Please note: not to be confused with the 2013 book by Mark Cocker by the same title.
A portfolio drawn from the world's greatest bird photographers drives the message of this book home. Birds and People is split into five chapters looking at all aspects of human's relationship with birds.
The first looks the place birds occupy in our culture – both ancient and modern and the second looks at the influence of birds in art. Then there is the use of birds for food, feathers and fertilisers; leading onto to the many ways we benefit from birds. Pest control, pollination and the growth of bird tourism – enabling some of the world's poorest countries to benefit from their rich and diverse avifauna. The final chapter explores what we can learn from studying bird behaviour; their changing habits, such as shifting their ranges closer to the poles are tangible evidence of climate change.
Birds and People is a celebration of our relationship with birds and the joy that they bring us. It's a co-publication between CEMEX, Agrupacion Sierra Madre, and BirdLife International.
Nigel Collar (author) has been named as one of the most influential conservationists in the UK by BBC Wildlife magazine, he has worked at Birdlife International for over thirty years and supervises PhD work on threatened birds in habitats all around the world.
Patricio Robles Gil (editor and photographer) is a leading bird and wildlife photographer, and also the founder and president of Agrupacion Sierra Madre and Unidos para la Conservacion, two Mexico based conservation organisation. Patricio has received awards from the North American Nature Photography Association and the BBC for his work.
"It is a sumptuously produced book with beautiful photographs, aiming to get people to renew their bond with the natural world"
- BTO News (January-February 2008) Issue 274