Their Fate is Our Fate: How Birds Foretell Threats to Our Health and Our World

by Peter C. Doherty

At the heart of this book by Nobel Prize–winning immunologist and professor Peter Doherty is this striking Birds detect danger to our health and the environment before we do. Following a diverse cast of bird species around the world--from tufted puffins in Puget Sound to griffon vultures in India, pigeons in East Asia, and wedge-tailed shearwaters off the islands of Australia’s Great Barrier Reef--Doherty illuminates birds’ role as an early warning system for threats to the health of our planet and our own well-being. Their Fate Is Our Fate is an impassioned call not only to attention but to action. As “citizen scientists” we can collect data, vital to cutting-edge research, that depends on the birds that are all around us. Armed with our observations, scientists will continue to uncover new ways to glimpse our future in birds--and to affirm how, truly, their fate is our fate.

Genres: Nonfiction, Science, Birds, Nature, Animals, History, Health

256 pages, Paperback

First published September 3, 2013

About the author

Peter Charles Doherty is an Australian veterinary surgeon, immunologist, Nobel laureate and researcher in the field of medicine.

He received the Albert Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research in 1995, the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine jointly with Rolf M. Zinkernagel in 1996 and was named Australian of the Year in 1997. In the Australia Day Honours of 1997, he was named a Companion of the Order of Australia for his work with Zinkernagel (Zinkernagel was named an honorary Companion). He is also a National Trust Australian Living Treasure.

Doherty's research focuses on the immune system and his Nobel work described how the body's immune cells protect against viruses. He and Rolf Zinkernagel, the co-recipient of the 1996 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, discovered how T cells recognize their target antigens in combination with major histocompatibility complex (MHC) proteins.

Doherty was born in Brisbane, Queensland, where he attended Indooroopilly State High School. He received his bachelor's degree in veterinary science in 1962 and his master's degree in veterinary science in 1966 from the University of Queensland. After obtaining his PhD in 1970 from the University of Edinburgh, Scotland, he returned to Australia to perform his Nobel Prize-winning research at the John Curtin School of Medical Research in Canberra.

Doherty currently spends three months of the year conducting research at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee, where he is a faculty member at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center through the College of Medicine. For the other 9 months of the year he works in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at the University of Melbourne, Victoria. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1987.

John Monash Science School has a house named after him.

Reviews

[Gina · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Their Fate is Our Fate" is written by an accomplished and well-versed Australian immunologist about how birds, in many different ways, act as sentinels to our planet's--and ultimately our own--health. The main argument and goal of this book, as stated by the author, is to encourage the every-day bird watcher to be more intentional about his observations, as this "citizen-scientist" role is the greatest defense against bird and human demise.

Having a strong foundation in biology and environmental studies myself, I found this book to be a fascinating look into how birds, from the single egg to the dynamics of a whole species, directly mirror our world health. In addition to birds acting as "canaries in a coal mine" across the continents, birds have been invaluable in understanding vaccination, disease control and spreading, and planet cleanliness. If anyone needs convincing that birds are pivotal to the planet's success, then they need to read this book.

The major failure of this book, warranting it a 3.5 star rating if there was such an option, comes out of its technical focus. It makes sense that chapters on influenza and global pandemics would come from a virologist, and Doherty's interesting and unique perspective focusing on the microscopic sets him apart from other "birders" or "environmentalists." In a lot of ways, this perspective elevates this book and gives it a deeper, more scientific backing that is hard to argue with. As someone who has studied these topics extensively, I thoroughly enjoyed the in-depth scientific look at things. However, I feel that this in many ways negates the effort for the "every-day-birder-Joe" to get a clear idea on just WHAT he is supposed to do, should he notice population declines, infection, etc. in the birds he watches.

I mean not to underestimate the abilities of the book's audience--and perhaps, as an American I am unfortunately operating within the sad truth of the failures of our educational system, as this book was, presumably, written primarily for the Australian reader. That being said, I worry that non-science minded readers will be turned off--or worse, lost and unmotivated--to finish the book and gain any real or useful insight. I think that Doherty's attempt to articulate complex processes and ideas is a novel effort. The information he tries to relay is incredibly fascinating and supportive of his overall exploration of bird epidemiology. Sadly, I fear it's simply too technical for anyone who has never taken a biology course or is already environmentally minded.

I have high hopes that this book will prove me wrong, and that its audience of scientists and backyard birders (those without biological training) will be able to enjoy its chapters, and take action, as a result of this book.

