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Raptors are an unusual success story of wildness thriving in the heart of our cities--they have developed substantial populations around the world in recent decades. But there are deeper issues around how these birds make their urban homes. New research provides insight into the role of raptors as vital members of the urban ecosystem and future opportunities for protection, management, and environmental education.
A cutting-edge synthesis of over two decades of scientific research,
Urban Raptors is the first book to offer a complete overview of urban ecosystems in the context of bird-of-prey ecology and conservation. This comprehensive volume examines urban environments, explains why some species adapt to urban areas but others do not, and introduces modern research tools to help in the study of urban raptors. It also delves into climate change adaptation, human-wildlife conflict, and the unique risks birds of prey face in urban areas before concluding with real-world wildlife management case studies and suggestions for future research and conservation efforts.
Boal and Dykstra have compiled the go-to single source of information on urban birds of prey. Among researchers, urban green space planners, wildlife management agencies, birders, and informed citizens alike,
Urban Raptors will foster a greater understanding of birds of prey and an increased willingness to accommodate them as important members, not intruders, of our cities.
About the author
Clint W. Boal is a research wildlife biologist with the U.S. Geological Surveys Texas Cooperative Research Unit and holds a joint appointment as a professor of wildlife ecology at Texas Tech University. He has conducted research with birds of prey for over 25 years and has served as an associate editor for the
Journal of Wildlife Management,
Journal of Raptor Research, and, currently, the
Wildlife Society Bulletin.
Cheryl R. Dykstra is an independent researcher and holds an M.S. and Ph.D. in wildlife ecology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She serves as editor-in-chief of
The Journal of Raptor Research and has spent over two decades leading raptor research projects, including an ongoing 20-year study of urban red-shouldered hawks.
