Moonbird by Phillip HooseCall Number: Education Library (Cubberley) » Curriculum Collection » QL696 .C48 H66 2012
Awards: Robert F. Sibert Informational Award Honor Book (2013); YALSA Award for Excelling in Nonfiction for Young Adults Finalist (2013); Lexile measure 1150; Ages 10 and up, gr. 7-12
B95 is a robin-sized shorebird, a red knot of the subspecies rufa. Each February he joins a flock that lifts off from Tierra del Fuego, headed for breeding grounds in the Canadian Arctic, nine thousand miles away. Late in the summer, he begins the return journey. B95 can fly for days without eating or sleeping, but eventually he must descend to refuel and rest. However, recent changes at ancient refueling stations along his migratory circuit--changes caused mostly by human activity--have reduced the food available and made it harder for the birds to reach. And so, since 1995, when B95 was first captured and banded, the worldwide rufa population has collapsed by nearly 80 percent. With inspiring prose, thorough research, and stirring images, Hoose explores the tragedy of extinction through the triumph of a single bird.