Dr Newton is now a senior ornithologist with the Natural Environment Research Council and the book draws on his wide knowledge of the Sparrowhawk, as well as that of other workers in Britain and abroad, to give a detailed account of all aspects of its lifestyle, population levels and trends and the impact of man and environment on the species in recent times. The book also has the benefit of Dr Newton's particular interest in population regulation and breeding performance, and in the remarkable contrast in size between the Sparrowhawk sexes (males being half the weight of females), which...

Ian Newton, author of Farming and Birds and Bird Migration returns to the New Naturalist series with a long awaited look at the uplands and its birds.

The phenomenon of bird migration has fascinated people from time immemorial. The arrivals and departures of different species marked the seasons, heralding spring and autumn, and providing a reliable calendar long before anything better became available.