A Parliament of Owls: 6 (Birdwatcher Mystery) - Tapa blanda

Angela Dimato, a tenacious U.S. Fish and Wildlife Agent, struggles to rebuild her life after the murder of her partner. During a routine tour of the Rocky Mountain Arsenal, Angela assesses the growing prairie dog town within the wildlife refuge when, to her horror, she discovers the body of a soccer mom sprawled out among the burrows. With her trademark instinct and her gun in tow, Angela investigates the murder, even as she battles the crippling flashbacks haunting her from her partner’s case. The investigation takes a sinister turn when the dead woman is identified as the leader of a group petitioning for the eradication of the prairie dog town. As Angela digs toward the truth, she finds her only hope is to tap into the wisdom of the case’s sole eye-witness — a burrowing owl — before more lives become at stake.

Growing up in a small mountain town in Colorado, my fatherand I fed the hummingbirds. He identified them as broad-tailed hummingbirds,though years later I learned there are actually four different hummingbirdsthat are common migrants or summer residents of Colorado. It was years afterthat when my husband taught me to stand very still with my hand outstretchedunder the feeder to let the hummingbirds perch on my fingers to eat.
As a child I watched ouzels bob for food along the shorewhile I was fishing, stood open-mouthed as a red-tailed hawk caught dinneramong the wildflowers just beyond camp. I loved watching the antics of theherring gulls diving for tidbits behind the lobster boats in Maine, andmarveled at the puffin colony on Eastern Egg Rock.
But it wasn't until years later, after I had decided to trymy hand at writing mystery novels, that I found myself time and again comingback to stories with environmental themes involving birds. At that time, as abackyard birdwatcher all my life, I could identify all the birds that clamberedto my feeders—51 different species. In doing research for my novels, I soondiscovered there was a bigger world of birding beyond my backyard.
Birders come in all shapes and sizes and with a hugediversity in knowledge. While some birdwatchers just enjoy looking at birds,others want to know the unique characteristics that determine the breakdown ofspecies and subspecies. While some delight in just spotting a bird in the trees,others are only content when they can hear its call. While some thrill at thesight of a robin, others are only interested in the bird they can add to theirlife list.
To expand my knowledge of birding, I decided the first thingto do was to sign up for a birding trip. The next one coming up happened to be TheRio Grande Valley Birding Festival in Harligen, TX. My first outing: a canoetrip down the Rio Grande with what turned out to be fifteen world class birdersfrom all over the U.S. and Europe. Sixteen of us pushed off—fifteen seeking lifebirds (a bird they'd never seen before) and me, for which nearly every bird wasa life bird. I remember my canoe mate even having to teach me the proper way touse my brand new binoculars.
But after that I was hooked. Since then I have gone on atleast two birding trips a year, and birded in nearly every state in the U.S.,Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean, Europe, Eastern Europe and Israel. Yet I wouldstill dub myself an intermediate birder, at best. I'm good at spotting thebirds, slow at identifying them, and hopeless at birding by ear. Yet I'm continuallyfascinated by the stories I hear and the things I've learned through watchingbirds and talking with other birders. I've discovered that the issues affectingbirds have global themes relating to the environment and driven by thatresonate with all of us—money, land, love, pride, power.
It was with that basic understanding that I set out to write theBirdwatcher's Mystery series—a group of funny, sometimes serious mysterystories populated with birdwatchers ranging from the amateur to theprofessional.A Rant of Ravens, explores theillegal trading of peregrine falcons to the Middle East;Deathof a Songbird looks at the coffee industry and the effects onmigratory songbirds;A Nest in the Ashes considersthe impact of prescribed burns on wildlife;DeathTakes a Gander explores the reasons for a die-off of Canadageese;A Sacrifice of Buntings comparesthe basic nature of the painted bunting and the keynote speakers at a birdingconventions; and,A Parliament of Owls,the newest in the series, looks at the human impact on endangered species.
Most importantly, I hope I've presented these importantthemes in a manner that is accessible and entertaining for everyone from thenovice to the expert, and in such a way as to get people thinking about theworld they live in.
Happy birdwatching and happy reading!