Many people today love birds, but our relationship with birds has changed over time. In the past it was usually people exploiting birds for the pleasure of hunting, for food, for feathers – even for their feces. From the start of the twentieth century we have become more empathetic — caring for birds and concerned about their numbers. It made me realize how fragile our current appreciation for birds is. By looking at our past relationships with birds author Tim Birkhead hopes to safeguard the future of birds. Tim joins us today to talk about his book
"Birds and Us: A 12,000 year history, from cave art to conservation"
Most of Tim's academic research has been on promiscuity in birds, but he has also been intrigued by the history of ornithology and how we know what we know about birds. That history is about people, and people’s various relations with birds.