[Carol Smith · Rating 2 out of 5]

Disclosure: Won an advance copy on GoodReads First Reads.

Given that I won a free copy, I really wanted to like this. I'm an "add a star if it's about birds" gal.

The author, a Nobel Prize-winning immunologist, really knows his stuff. That may have been the problem - I found it just a bit too technical for my tastes (but it may not prove so for others).

The book is arranged as a series of independent essays. The author kicks off each chapter in a popular science writing style, but most of the discussions then quickly move into what is clearly his passion: deep scientific detail. I'm okay with this if the information relates back to the larger perspective of the book, but I sometimes felt the quick wrap up paragraph at the end of each chapter was only tenuously connected to the discussion at hand. Same goes for the final summation chapter.

Ultimately, I think I was expecting more coverage of environmental issues and their impact on bird populations (some of this is present, but not much). Instead, it mainly covered viruses...which makes perfect sense given the author's background. Just wasn't the book I was hoping to read.

[Sandy Lender · Rating 3 out of 5]

I expected Dr. Peter Doherty to give more examples of times when birds foretold threats to human health and the world around us. The concept is already one any individual using common sense or basic reasoning can understand: birds have been used for centuries, throughout history, to warn of fumes or inhaled danger. Readers get it. The book was disappointingly short on bird-specific examples of bird heroics, excrutiatingly long on self-aggrandizement, and annoyingly frequent with political advice. While all of that sounds negative, I want to move on to the positives for the rest of this review. Doherty discusses the use of chickens (and in fact all avians) as “sentinels” for virus detection and the detection of “unwanted” elements in an environment—such as mosquitoes (Aedes aegypti) carrying West Nile Virus. Ominously, Doherty claims on page 46: “While horses and humans are occasional hosts, it is very clear that WNV will now be maintained permanently in North America by a bird-mosquito life cycle.”
One thing I found surprising at first was Doherty’s repeated call for readers to engage in citizen science. Given his Ph.D. and level of discipline required for the field of immunology and microbiology, I found the call to amateur "help" incongruous with the need for meticulousness and attention to scientific protocol. For example, he gives advice on collecting dead wildlife, almost flippantly glossing over disease prevention in this book that focuses on disease vectors.
Overall, Their Fate was a well-researched book with a great deal of science “dumbed down” for the layperson. Don’t let my disappointment from mismanaged expectations turn you off. If you can get past the repeated assumption of the reader’s political indifference prior to reading, and the sneaking suspicion the author views birds as merely sentinels in the skies—read: another tool in the climatologist toolbox—you will appreciate the science and information presented herein.

[Naim Sikei · Rating 4 out of 5]

Informative

[Sarah-Hope · Rating 2 out of 5]

Doherty’s book is written for popular audiences (at least those patient enough to wade through a number of technical passages) and he’s open about his purpose from the start: he wants his readers to become “citizen scientists” who “contribute [to science] by helping collect key data on, for example, what’s happening to the birds, to the butterflies, or to the life forms that live in or on the banks of our rivers and streams.”

Doherty gives us two pressing reasons to “enlist” as citizen scientists. First, many diseases originating in birds can be threatening, even deadly, for us—think of the 1918 influenza pandemic. Catching a new virus before it develops human-to-human transmission, is crucial to launching a successful attack against it: “Data from the CDC [Centers for Disease Control], which tracks ‘seasonal’ epidemics in the USA, show the [flu] virus traveling to every state in the space of 4-6 weeks. Contrast that with the four years it took West Nile Virus to get from New York to California using a bird-mosquito infection cycle.” That’s the difference between a virus spread by sneezing and one spread by mosquito bites.

Second, birds can show us the current impact of climate change through changes in population size and ranges. Yes, Doherty—like pretty much every scientist I know—not only acknowledges climate change, but is appalled by our inability to respond with force and commitment to the threat it presents. In his estimation, we come off as something less than the dinosaurs killed by an earlier period of climate change: “While our willful behavior may ultimately ensure our elimination, and that of many other life forms, there is no way that the big dinosaurs could have deliberately contributed to their own extinction. Consciousness, reason, callous greed, deliberate ignorance and true malevolence are very much unique to Homo sapiens sapiens.”

So what does Doherty want us to do? He wants us to participate in programs like the Audubon Society Christmas Bird Counts and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s Project Feeder Watch. “Indications that a population is at risk are most likely to come from the careful, systematic counts made by birdwatchers and amateur ornithologists [who] participate in [programs like Audubon's] Backyard Bird Count Program. You don’t even need to leave your own property to be part of this study.”

