In her book, Female Heroes of Bird Conservation, Rosemary Low weaves the heroes' lives into the social fabric they move within, and the result is a fulfilling book for conservationists and nontechnical readers alike. Just as many of the female ornithologists in the book advanced science through observing birds as individuals, Low examines each of the women's personal lives with a thoroughness that makes their professional accomplishments even more admirable.
The book is arranged in 2 parts—the first covers the heroes of the past and the second those of the present day. It is equal parts science and story. Two snippets about Emilie Snethlage (Germany/Brazil, 1868–1929) stayed with me long after I finished reading. Snethlage's amputation of her own finger after a piranha had “eaten the tip,” and a colleague's description of her energetic personality and long, thick hair influencing her acceptance by the indigenous peoples in Amazonia during...
