Red Knot: A Shorebird's Incredible Journey Book

Narrated in journal entries from the point of view of a red knot—a robin-sized shore bird that migrates 20,000 miles annually, from the tip of South America to the Arctic Circle and back—this book depicts one such dramatic journey in stunningly detailed colored-pencil illustrations of the flight over the Atlantic Ocean, a landing in Delaware Bay, the northern nesting grounds, chicks feeding on hatching insects, a close call with an arctic fox, and the return home. At the heart of the story is a message about conservation: the birds stop only a few times as they travel and always in the same coastal areas where dwindling food supplies have caused a precipitous decline in their numbers over the past decade. Science concepts such as animal life cycles, climate, extinction, the food chain, and migration are introduced by information about how bird-banding and protecting the horseshoe crab—whose eggs are a principal food for red knots—can help them survive. A four-page appendix includes a map of the western hemisphere, a range and route map for migrating birds, a glossary, a timeline, and the history and conservation of red knots. This book was the first runner up in the Children's category for the 2007 Eric Hoffer Book Award.

Barbara Youngblood - Children's Literature

The author tells the life cycle story of an amazing little bird who travels 20,000 miles each year when it flies rountrip from its winter home in Tierra del Fuego, Argentina, to the Canadian Arctic. Along the way, the bird must find enough food to keep alive, find a mate, and lay the eggs that will create the next generation. An essential stop in the United States is on the coast of Delaware, where the birds feed after a 4,000 mile non-stop flight across the Atlantic Ocean. The population of the Calidris Canutus, or Red Knot, has declined from 200,000 to below 40,000 in the last twenty-five years. The wonders of nature are so incredible that readers will be in awe of what this small bird does each year. The timing involved in reaching a prime feeding ground at the same time as the horseshoe crabs arrive to breed, is extraordinary. The book contains a glossary, a timeline, and other detailed information on banding and the conservation work being done to protect this endangered species. 2006, Birdsong Books, and Ages 6 to adult.