David Barrie (1) (1953–)

Un libro que cautivará a todos aquellos interesados en la observación animal.
Todos nos hemos maravillado viendo bandadas de pájaros que vuelan ejecutando lo que parece ser una danza, u observando cómo las cigüeñas anidan cada año en los mismos lugares. En esta obra aves, peces o reptiles encuentran su camino: escarabajos que se guían por la luz de la Vía Láctea; abejas que navegan usando patrones de luz invisibles para los humanos; tortugas marinas que encuentran su camino utilizando el campo magnético de la Tierra. También salmones que regresan a su lugar de nacimiento siguiendo su olfato, ballenas que nadan miles de millas mientras siguen un rastro de rocas o aves que vuelven a anidar en una pequeña isla después de atravesar un océano. Existe una gran diversidad de sistemas de navegación animal, que a menudo utilizan sentidos y habilidades desconocidos para los humanos.Ci… (meer)

In this book Barrie tells us how and why this piece of technology changed the way that sailors navigated their way across the wild and unknown seas in the great age of exploration. There are tales of explorers like Cook, FitzRoy, Flinders and Worsley as they charted the new worlds of Australia and New Zealand, suffered the great storms of the Southern ocean and trawled across the vastness of the Pacific Ocean.

Woven amongst these tales of men who sought to go beyond the map and discover the unknown is Barrie’s own adventure. In 1973 he crewed on a boat called Saecwen, that was crossing the Atlantic from America to the UK. This was before the advent of GPS and modern navigational technologies, so he had to rely on the sextant and charts to determine his position every day. They suffered storms and near misses with giant ships, and saw dolphins and other sea creatures as they crossed. The journey proved to him that this precision instrument was capable of getting men safely across the huge oceans.

Written in a similar vein to the book Longitude by Soble, this is a blend of science, history and adventure. It is interesting in parts and full of interesting facts and details. But like some ocean voyages, it does feel that you are becalmed occasionally, and just paddling along. Overall ok, but really only for those with a real interest in sailing and adventure.… (meer)