so—a single curve undulates from the tip of the bird’s beak to the end of its tail. They take flight almost without effort, flapping their wings easily and ascending into the air like spirits. Crow by Boria Sax is a celebration of the crow and its relatives in myth, literature, and life. Sax takes readers into the history of crows, detailing how in a range of cultures, from the Chinese to the Hopi Indians, crows are bearers of prophecy. For example, thanks in part to the birds’ courtship rituals, Greeks invoked crows as symbols of conjugal love. From the raven sent out by Noah to the corvid deities of the Eskimo, from Taoist legends to Victorian novels and contemporary films, Sax’s book ranges across history and culture and will interest anyone who has ever been intrigued, puzzled, annoyed, or charmed by these wonderfully intelligent birds.

Offers insight into crows' ability to make tools and respond to environmental challenges, explaining how they engage in human-like behaviors, from giving gifts and seeking revenge to playing and experiencing dreams.

RSPB Spotlight: Ducks and Geese is packed with eye-catching, informative colour photos, and features succinct, detailed text written by a knowledgeable naturalist. This is a detailed 'biography' of ducks and geese that breed in or regularly visit the UK – covering 30 species in all. It will include chapters on the evolution of ducks and geese, their place in the natural world, their anatomy and physiology, various feeding methods, spectacular courtship displays and diverse breeding behaviour. Marianne Taylor reveals their often epic migrations and examine their social interactions with their own and other species, including their unusual readiness to hybridise. She also details their relationships with humankind over the centuries, including their presence in folklore and literature and their role in our lives as both prey and pets. She explores their presence as feral and sometimes invasive species outside their natural ranges, and their current status within their native wild ranges as the group includes several species recently recognised as being of global conservation concern.

What is a bird? To answer that, we must understand how birds are different from all other living things and how they fit into the diversity of life on Earth. This excellent RSPB guide to bird anatomy looks at the avian body, system by system, how it evolved, and how it functions. Chapters explore traits that are unique to birds, including their remarkable one-way breathing cycle, their trimmed-down skeleton, how feathers permit flight, provide weather-proofing and add beauty, and the avian bill – a lightweight replacement for both teeth and food-handling forelimbs. Each chapter tackles a particular body system and includes detailed anatomical illustrations, from cells and organs to skeletons and muscles, to show how birds' anatomical adaptations enable all their physical feats and fascinating behaviour. Feature spreads offer more in-depth analysis on topics like birdsong, temperature control, ornamentation, unusual diets, social behaviour, nocturnal adaptations, mutation and natural selection. Featuring more than 300 diagrams and colour photos, this fascinating new book also looks at the human impact on the avian world and reveals how behaviour and anatomy work together to produce these vibrant living beings that delight and inspire us so much.

“Crows and people share similar traits and social strategies. To a surprising extent, to know the crow is to know ourselves.”—from the Preface From the cave walls at Lascaux to the last painting by Van Gogh, from the works of Shakespeare to those of Mark Twain, there is clear evidence that crows and ravens influence human culture. Yet this influence is not unidirectional, say the authors of this fascinating book: people profoundly influence crow culture, ecology, and evolution as well. John Marzluff and Tony Angell examine the often surprising ways that crows and humans interact. The authors contend that those interactions reflect a process of “cultural coevolution.” They offer a challenging new view of the human-crow dynamic—a view that may change our thinking not only about crows but also about ourselves. Featuring more than 100 original drawings, the book takes a close look at the influences people have had on the lives of crows throughout history and at the significant ways crows have altered human lives. In the Company of Crows and Ravens illuminates the entwined histories of crows and people and concludes with an intriguing discussion of the crow-human relationship and how our attitudes toward crows may affect our cultural trajectory.

RSPB Spotlight: Swifts and Swallows is packed with eye-catching, informative colour photos, and features succinct, detailed text written by a knowledgeable naturalist. People all over Britain and Europe have long welcomed the arrival of swifts and swallows as a promise of summer being just around the corner. And with their similar long wings and dashing flight, it is perhaps understandable that we often confuse the two birds. After all, they have much in common: both feed on flying insects, both breed around buildings, and both are long-distance migrants that spend winter in Africa. But appearances can be deceptive. Swifts and swallows are completely unrelated birds that have adapted through evolution to survive in similar ways. In Spotlight: Swifts and Swallows, Mike Unwin reveals their fascinating lifestyles, explains how and why they have acquired their similarities, and ways in which we can help protect them. The Spotlight series introduces readers to the lives and behaviour of our favourite animals with eye-catching colour photography and informative expert text.