What an Owl Knows: The new science of the world’s most enigmatic birds
Jennifer Ackerman
(Oneworld, £16.99)
UNTIL I read this book, I never realised exactly how many different types of owls there are out there; from the snowy Arctic to tropical jungles, desert to pastoral, owls have adapted to so many specialised lifestyles worldwide. The bird might be easily recognisable, thanks to its distinctive shape, but it means so many different things to different cultures, from knowledge and wisdom to being a harbinger of death, widely admired for its staggeringly silent flight and ability to hunt with pinpoint accuracy by hearing alone.
‘An owl is an owl is an owl. Not so,’
