Band-Tailed Pigeons : Wilderness Bird at Risk

by Mathewson, Worth

• ISBN13: 9780881927122
• ISBN10: 0881927120
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2005-05-15
• Publisher: Timber Pr

Summary

"A longtime hunter in the coastal range of Oregon takes stock of his favorite prey, the band-tailed pigeon," reported The New York Times in the summer of 2003. What made Worth Mathewson's writing about the western wilderness pigeon newsworthy is not his elegant evocation of the damp, spicy scent of a Pacific Northwest river valley or his keen observations of bandtails flying high and fast over a canyon. Rather the press took note of an avid hunter blaming overhunting and bad management for the devastation of a species. Wary by nature yet brave under fire, the magnificent bandtail has long thrilled the sportsman. Some attribute the bird's decline to habitat loss, but Mathewson, in this complete natural history, carefully builds his case to the contrary. While trichomoniasis and spraying of broadleaf trees may contribute, the human factor is paramount: a persistently callous attitude toward Patagioenas fasciata may keep it in a downward spiral. If modest protections are lifted at the first signs of recovery, its fate may be sealed. With drawings by noted wildlife artist David Hagerbaumer, color photographs by the author and Margaret Thompson Mathewson, and an extensive bibliography, this finely rendered, affecting portrait of a wild bird with a troubled past is nothing short of a call to action.

Table of Contents

Preface	9	(2)
From British Columbia to Peru	11	(10)
Wings over the Firs	21	(14)
The Single Egg	35	(8)
A Thin Platform of Sticks	43	(10)
Seasonal Smorgasbord	53	(14)
A Drink of Salt	67	(12)
To the South and Back	79	(10)
A New Predator	89	(14)
Afield with Gun	103	(14)
Wild Pigeon Shooting	117	(18)
The Bandtail Question	135	(26)
Bibliography	161	(18)
Index	179