Nepal has a rich and varied animal life having affinities with trans-Himalayan regions. Many plants and animals still bear suffix nipalensis as type locality which typifies glory of Nepal’s biodiversity. Nepal’s endemic bird the Spiny babbler - Turdoides nipalensis is the best representative. This book is the culmination of 20 years of intensive scientific work of the author. Perhaps its most important feature is that the result of the strenuous and painstaking endeavors over many years of a dedicated man, whose observations have been gathered together to form the raw material on which the text is based. Never before has birdlife conservation been more important. The rapid pace of development in Nepal, as elsewhere, put many of endemic bird habitats at ever greater risk. Despite of this, it is hoped that recent conservation effort of His Majesty’s Government may help to promote conservation issues in this unique part of the world.

However, the main merit and relevance of Dr. Shrestha’s study on the spiny babbler far exceeds that of a monograph on the little known species. The book shows to what an astonishing extent a bird is related with its shrubland environment. The work is therefore an important contribution to the rather neglected science of behavioral ecology. The book can serve as a significant methodological contribution to behavioral ecology indeed in many respects as a model for future work. It is hoped that this book will stimulate further studies to uncover new facts about other endemic shrubland birds of Nepal