Galapagos Crusoes: A year alone with the birds

A new, updated version of the celebrated 1968 title, Galapagos: Islands of Birds, by the renowned late ornithologist Bryan Nelson, with additional, previously unpublished reminiscences and lively and irreverent memories from his wife June. This timely reissue breathes new life into a classic work of natural history that will appeal to bird-lovers and Galapagos-lovers alike. It is as memorable for its groundbreaking descriptions of Galapagos wildlife as for June's naked appearance in the News of the World accompanied by a quote from the Duke of Edinburgh. In 1964 the late Bryan Nelson, a zoologist, and his wife June spent a year living on two uninhabited, waterless Galapagos islands studying the three species of booby ('we couldn't resist also studying the great frigatebird and waved albatross, too' says June). Bryan's book, Galapagos: Islands of Birds was published in 1968 and, although by necessity a scientific study, his light touch and the extraordinary hardships and delights of living in total isolation with no means of rescue should things go wrong, make it an exceptionally good read. Now, nearly 60 years later, June Nelson has extracted the story of that extraordinary year and complemented it with her own recollections. The couple's research and findings remain relevant and interesting, so plenty of wildlife descriptions are retained, but it is the mischievous mocking birds and friendly sea lions which will captivate the reader as much as the famous blue-footed boobies and waved albatrosses. At the end of their stay on Hood, when their clothes were literally in tatters and they went barefoot, they had news of the imminent visit of The Duke of Edinburgh and the Royal Yacht Britannia. June's description of this visit and their lunch on board with Prince Philip, make a surreal ending to a year of deteriorating food: 'Now our flour had around 50 maggots or beetles per pound... Dried beans would have three or four beetles per bean... In spaghetti a black shadow meant beetle, a grey one maggot. It took a long time, breaking out each shadow, to make a meal.'

Préface
. A natural history classic, celebrated for its groundbreaking descriptions of Galapagos wildlife . Includes an account of dining with Prince Philip aboard Britannia; publication ties in with the anniversary of his death and the Queen's jubilee . Film-maker George Pretty's wildlife film narrated by June Nelson has just won 'best in festival' at the International Wildlife Film Festival in Montana

Auteur
Keen outdoor, conservation and do-it-yourself folk, Bryan and June met in 1954 and almost spent their 1961 honeymoon on the Bass Rock, where they studied gannets for 3 years. With a First in Zoology and a D.Phil. from Oxford, Bryan went on, with June, to study the behaviour and ecology of seabirds in the Galapagos, Peru, Christmas Island and New Zealand. With the help of Prince Philip they persuaded Australia to help save the rare Abbott's booby. Bryan died in 2015.

Texte du rabat

An account of a year spent living on two waterless Galapagos islands in 1964, Tower Island (Genovesa) and Hood (Española), including groundbreaking descriptions of Galapagos wildlife, all the adventure of life on a deserted island and a visit from HRH Prince Philip.

Contenu
Foreword to Galapagos: Islands of Birds HRH The Duke of Edinburgh Foreword to Galapagos Crusoes Tui de Roy Preface: The evolution of this book Acknowledgements 1. Beginnings 2. The Galapagos 3. Arrivals 4. Life on a desert island 5. Tower Island: our new home 6. Housekeeping on Tower 7. Camp followers 8. Gulls 9. The great frigatebird 10. Predators and scavengers 11. Intruders 12. Three boobies 13. Hood Island 14. The waved albatross 15. Sea lions and fur seals 16. Hood: from weevils to royals 17. Farewell Galapagos 18. Aftermath Appendix 1. Food for one year Appendix 2. Scientific names of Galapagos species mentioned Select bibliography