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Atlas of Rare Birds
Dominic Couzens talks exclusively to Surfbirds about his new book
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| Dominic Couzens is based in Britain and has been a freelance writer and birding tour leader for more than 20 years. He has travelled widely in search of birds and his many publications includes Top 100 Birding Sites of the World, Bird Migration and The Complete Back Garden Birdwatcher; he is also a regular contributor to a wide range of natural history magazines. |
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Surfbirds: Dominic, you've authored a number of bird books in recent years including the highly acclaimed Top 100 Birding Sites of the World. How does this one compare?
Dominic: I have always wanted to write a book on bird conservation, so I'm very excited by it. My editor, Simon Papps at New Holland, has once again done a magnificent job of bringing in photographs, so we have such things as Ivory-billed Woodpecker and White-eyed River Martin.
Surfbirds: This is a fabulous book. How long has it taken you to research the stories behind the 50 species?
Dominic: It took about six months – and before that it took a long time to choose the species to include.
Surfbirds: What was the objective of writing Atlas of Rare Birds? Who do you want to read this book and what action, if any, would you like them to take after reading it?
Dominic: I have several objectives, including the more obvious ones of promoting awareness of conservation and hoping to encourage people to take action, even if that's only giving away money!
However, I also wanted to get people excited and enthused about rare birds. There is a danger in the conservation movement that we can all get a bit depressed and gloomy. Hence I have included stories about newly discovered or rediscovered species. Hopefully, the subject can be fun and interesting, as well as important.
Surfbirds: How did you go about selecting the 50 species? How did you arrive at your 10 chapter headings?
Dominic: I was very keen to avoid having 50 stories that were basically the same: bird happy, people come along, bird endangered. I was extremely keen to make the narrative as varied as possible. So, for example, while I have included such well known stories as the Kakapo, I have also included some obscure rarities, and put in some stories of birds that might yet become endangered, such as the Red-legged Kittiwake and Lesser Flamingo.
Surfbirds: Which species story left the greatest mark on you?
Dominic: It has to be the strange tale of the White-eyed River Martin. Its appearance and disappearance are more extraordinary than any human murder mystery.
Surfbirds: If there was one species you could see or re-discover yourself, which species would it be and why?
Dominic: It would be tempting to say Ivory-billed Woodpecker, because there's a big reward! But after the optimism of the so-called rediscovery in 2004, it would be great to re-find this bird, just to imbue a happier ending into a chastening story.
Surfbirds: There's a rarity hunter in each of us. For those with time and money which lost species would you suggest they go in search of?
Dominic: There's an easy answer for this: the Night Parrot of Australia. It definitely still exists, and soon somebody will stumble upon a live specimen that they will film in the wild.
Surfbirds: This publication has been supported by Birdlife International. How have they helped you in this project?
Dominic:Their website is a mine of research information and I couldn't have written the book without it. They were also good enough to read through the text and check the information, and then they put their endorsement on the book.
Surfbirds: As you say in your introduction "rarity and vulnerability" are not the same thing; climate change will have profound effects on the world's avian biodiversity during the 21st century. Where should British conservationists concentrate their efforts – on the demise of once common migrants and residents such as Spotted Flycatcher, Turtle Dove, Corn Bunting and Skylark - now experiencing dramatic declines on a local scale - or the truly endangered species highlighted by your book?
Dominic: Apologies for a PC answer, but surely both are equally important.
In the future we will have to be more practical about such choices, but for the moment a two-track system of protection seems fine.
Surfbirds: This book is a celebration of the work of unsung birders, conservationists, local, natonal and international conservation bodies. Does one person or organisation stand out above the others for their efforts in saving a species?
Dominic: Personally, I think that the efforts of conservationists in the Seychelles and New Zealand stand out.
Surfbirds: At times you're critical of birders, bird tour operators, parrot fanciers and even the scientific establishment. Could such individuals or groups try harder?
Dominic: The aim of the book isn't to be critical, but we need to be honest about mistakes made in the past. If we learn from these, that is enough.
At the same time, I don't intend to defend the indefensible, such as some of the actions of aviculturalists in regard to the Spix's Macaw, for example.
Surfbirds: Which species in your view merits most attention in the race to prevent another extinction?
Dominic: Perhaps surprisingly, I have a clear answer for this. The Marvellous Spatuletail is a spectacular, famous and celebrated species, recently featured on TV and subject to a lot of attention. If this hummingbird were to become extinct, it would be a complete disaster.
Surfbirds: How has writing the book changed your own perspective on birds and birding?
Dominic: If anything, it has cemented my admiration for hard-working birders and conservationists on the front line. It has also helped me appreciate what we have now.
Surfbirds: Which one person would you most like to read and be influenced by this book?
Dominic: The Pope would be a good one, so long as he passed it on to the Archbishop of Canterbury as well. I think that the churches should be at the forefront of conservation concern.
Surfbirds: What's your next project?
Dominic: I'm writing a small book about a year in a local patch.
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