Birds of the Homeplace

Ireland is slowly becoming a country of nature and bird enthusiasts. Everyone has a space - gardens, farmland and oases of natural habitat - to enjoy everyday encounters with birds. Familiar the birds may be but their lives can fascinate and they are adapted to survive in ways that surprise. They are centre stage in this book that brings alive the feathered characters of Irish neighbourhoods. Following the success of Birds Through Irish Eyes, Anthony McGeehan and Julian Wyllie take on the task of showcasing over seventy species, from Coal Tits, which choose to drop more seed from feeders than they carry away, to Irish Swallows, which avoid dying from thirst while crossing the Sahara. Some are permanent residents, others use Ireland as one of several homes. Distinctive descriptions are complemented by stunning photographs. 'Common-or-garden' is a term that has patronised Ireland's familiar birds for too long. Discover what our birds do and enjoy them even more.

There are birds all around us: in gardens, neighbourhoods, farms, towns and cities. Once you look, they become familiar - a whole new world of wonder. Some grow brain tissue to enlarge their memory capacity of where they hide food. Blackbirds search for prey they cannot see. Songbirds lose ten per cent of body weight overnight.