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Friday, 27 February 2026
Bird, Nest & Egg, a book review
Art, Joris De Raedt; Words, Walter De Raedt
Everybody is familiar with eggs, with chicken eggs that is. Leghorns lay white eggs.
Rhode Island Reds, brown ones. Aurucana lay "easter eggs" with blue or green shells.
Store eggs are sterile, as hens will lay without any attention from a rooster. However
it is only after mating with a rooster that fertile eggs are laid that can hatch into chicks.
What of the other birds with which we share the world. Where do they nest, how do they build them, what do their eggs look like. Too many birds in the world to discourse on all or even most of them in one volume. But there is a beautiful beginning in this exquisite book that explores forty extraordinary species from around the world.
If asked to think of bird nests most of us imagine twiggy little bowls built somewhere in a bush or up in a tree where crossing branches offer some support.Yes, but there are divers other options. And this is the clever method that "Bird, Nest & Egg" employs to categorize their birds.
In the beginning - of the book, that is - there is a gallery of nests with black and white sketches that illustrate a thoughtful discussion of nest types. Turn the page and there is a gallery of eggs, in color and approximate relative size. So many sizes, so many colors and patterns, and so beautiful!
Now the various informative sections share different nest types with us. Each provides information for six or seven or eight different birds. It begins with Scrape and Cliff. A full page of the common murre on a rocky cliff, three birds and two eggs, and two sentences explaining these simplest of nests.
One of these rudimentary nest builders is the Large-tailed Nightjar. Text explores their habits and habitats, breeding season, clutch size, hatching, nestling behavior, parental care. And illustrations show us the adults, a sort-of-nest of fallen leaves with a pair of eggs and some simple line drawings of details - head, feet, and more.
Did you know that birds Burrow? Think of the advantages we're told of - concealed, they offer protection for eggs and nestlings. Insulated, burrows protect from temperature extremes. These birds make use of existing tunnels, perhaps made by prairie dogs though they can even dig their own.
Both male and female Belted Kingfisher do the digging, near water and high enough to avoid flooding.
Cavity nesting is sort of, minimally, like a burrow but in a tree or other structure. The opening page shows 3 somewhat grumpy looking Cactus Ferruginous Pygmy-owls peering out of an opening in a saguaro cactus, perhaps formerly woodpecker housing. Around here it is Pileated Woodpeckers, crow-sized bird that produce sounds like a jackhammer when making their large cavities in dead trees. Text reveals that while the nesting cavities are energy intensive to make, taking three to six weeks, pileated woodpeckers do not reuse them. But these cavities provide homes for other woodpeckers, owls, and even raccoons.
The illustrations are precise, and also done with love. The lineup of seven burrowing owl nestlings at the bottom of page 31 - standing, squatting, one with head cocked to the side. Common golden eye fledglings on Jump Day leaping from their nest box. Four common reed warbler nestlings, mouths agape as mama perches with her beak full of food. Absolutely charming.
You might buy the book just for these images (and I wish there were note cards!) After you are done treating it as a picture book and start reading the text - that is another whole layer of fascination. Details of where each species lives, how the build a nest, number of eggs laid, incubation, fledging, time to independence, and more. "Bird, Nest & Egg" is a delightful book sure to be enjoyed by a diverse audience - the obvious bird watchers and ornithologists and more.
Bird, Nest & Egg, a book review
Art, Joris De Raedt; Words, Walter De Raedt
Published by Rizzoli New York
Hardcover, trim size 11-1/4 x 13-1/2, $45.00
ISBN 078-0-8478-7590-0
publish date March 24, 2026
A review copy of this book was provided by the publisher
If you have any comments or questions, you can e-mail me: jgglatt@gmail.com
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