And if this work sounds unimportant or dry, think again: “While our birder ‘citizen scientists’ might be more like the passionate amateurs of the French Resistance of WWII than paid members of the contemporary US National Guard, American democracy is characterized by volunteerism and broad, public involvement. Being an unpaid ‘birding James Bond’ might appeal to some though, but rather than a Walther PPK or a Beretta, the weapons of choice for our ‘bird spies’ will be leg bands, and binoculars made by Zeiss, Swarowski or Leica.” Forget your stereotypes of little old lady birders; you’re working for national defense.

While it might be easy to laugh at the call to arms, or rather call to field glasses, Doherty’s point is crucial. In the face of threats to our health and our planet, we can take action, we can make a difference, even if we are neither particularly powerful nor particularly wealthy. Doherty shows us what birders can do. We need a whole series of such manuals to help inspire other communities as well.

[Eric Wurm · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is not for your average bird lover or birdwatcher. It is for those who want to learn how birds can tell us our ecological fate.

The first and largest portion details how birds act as "sentinels", the animals who keep a watch for viral diseases that the human race may face. Since this book is written by an immunologist/virologist, the material is largely skewed toward that topic. The author is a Nobel prize winner for his work in that category so it can be expected.

The remainder of the book covers topics that relate to habitat loss, climate change and how conditions of modern livestock affect the spread of disease both for birds and humans. The "canary in the coal mine" metaphor is apt.

This book is heavy on the scientific aspect, so I would recommend it to those who are well-read in biology. It is written by an obviously erudite author who is well qualified on the topic.

In summary, if you are concerned about the spread of disease to humans from our avian cousins and wish to receive an education on how birds can be a warning as to the future of our ecosystem, this book is for you. If you are a biology novice or an amateur birdwatcher, I'd suggest that you read up on biology and ecology before tackling this book.

It's a great read for those that have the vocabulary for it.

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Disclaimer: This book was provided free of charge by Goodreads "First Reads" program for the purpose of review by the fine publisher "The Experiment" and is available by quality book retailers.

Further Disclaimer: Any publisher that provides a high quality book for review will be referred to as a "fine publisher.

Additional Disclaimer: The copy reviewed was an "uncorrected proof" and may vary from the copy that the reader may receive.

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very interesting book about birds and their relationships with humans regarding disease and, to a lesser extent, habitat. The strength of this book is explaining how diseases in birds transfer to humans. This is explained by showing how diseases progress/survive in birds, transfer from mosquitos to birds and potentially to people, and so on. In this way, Doherty shows why it is important to monitor the health of bird populations and prevent the spread of serious disease amongst them if at all possible.

Along the way, he gives a fairly complicated (to me, who has not had biology in over 20 years) description of the biology of many illnesses (Bird Flu first among these), of viral and bacterial infections, and the history of studying disease in birds.

So, the narrative weaves in the history of studying birds and their illnesses (including those they transfer to humans, especially the flu of 1919 that killed more than World War One), the great scientific achievements in this realm, and a fair amount of the effect of environmental changes (specifically those caused by global warming) on the health of bird populations and how warming changes how disease works in birds.

The weakness is, as the preceding paragraph describes, is that the book is a bit all over the place and lacks focus. It is more a reflection on a life's work than a well crafted argument or narrative. Still, I found it fascinating learning about the difference between birds lungs and ours (explaining why the canary in the coal mine dies before humans feel sick), about how the flu can transfer from birds to people, and a wide variety of similar things.

[Jim Pfluecke · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very interesting book about birds and their relationships with humans regarding disease and, to a lesser extent, habitat. The strength of this book is explaining how diseases in birds transfer to humans. This is explained by showing how diseases progress/survive in birds, transfer from mosquitos to birds and potentially to people, and so on. In this way, Doherty shows why it is important to monitor the health of bird populations and prevent the spread of serious disease amongst them if at all possible.

Along the way, he gives a fairly complicated (to me, who has not had biology in over 20 years) description of the biology of many illnesses (Bird Flu first among these), of viral and bacterial infections, and the history of studying disease in birds.

So, the narrative weaves in the history of studying birds and their illnesses (including those they transfer to humans, especially the flu of 1919 that killed more than World War One), the great scientific achievements in this realm, and a fair amount of the effect of environmental changes (specifically those caused by global warming) on the health of bird populations and how warming changes how disease works in birds.

