Summary of "The Bird Way" by Blinkist:
- The book explores the remarkable behaviors and strategies of birds from around the world, presenting them as powerful metaphors for understanding human behavior.
- Birds have developed ingenious ways to solve various challenges in their lives, such as finding food, attracting mates, and protecting themselves from predators.
- The author sheds light on different bird species and their unique adaptations, including the ability to mimic sounds, create complex mating displays, and use tools to extract food.
- By examining the bird world, we can gain insights into human behavior and learn valuable lessons applicable to our own lives.
- "The Bird Way" encourages readers to open their minds and explore the unusual ways in which birds have evolved to survive and thrive.
Why should a UX designer read this book?
- Birds are masters of adaptation and problem-solving, just like UX designers. Exploring their strategies can inspire new approaches to solving design challenges.
- The book provides a fresh perspective by drawing parallels between bird behavior
🎀 Highlights
birds can be breathtakingly clever.
birds lay eggs, which means their young develop outside their bodies.
when you’ve seen one bird, you certainly haven’t seen them all.
magpies attack mail carriers and cyclists;
ravens play and crows catch grubs; and
how ravens play and crows catch grubs; and
Fish hide below the water’s surface, while nuts, seeds, and fruits come packaged in tough, resistant shells.
Herons, for example, use leaves and dead insects to lure aquatic prey to the surface.
Herons, for example, use leaves and dead insects to lure aquatic prey to the surface. Other birds, like gulls and ravens, use gravity in an ingenious way: they open clams and nuts by simply pelting them against rocks.
birds, like gulls and ravens, use gravity in an ingenious way: they open clams and nuts by simply pelting them against rocks.
Herons, for example, use leaves and dead insects to lure aquatic prey to the surface. Other
Sittellas find their food by probing holes in gum trees
birds can be breathtakingly clever.
birds lay eggs, which means their young develop outside their bodies.
when you’ve seen one bird, you certainly haven’t seen them all.
magpies attack mail carriers and cyclists;
ravens play and crows catch grubs; and
how ravens play and crows catch grubs; and
Fish hide below the water’s surface, while nuts, seeds, and fruits come packaged in tough, resistant shells.
Herons, for example, use leaves and dead insects to lure aquatic prey to the surface.
Herons, for example, use leaves and dead insects to lure aquatic prey to the surface. Other birds, like gulls and ravens, use gravity in an ingenious way: they open clams and nuts by simply pelting them against rocks.
birds, like gulls and ravens, use gravity in an ingenious way: they open clams and nuts by simply pelting them against rocks.
Herons, for example, use leaves and dead insects to lure aquatic prey to the surface. Other
Sittellas find their food by probing holes in gum trees
Play, after all, requires energy that could instead be used for growing or hunting. It’s also risky. If you’re surfing on pebbles down a river bank, you’re unlikely to spot predators like wolves or eagles.
the German philosopher Karl Groos wrote a book called The Play of Animals. In it, he argued that play allows animals to hone vital life skills like hunting and fighting. Though this assertion is yet to be proven, Groos’s theory is still popular among scientists.
All birds lay eggs, but no two species’ eggs or nests are alike.
out with minor injuries like small cuts and scratches, but diving magpies have also been known to throw cyclists off their bikes and cause more serious ones, especially to the eyes.
diving magpies have also been known to throw cyclists off their bikes and cause more serious ones, especially to the eyes.
Research shows that these birds can recognize up to 30 different human faces and remember them for about 20 years. Since
Research shows that these birds can recognize up to 30 different human faces and remember them for about 20 years.
Eclectus parrots, which are native to the Southwest Pacific, are extremely picky about nesting sites.
tree hollows in the 100 foot-high rainforest canopy.
birdwatchers observed two male bald eagles sharing a nest with a single female. There are also documented cases of female birds co-parenting in a single nest. For example, in 2018, two great horned owls were spotted doing just that in Nevada. Other
birdwatchers observed two male bald eagles sharing a nest with a single female. There are also documented cases of female birds co-parenting in a single nest. For example, in 2018, two great horned owls were spotted doing just that in Nevada.
common merganser duck looking after 76 ducklings, a number too high to have all been her own.
