15 quotes
Those that live in the air have to fight in the air.
The Life of Birds (1998)
Each [pelican] has already survived many perils in its young life. As a chick, it fought battles with its brothers and sisters and won.
The Life of Birds (1998)
Birds are the most accomplished aeronauts the world has ever seen. They fly high and low, at great speed, and very slowly. And always with extraordinary precision and control.
The Life of Birds (1998)
A spider. Quite big enough and succulent enough to provide a snack for a Scops.
The Life of Birds (1998)
Living on the bodies of mammals, oxpeckers manage to get quite a varied diet. A maggot here, a tick there, a little sip of blood, perhaps a little tasty earwax.
The Life of Birds (1998)
The battle between cuckoos and other birds is a continuing one. The cuckoos developing new stratagems and perhaps finding new victims, and the victims finding new defences.
The Life of Birds (1998)
Mallards must be one of the most familiar birds in the world. Because of that, perhaps we tend to take ducks for granted. But in fact, they are a very varied family.
The Life of Birds (1998)
You might think that a hornbill would have the most powerful excavation tool of all, but in fact its huge beak is a relatively delicate structure and no use at all as a chisel.
The Life of Birds (1998)
Even though hunters have a formidable armoury and great skill, most of their hunting trips... end in failure.
The Life of Birds (1998)
So here you can glimpse what the world would have been like if the birds had won that battle with the early mammals and now ruled the Earth, for here they once did.
The Life of Birds (1998)
Without thermals, [raptors] can't travel far. But the snow geese fly on... They navigate by the stars.
The Life of Birds (1998)
[The Kiwi.] It's the bird equivalent of a badger.
The Life of Birds (1998)
To many of us, however, this is the most delectable of natural sounds. It's an hour before dawn, it's spring, this is an English woodland. All around, the dawn chorus. It's so familiar that perhaps we take it for granted.
The Life of Birds (1998)
Its heart that in flight contracted a thousand times a minute, slows until its beat is virtually undetectable. Its body temperature falls dramatically, and its breathing seems to cease altogether. [...] It's hibernating; but for a hummingbird, winter comes 365 times a year.
The Life of Birds (1998)
As the last thermals of summer start to rise, the birds [hawks and vultures] circle up to great heights, 10,000 feet or more, to give themselves a good start for the long journey ahead. As they glide southwards, slowly losing height, they will look for another thermal and make for its base so that, once again, they will be lifted high enough to reach the next.
The Life of Birds (1998)