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

In Mind of the Raven, Bernd Heinrich, award - winning naturalist, finds himself dreaming of ravens and decides he must get to the truth about this animal reputed to be so intelligent.Much like a sleuth, Heinrich involves us in his quest, letting one clue lead to the next. 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, studying their daily routines, and in the process painting a vivid picture of the world as lived by the ravens. At the heart of this book are Heinrich's love and respect for these complex and engaging creatures, and through his keen observation andanalysis, we become their intimates too.Throughout history there has existed an extraordinary relationship between humans and ravens. Ravens, like early humans, are scavengers on the kills of great carnivores. As scavengers, ravens were associated with hunters they found in the north: wolves and, later, men. The trinity of wolf, man, and raven in the hunt is an extremely ancient one. In considering the appeal of the raven, Bernd Heinrich suspects that a meeting of the minds might reside in that hunting trinity.Heinrich's passion for ravens has led him around the world in his research. Mind of the Raven takes you on an exotic journey--from New England to Germany, 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.Heinrich has a true gift; through his stories, his beautiful writing, illustrations, and photography, the ravens come alive. Each new discovery and insight into their behavior is thrilling to read. just as the title promises, the reader is given a rare glimpse into the mind of these wonderful creatures.Following the dictum of Leonardo da Vinci--"It is not enough to believe what you see. YOU Must also understand what you see"--Bernd Heinrich enables us to see the natural world through the eyes of a scientist. At once lyrical and scientific, Mind of the Raven is bound to be a modern classic.

This review is also featured on Behind the Pages: Mind of the Raven

Readers will follow Bernd Heinrich as he performs various studies to better understand the behavior of ravens. Each chapter is set to undertake a different angle of study. For every experiment performed, there is information on the tools used and different theories that were presented throughout the experiments.

Taking a look into the life of a biologist was enlightening and I guarantee I would not be able to make it in their world. Bernd Heinrich encounters all manner of environments when studying ravens. There are moments he was required to build blinds out in the middle of the wilderness and endure freezing temperatures to continue his studies. At one point he even has to spend hours locating ravens with a handheld transmitting device that is less than accurate. Crashing through uncharted woods for the sake of science is not my cup of tea, but I applaud the people who are committed to doing things like this to better our understanding of animals.

I will admit that this book was dry at times. I am sure that a reader who has studied biology would appreciate the detail given to the theories and experiments, but I found myself losing interest. This book was written for the most part in an unbiased view, and it was lacking the emotion I've read in other books on animal studies.

The stories that captivated me were the ones about tame ravens. Bernd Heinrich made a point to meet ravens that were rescues bonded to human families. It was interesting to read about the comparisons he made to ravens in the wild, and his own ravens he kept for observation. So many behaviors ravens learn are tempered by their environment and learned interactions. They are adaptable and highly intelligent birds.

I do recommend this book to more science-minded people. I think those of us that read it for the sheer fact they want to learn more about ravens might find it a bit slow and tedious as I did.