Mind of the Raven: Investigations and Adventures with Wolf-Birds

Mind of the Raven: Investigations and Adventures with Wolf-Birds
by Bernd Heinrich

Mind of the Raven: Investigations and Adventures with Wolf-Birds
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Book Summary Information

Author: Bernd Heinrich
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 2007-06-01
ISBN: 0061136050
Number of pages: 432
Publisher: Harper Perennial
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Book Reviews of Mind of the Raven: Investigations and Adventures with Wolf-Birds

Book Review: Just Boring
Summary: 2 Stars

I really tried to like this book, but after slogging through 3/4 of it I finally gave up. It was just very boring. I expected more organized research, with interesting hypotheses or at least organized conclusions. Instead this is a collection of stories that jumps around in place and time. It really don't provide any coherent picture of ravens other then that they are really cool birds. The author seems like a really nice guy ... :(

Summary of Mind of the Raven: Investigations and Adventures with Wolf-Birds

Heinrich involves us in his quest to get inside the mind of the raven. But as animals can only be spied on by getting quite close, Heinrich adopts ravens, thereby becoming a "raven father," as well as observing them in their natural habitat. He studies their daily routines, and in the process, paints a vivid picture of the ravens' world. At the heart of this book are Heinrich's love and respect for these complex and engaging creatures, and through his keen observation and analysis, we become their intimates too.

Heinrich's passion for ravens has led him around the world in his research. Mind of the Raven follows an exotic journey-from New England to Germany, and from Montana to Baffin Island in the high Arctic-offering dazzling accounts of how science works in the field, filtered through the eyes of a passionate observer of nature. Each new discovery and insight into raven behavior is thrilling to read, at once lyrical and scientific.


Beyond croaking, "Nevermore," what exactly do ravens do all day? Bernd Heinrich, biology professor at the University of Vermont and author of Ravens in Winter, has spent more than a decade learning the secrets of these giants of the crow family. He has observed startlingly complex activities among ravens, including strong pair-bonding, use of tools, elaborate vocal communication, and even play. Ravens are just plain smart, and we can see much of ourselves in their behavior. They seem to be affectionate, cranky, joyful, greedy, and competitive, just like us. And in Mind of the Raven, Heinrich makes no bones about attributing emotions and intellect to Corvus corax--just not the kind we humans can understand. He mostly catalogs their behaviors in the manner of a respectful anthropologist, although a few moments of proud papa show through when he describes the pet ravens he hand-raised to adulthood.

Heinrich spends hundreds of loving hours feeding roadkill fragments to endlessly hungry raven chicks, and cold days in blinds watching wild ravens squabble and frolic. He is a passionate fan of his "wolf-birds," a name he gave them when he made the central discovery of the book: that ravens in Yellowstone National Park are dependent on wolves to kill for them. Mind of the Raven offers inspiring insight into both the lives of ravens and the mind of a truly gifted scientist. --Therese Littleton

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