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Tidemann, Sonia and Andrew Gosler. Ethno-ornithology: Birds, Indigenous Peoples, Culture and Society. 2010. Earthscan. Hardbound: 346 pages. Price: $96.00 U.S.

SUMMARY: This book presents ornithological knowledge that is new or has not been readily available until now because it has not previously been captured or reported by indigenous people. As well as its knowledge base, this book provides practical advice for professionals in conservation and anthropology by demonstrating the relationship between mutual respect, local participation and the building of partnerships for the resolution of joint problems. It identifies techniques that can be transferred to different regions, environments and collections, as well as practices suitable for investigation, adaptation and improvement of knowledge exchange and collection in ornithology. The authors take anthropologists and biologists who have been trained in, and largely continue to practice from, a western reductionist approach, along another path one that presents ornithological knowledge from alternative perspectives, which can enrich the more common approaches to ecological and other studies as well as management for conservation.
RECOMMENDATION: For those with a technical interest in ethno-ornithology.