On the Wing: To the Edge of the Earth with the Peregrine Falcon

Summary

In this extraordinary narrative, Alan Tennant recounts hisall-out effort to radio-track the transcontinental migration of the peregrinefalcon—an investigation no one before him had ever taken to such lengths.

On the Wingtransports us from the windswept flats of the Texas barrier islands—where thetundra falcons pause during their springtime journey north—to the Arctic, andthen south, through Mexico, Belize, and into the Caribbean, in a hilariouslypicaresque and bumpy flight. At the helm is Tennant's partner infalcon-chasing, George Vose, a septuagenarian World War II vet who trusts hisinstincts as much as his instruments. As the two men nearly lose their livesand run afoul of the law in the race to keep their birds in view and theirrattletrap Cessna gassed up and running, Tennant renders with gorgeousprecision and skill the landscape and wildlife they pass on the way and the falconsthat direct their course.

On the Wing is abreathtaking encounter with these majestic birds—the icons of pharaohs,Oriental emperors, and European nobility—whose fierce mien, power, andswiftness have fired the human imagination for centuries. This is anunforgettable tale that speaks to all our dreams of flight.