Bur Oak Books for Readers of All Ages -- On Sale!

If you missed (or avoided) Black Friday and Cyber Monday but still need some great gifts, check out the University of Iowa Press's holiday sale! Find great books for up to 65% for all of the readers in your life.

Here are just a few of the books included…

Where Do Birds Live?
by Claudia McGehee
Bur Oak Blog

"An an artist and a nature enthusiast, I am completely enthralled by Where Do Birds Live? Beauty is everywhere if one only slows down to look for it. This lovely book is a good reminder of that."--Stan Fellows, illustrator, The Cuckoo's Haiku and Other Birding Poems

Regular Price: $17.95
Sale Price: $8.00

The Raptors of Iowa

illustrated by James F. Landenberger

essays by Dean M. Roosa, Jon W. Stravers, Bruce Ehresman, and Rich Patterson

Bur Oak Book

"To pioneer homesteaders, a hawk in the sky was reason to reach for a gun. Now, with out better understanding of the raptors' ecological importance and of their perilous future, a wheeling red tail against the sun is something to cherish, not kill. In The Raptors of Iowa, artist and authors have given to all who are interested in midwestern birds a book that will set the standard for years to come."--J. Fenwick Lansdowne

Regular Price: $29.95

Sale Price: $14.00

Happy shopping!

Raptor of the Week: Long-eared Owl

Long-eared Owl
Asio otus

The crow-size long-eared owl occurs regularly but nests rarely in Iowa. Since it feeds on mice and uses old crow nests, it is difficult to understand why this owl is so rare here. In winter, conifer stands are good places to find it.

The Raptors of Iowa, paintings by James F. Landenberger

Raptor of the Week: Northern Hawk Owl

Northern Hawk Owl
Surnia ulula

This is an accidental visitor to Iowa, with only two accepted records, one from Black Hawk County in 1981 and 1982 and one from Worth County in 2004 and 2005. As its name implies, its general shape and perching attitude are somewhat hawklike.

The Raptors of Iowa, paintings by James F. Landenberger

Raptor of the Week: Snowy Owl

Snowy Owl
Bubo scandiacus

The snowy is a rare winter visitor but is present in our state every year. It arrives as early as October and is normally gone by late March. Periodically, large invasions occur when lemmings, its principal food base, are in short supply in the Arctic. This is one of the few owls active during daylight.

The Raptors of Iowa, paintings by James F. Landenberger

Raptor of the Week: Merlin

Merlin
Falco columbarius

The midsize merlin is a rare migrant and a rare winter resident, first occurring during migration in late March and again in late August. A few very old nesting records exist. Two subspecies of this falcon occur in Iowa: the taiga merlin and the Richardson's or prairie merlin, a pale form.

The Raptors of Iowa, paintings by James F. Landenberger

Raptors of the Week: Gyrfalcon

Gyrfalcon
Falco rusticolus

The largest of the North American falcons lives mainly in the Arctic; it is of accidental occurrence in Iowa, with fewer than ten documented reports. The first acceptable records, from 1992 and 1993, were of gray-phase immature birds.

The Raptors of Iowa, paintings by James F. Landenberger

Raptor of the Week: Burrowing Owl

Burrowing Owl

Athene cunicularia

The burrowing owl is a Great Plains species that rarely nests in Iowa, and these nests, as expected, are mostly in the western half of the state. It is our only owl that nests underground. In its principal range, it uses prairie dog burrows for its nest; in Iowa, it probably uses badger dens.

The Raptors of Iowa, paintings by James F. Landenberger