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This text is a comprehensive and illustrated discussion of the origin of birds and of avian flight. Ornithologist and evolutionary biologist Alan Feduccia, author of Age of Birds, here draws on fossil evidence and studies of the structure and biochemistry of living birds to present knowledge and data on avian evolution and propose a model of this evolutionary process.

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Library Journal Review

Feduccia (Catesby's Birds of Colonial America, LJ 10/15/85) draws from his career as a noted paleontologist to provide a comprehensive review of the current information on vertebrate evolution, explaining the rise of modern-day birds. From the earliest fossil records to the specialized forms of today (flightless birds, raptors, wading birds, and perching birds), prominent theories are evaluated through the author's scientifically conservative "facts only" perspective. The theory that hot-blooded, intelligent dinosaurs were early ancestors is debunked, and the accepted "ground-up" evolution of birds is reversed with an innovative "tree-down" hypothesis. Relationships between existing species are assessed through the principles of evolutionary convergence and adaptive radiation. This fact-filled, well-illustrated, and accurate work will enthrall serious science readers, but the technical vocabulary will put off casual browsers. Highly recommended for educated lay readers interested in ornithology, dinosaurs, or evolution.‘Frank Reiser, Nassau Community Coll., Garden City, N.Y. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

CHOICE Review

Feduccia has written a comprehensive and thoroughly cited book detailing the origin and evolution of birds. The first three chapters discuss the discovery of Archaeopteryx, the origin of early birds, and the evolution of avian flight. Using paleontology and comparative biology to determine evolutionary relationships, Feduccia argues for an arboreal thecodont (or basal archosaur) rather than a cursorial theropod origin of birds. Indeed, he believes that similarities between dinosaurs and birds are the result of convergent evolution, a common occurrence among avian taxa. The last five chapters discuss the evolution of archaic Cretaceous and modern Tertiary birds. He presents evidence that points to an explosive radiation of modern orders during the early Tertiary rather than to a gradual evolution from the Cretaceous onward. Although the book is extensively illustrated, figures are not numbered, nor are many of them directly referred to within the text. Also, some figures are difficult to read, as the writing is too small. Nevertheless, highly recommended. Upper-division undergraduates through faculty. E. H. Rave Bemidji State University