Birds don’t just look after the young of their own species, though – they also foster birds from different species.
interspecific parenting,
tracking down food and protecting their vulnerable offspring.
will use trickery and aggression to keep their young safe. But birds aren’t just evolutionary machines built to eat and reproduce – they can also be remarkably playful and even altruistic creatures.
birds aren’t just evolutionary machines built to eat and reproduce – they can also be remarkably playful and even altruistic creatures.
birds can be breathtakingly clever.
birds lay eggs, which means their young develop outside their bodies.
when you’ve seen one bird, you certainly haven’t seen them all.
magpies attack mail carriers and cyclists;
ravens play and crows catch grubs; and
how ravens play and crows catch grubs; and
Fish hide below the water’s surface, while nuts, seeds, and fruits come packaged in tough, resistant shells.
Herons, for example, use leaves and dead insects to lure aquatic prey to the surface.
Herons, for example, use leaves and dead insects to lure aquatic prey to the surface. Other birds, like gulls and ravens, use gravity in an ingenious way: they open clams and nuts by simply pelting them against rocks.
birds, like gulls and ravens, use gravity in an ingenious way: they open clams and nuts by simply pelting them against rocks.
Herons, for example, use leaves and dead insects to lure aquatic prey to the surface. Other
Sittellas find their food by probing holes in gum trees
crows of New Caledonia. Using durable, barb-lined pandanus leaves, these crafty birds make sticks with hooked ends, which allows them to pull grubs out of small holes and cracks.
The fact that these crows are capable of creating them in the first place means they must have an image of what they are building in their minds before they begin constructing it.
Fire helps birds of prey find food, with some raptors even starting their own fires.
brown falcons, and whistling kites, all of whom have been observed flying into active blazes, picking up smoldering sticks, and dropping them over unburnt grassland.
bushmaster, which is a venomous pit viper that can kill a human with a single bite, are a threat to large animals.
burchellii, more commonly known as army ants.
Greek verb kleptein, meaning “to steal.”
Without the ants, it would take this bird an entire day to rack up a similar calorie count.
Army ants, however, cover so much ground that they end up corralling these bugs into a relatively small area. This is a gift for thieves like the ocellated antbird,
In his memorable opinion, the raven is a “grim, ungainly, ghastly, gaunt, and ominous bird.” It is true, though, that ravens have a dark side. Their society is rigidly hierarchical, and disputes over food and territory usually end in bloodshed.
they rob the nests of other birds and sometimes peck out the eyes of defenseless, newborn lambs.
Play, after all, requires energy that could instead be used for growing or hunting. It’s also risky. If you’re surfing on pebbles down a river bank, you’re unlikely to spot predators like wolves
Play, after all, requires energy that could instead be used for growing or hunting. It’s also risky. If you’re surfing on pebbles down a river bank, you’re unlikely to spot predators like wolves or eagles.
the German philosopher Karl Groos wrote a book called The Play of Animals. In it, he argued that play allows animals to hone vital life skills like hunting and fighting. Though this assertion is yet to be proven, Groos’s theory is still popular among scientists.
All birds lay eggs, but no two species’ eggs or nests are alike.
out with minor injuries like small cuts and scratches, but diving magpies have also been known to throw cyclists off their bikes and cause more serious ones, especially to the eyes.
diving magpies have also been known to throw cyclists off their bikes and cause more serious ones, especially to the eyes.
Research shows that these birds can recognize up to 30 different human faces and remember them for about 20 years. Since
Research shows that these birds can recognize up to 30 different human faces and remember them for about 20 years.
Eclectus parrots, which are native to the Southwest Pacific, are extremely picky about nesting sites.
tree hollows in the 100 foot-high rainforest canopy.
birdwatchers observed two male bald eagles sharing a nest with a single female. There are also documented cases of female birds co-parenting in a single nest. For example, in 2018, two great horned owls were spotted doing just that in Nevada. Other
birdwatchers observed two male bald eagles sharing a nest with a single female. There are also documented cases of female birds co-parenting in a single nest. For example, in 2018, two great horned owls were spotted doing just that in Nevada.
common merganser duck looking after 76 ducklings, a number too high to have all been her own.
Birds don’t just look after the young of their own species, though – they also foster birds from different species.
interspecific parenting,
tracking down food and protecting their vulnerable offspring.
will use trickery and aggression to keep their young safe. But birds aren’t just evolutionary machines built to eat and reproduce – they can also be remarkably playful and even altruistic creatures.
birds aren’t just evolutionary machines built to eat and reproduce – they can also be remarkably playful and even altruistic creatures.
