Review by Choice Review
Birds were important in Native American life everywhere, and Krech (Brown) shows how much this was true in the old South. This required major scholarship, since the southern Native peoples were devastated by disease and war soon after European settlement. Krech had to work with old, hard-to-interpret, and incomplete documentation, as well as archaeological materials. He summarizes a vast but scattered literature on bird knowledge, use of birds as food and feathers, ritual and curing knowledge, myths, and spirit beliefs. The book is copiously illustrated with spectacular Native artifacts and with classic paintings by southern artists Mark Catesby, Alexander Wilson, and J. J. Audubon. Krech finds no reports of traditional conservation or protection. No birds were domesticated until the Europeans brought chickens and ducks, which were enthusiastically adopted. Apparently, the numbers of wild birds were too great to make conservation necessary; Krech recounts the many eyewitness accounts (some by trained scientists) of game-bird flocks literally miles in length, and shores and waters teeming with fowl. Bird populations plummeted after European settlement became dense and unfortunately continue to plummet today. Useful for scholars; a wonderful coffee-table book for anyone. Summing Up: Highly recommended. All levels/libraries. E. N. Anderson emeritus, University of California, Riverside
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
