Pacific Flyway

The migratory waterbirds of the Pacific Flyway convert food, air, and water into a mileage plan that has few equals in the animal world. Set against a backdrop of stunning images from more than 120 internationally acclaimed photographers, this book shares the amazing stories of these migrants - a cast of characters that includes shorebirds, seabirds and waterfowl. Stretching from the Arctic regions of northeastern Russia, Alaska and western Canada and along the Pacific coastlines of North, Central and South America, the Pacific Flyway traverses some of our planet's greatest climatic and topographic extremes. Defined by water, the flyway encompasses a sweeping expanse of coastal and offshore marine ecosystems and an inland archipelago of freshwater wetlands. Hemispheric in scope, this integrated network of ecosystems is linked by its moving parts - the millions of migratory birds whose lives depend on this 10,000-mile (16,000-km) corridor as they travel between their breeding and overwintering grounds. With their ocean- and continent-spanning travels, waterbirds are our sentinels in a changing world, each of their journeys revealing the fraying edges of the web of life that sustains us all. 'Pacific Flyway' perfectly blends amazing photography, science writing and storytelling to illuminate the profound challenges faced by migratory birds and to inspire a long-term commitment to global conservation efforts.

"Visually stunning and expertly presented, [Pacific Flyway] spotlights bird migrations along the Pacific coast. In admiring prose, the authors marvel at seagulls, ducks, snow geese, and other 'feathered ambassadors.' Readers who want to learn about bird migrations will find this volume educational, while those simply in search of escape will find it a stimulating and scenic journey." --Publishers Weekly

Audrey DeLella Benedict is a biologist and writer, a naturalist in the classic tradition. She is the founder and director of Cloud Ridge Naturalists, a forty-year-old nonprofit natural history education and publishing program, and has guided trips from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Audrey is the author of several books, including The Salish Sea: Jewel of the Pacific Northwest and Explore the Salish Sea: A Nature Guide for Kids. Dr. Geoffrey Hammerson retired after 32 years as research zoologist for The Nature Conservancy and NatureServe, where his duties included coordinating conservation status assessments of North American birds. He has taught university courses focusing on bird biology for 40 years and has led hundreds of field trips across the western hemisphere, from the Arctic to southern South America and Antarctica. Dr. Robert Butler, ornithologist, author, filmmaker, artist, and adjunct professor of biological sciences at Simon Fraser University has watched, listened to, and lived among birds for 40 years in a variety of environments. His book, The Great Blue Heron, is considered a definitive study. He serves on the boards of the Nature Trust of British Columbia and the Pacific WildLife Foundation.