The weakness is, as the preceding paragraph describes, is that the book is a bit all over the place and lacks focus. It is more a reflection on a life's work than a well crafted argument or narrative. Still, I found it fascinating learning about the difference between birds lungs and ours (explaining why the canary in the coal mine dies before humans feel sick), about how the flu can transfer from birds to people, and a wide variety of similar things.

[Ryan Donohue · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a really fascinating book documenting the roles humans and birds play in the fate of one another. The book brings a whole new perspective to many of the buzzwords we hear over and over again, such as bird flu. The author does an wonderful job explaining why bird flu and other diseases exist, how our demand for poultry and factory farming propagates the spread of disease, and how different diseases transfer between species. It's amazing how much of what we know about disease didn't exist 100 years ago, and most of it more recently then that. If you want to understand the role birds have in identifying pandemics, how diseases work and spread (technically or historically), or the role each of us play in preserving bird populations and thus human populations, then this is a worthy read.

The author is a nobel-winning immunologist who has been in the field for decades. His expertise on the subject, along with numerous references, collaborates his thesis. I did not realize this was written by an immunologist so I was surprised by the significant focus on disease. There was also a lot of technical jargon and discussion that I was not prepared for when starting the book, but he does a pretty good job breaking down the definitions and anatomy in a way that any layman can understand what is going on. All in all, this is a great book and extremely relevant in the current state of the world.

[Madonna · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Their Fate is Our Fate" is written by Peter Doherty, who explains why we need to pay attention to what is going on with the health of our bird friends and understand their migration patterns, in order to see to our own future health. This is a well written book with many reference notes so would be of great help to students of microbiology and immunology.

I found this book to be very interesting and enlightening though, I am neither a doctor nor bird watcher...other than the ones who visit my back yard and bird feeders..., after finding a couple dead crows, in which the authorities had no interest.

I think the information on cross contamination between species of birds and animals and humans will be of interest to many of you.

I received this Proof Copy through GoodReads FirstReads Program and was not required to give a review.

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this book as part of the First Reads program, and it is an uncorrected proof.

The majority of this book is a discussion of the relationship between bird diseases and human diseases (e.g. flu), while also discussing the importance of birds as warning beacons when new viruses appear. It also gets into a discussion of the importance of birds in the overall ecosystem, as hunters, scavengers, etc. The last part touches on what human caused changes in the environment are doing to birds and how they are or are not coping. The book is very technical in places, but I found it to be very interesting, and I managed to finish it in 2 days of commuting on the train to and from work. I'd recommend it to anyone who would like to learn more about the subject.

[puripuri · Rating 4 out of 5]

奇妙，邊讀邊看到能跟書裡的知識點對應上的時事新聞（丹頂鶴保護區、白鱘滅絕、疫苗廠洩漏引布病、武漢的肺炎和流感病毒）⋯⋯不過也有可能只是獸醫的孕婦效應啦（。

被書名「誆騙」來看以為是一本講宏觀生態學的書，結果由於作者本科讀獸醫而後又研究病毒學和免疫學，重點章節幾乎都是預防醫學的方向，跟最初印象大相徑庭；對生物狗來說當中很多知識點早已知悉甚至爛熟於心，對普通大眾來說卻又稍顯有些閱讀和理解的門檻，面向的受眾群比較尷尬。作者每一章結尾都硬是要繞到環境保護上也是挺努力了⋯⋯

翻譯也實在不大行，這哪是中文的語序，第六章結論部分看得我雲裡霧裡的，跟所有翻譯過來的大學理科教材書一樣毫無重點且不說人話（。

刨開翻譯的部分總的來說還是蠻好看一書；附錄的鳥中文正式名英文俗名拉丁學名對照（限書中提到的鳥鳥）也挺實用

Update：沒想到恰好在 COVID-19 爆發之前讀完這本書，簡直像是提前惡補了一圈免疫學和病毒學知識後恰好遇上了隨堂小測，雖然這個小測搞得有點像期末考了⋯⋯

[Katrina · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a Goodreads reviewer put it, this book reads like a series of presentations, but there are interesting facts throughout, and the author's passion, humor and humanity appear regularly. (The publisher, The Experiment, should have had better proofreading, as there are at least two obvious errors.)

[Don Kent · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fascinating book. The explanations of how birds can be reservoirs of viruses that cause human diseases was well done. The review of avian physiology in chapter 2 was illuminating and the role of Diclofenac in the near extinction of Vultures in India (chapter 15)was especially good.

[Melissa · Rating 4 out of 5]

This review can be found at www.ifithaswords.blogspot.com or Amazon.com as part of the Vine program.