This could have been a pop-philosophy book about natural science and epistemology called On Knowing Birds, if the author had wanted to play it that way.

In 100 essays, Ted Floyd builds up your ability to know about birds (by their appearance, by their sounds, by their behavior, by their location, time, and part of year).

And then he picks it all apart, challenging what you thought you knew about birds (populations, species, and so on) until you know how wondrously little we still know.

I was glad I kept a comprehensive North American field guide or other birding reference book handy while reading this, since having color photos available helped me to absorb more of it.