Feather Trails: A Guest Review
Book review by Mary Ann Reuter, Golden Eagle Guest Blogger
Feather Trails: A Journey of Discovery Among Endangered Birds written by Sophie A.H. Osborn (Chelsea Green Publishing, 2024) describes Osborn’s efforts to save the Peregrine Falcon, Hawaiian Crow, and California Condor. It’s really three stories in one, woven together with the golden thread of hope and heartbreak as scientists’ fight to save these endangered birds.
For decades, wildlife biologist and environmental author Osborn engaged in history making efforts to save these birds from extinction. Her writing is a breathtaking tapestry of personal narrative, scientific education, and the retelling of the conservation history of three iconic bird species.
We might think we already know those stories—but Osborn’s vivid, first-hand accounts illuminate individual birds as they struggle both to survive and to soar. These are not anonymous creatures but birds with names, distinct personalities, and even a sense of choice. Take Osiris, Osborn’s favorite young falcon: brash, curious, full of spirit. His return home—hungry, tired, yet ready for what comes next—reminded me of a college student coming home for family dinner before setting out again.
Left: Sophie A. H. Osborn, photo by Lisa Koitzsch, © Sophie A. H. Osborn
Hope to Heartbreak
Hawaiian Crow courtesy San Diego Zoo Global
While the three bird species nearly perished from different environmental harms—pesticide use, invasive species, habitat destruction, and lead ammunition—the common denominator is human recklessness. The recovery of Peregrine Falcons is an encouraging success story, the California Condor an ongoing advocacy challenge, and the Hawaiian Crow a cautionary tale of the fate of a little-known bird and under-funded conservationists.
Unlike falcon populations that recovered after DDT—a synthetic pesticide that disrupted reproduction—was banned, the Hawaiian Crow faced multiple assaults from which there was no escape. In addition to toxoplasmosis from introduced cats and avian malaria from invasive mosquitoes, the Hawaiian Hawk also preyed on the vulnerable crows, pushing them to the brink of extinction.
Osborn’s grief is palpable when she reports the beleaguered Hawaiian Crow had gone extinct in the wild despite her best efforts to protect them. Her tenderness for these clever, playful birds makes the loss more personal and the sadness more universal. (It reminds me of another isolated tropical bird, the extinct Hawaiian Kaua’I ‘o’o. For a heart-wrenching tale of the last Kaua’I ‘o’o calling for his mate, listen to this podcast by John Green.)
Conservation Crossroads
The description of the controversial California Condor recovery program felt the most current to me, but I had forgotten that the Arizona Grand Canyon reintroduction of captive-reared birds was considered “experimental.” A lead-bullet ban was never adopted for the vast Arizona range of the reintroduced birds like the ban adopted in the range of California’s reintroduced condors. Osborn’s recounting of the preservationist vs. conservationist debate over captive breeding was a reminder that even environmentalists don’t always agree.
The book gives credit to the Endangered Species Act (ESA) for making bird reintroduction possible. In fact, 99% of all listed species have been saved from extinction under ESA protection and 73 species have been delisted from the endangered list. But now the Act itself is threatened, and its protection will require the same tenacity as Osborn and other conservation pioneers showed through decades of unabashed grit and resilience.
In the last 50 years, North America has lost almost three billion – or nearly a third - of its birds, from almost every type of habitat, Osborn writes. Although I wanted the book to end on a victorious note, the author’s epilogue drove this point home. “Without knowing what once was, we are more likely to settle for what is now,” she says. “Unless we are aware of what has been lost, we cannot begin to understand or convey what we should work to save.”
We invite you to our monthly program on February 17, 2026 at 6:30 PM for an exclusive Zoom session with wildlife biologist and author Sophie A.H. Osborn.
It’s a unique opportunity to engage with Osborn and delve into the challenges and triumphs of wildlife conservation.
Stay tuned for the Zoom link.