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Start giftingOwls of the Eastern Ice
A Quest to Find and Save the World's Largest Owl
Narrator
Jonathan C. Slaght
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Length
8 hours 43 minutes
Language
English
Bookseller recommendation
“This was just the kind of escape I needed: an epic adventure in a wild place and conservation story wrapped up in a skillfully crafted narrative. Jonathon Slaght engagingly tells the story of his PhD research project, tracking the Blakiston's Fish Owl in the wild reaches of eastern Russia. The world's largest owl, fish owls are super elusive, feeding on salmon in remote Russia, sharing its habitat with Amur tigers and humans trying to get by in extremely harsh circumstances. The owls haunt the pages, mostly unseen as Slaght and his team track them on snowmobile trips over treacherous ice and terrain. Encounters with the locals along the way add another layer to this conservation story. This is a go-to for birders, conservationists, and nature writing fans.”
— Rachel • Brilliant Books Audio
Bookseller recommendation
“This is an incredible story. Fifteen years ago, the scientific community knew zilch about fish owls. Today we know a whole lot more because of a Minnesota graduate student who wanted to know more. This is a road to discovery story—and that the discovery has led to real-world conservation initiatives, makes it even better.”
— Julie • Honest Dog Books
Bookseller recommendation
“Ever wonder what it’s actually like on these months-long trips into the field to study wildlife? This fascinating study of the largest owls in the world will take you out over oceans and deep into the taiga of far eastern Siberia. My wanderlust has been officially stoked.”
— Jeremy • Tattered Cover
Summary
A field scientist and conservationist tracks the elusive Blakiston's Fish Owl in the forbidding reaches of eastern Russia
When he was just a fledgling birdwatcher, Jonathan C. Slaght had a chance encounter with one of the most mysterious birds on Earth. Bigger than any owl he knew, it looked like a small bear with decorative feathers. He snapped a quick photo and shared it with experts. Soon he was on a five-year journey, searching for this enormous, enigmatic creature in the lush, remote forests of eastern Russia. That first sighting set his calling as a scientist.
Despite a wingspan of six feet and a height of over two feet, the Blakiston's fish owl is highly elusive. They are easiest to find in winter, when their tracks mark the snowy banks of the rivers where they feed. They are also endangered. And so, as Slaght and his devoted team set out to locate the owls, they aim to craft a conservation plan that helps ensure the species' survival. This quest sends them on all-night monitoring missions in freezing tents, mad dashes across thawing rivers, and free-climbs up rotting trees to check nests for precious eggs. At the heart of Slaght's story are the fish owls themselves: cunning hunters, devoted parents, singers of eerie duets, and survivors in a harsh and shrinking habitat.