Excavations at the early Neolithic settlement of WF16 in Faynan, southern Jordan, 11.84–10.24 ka BP, recovered 17,700 bird bones, of which 7808 could be identified to at least family level. Sixty‐three different bird taxa are present from 18 families, representing a mix of resident and migrant birds, based on present‐day ecology. We describe the settlement context for the assemblage, its taxonomic composition, spatial and chronological distribution, identifying its similarities and differences to avian assemblages from broadly contemporary sites in the region.

WF16 is an early Neolithic settlement in southern Jordan with a large bird bone assemblage (Number of Identified Specimens [NISP] = 7808), representing 18 families. We explore how the birds were utilized by considering cut marks and body part representation for each of the families represented, also drawing on the experimental skinning of buzzards, the most common bird in the assemblage. We conclude that the bird bones accumulated from a mix of activities including the exploitation of a seasonally abundant supply of migratory birds for food; the acquisition of skins, feathers and talons for decorative, symbolic and practical purposes; and the trapping of wildfowl and gamebirds as a supplementary food source to large mammals.

Birds are useful indicators of biodiversity. Their bones have been used for reconstructing the local environments and seasonality of human activity at Epipalaeolithic and early Neolithic sites in south-west Asia. We consider the bird bones from WF16, an early Neolithic settlement in southern Jordan, currently located in an arid environment. The settlement has elaborate pisé-built architecture and material culture. The species represented in the WF16 avian assemblage suggest the environment was considerably wetter and more wooded than today, supporting the idea that early Holocene communities targeted locations with abundant and diverse resources. However, while the range of species at WF16 is equivalent to that found at other Epipalaeolithic and early Neolithic sites in the region, the diversity of the assemblage is strikingly limited, with a heavy dominance of raptors, notably buzzards. We suggest an annual pattern of seasonally based activities, with a relatively small resident population drawing on supplies of water during the winter months for constructing and maintaining site architecture and spring/autumn gatherings of people from across the region to hunt migratory raptors and undertake performance and ceremony at the settlement.

M.'s book provides a comprehensive introduction and overview of the role of birds within ancient society. The book is distinct from previous scholarship on birds in the ancient world with its approach to the material. Where D.W. Thompson's A Glossary of Greek Birds (1895), J. Pollard's Birds in Greek Life and Myth (1977) and W.G. Arnott's Birds in the Ancient World from A to Z (2007) tend to arrange the material by species, M. organises the material into six thematic parts. These parts follow a logical progression from birds as physical actors in the natural world to the abstract use and interpretation of birds in ancient societies. This structure allows M.'s work to act as a companion to its more encyclopaedic predecessors, as his thematic structure provides a more holistic approach to the role of birds. Additionally, through M.'s original translation and presentation of large extracts of ancient texts, it also serves as a valuable sourcebook for the role of birds in the ancient world. It is certainly not as exhaustive as other sourcebooks on animals, such as S. Lewis and L. Llewellyn-Jones's The Culture of Animals in Antiquity: a Sourcebook with Commentaries (2015), but still proves useful due to its thematic approach and targeted focus. Part 1, 'Birds in the Natural World', is divided into four chapters: the seasons; weather; time; and soundscapes. The first two of these chapters deal with well-known uses of birds as season-markers and weather predictors, with the second chapter moving on to their impact on time (mostly related to the cockerel's crow). The last chapter is the most extensive, concentrating on birds as ancient soundscapes. A highlight of the chapter is M.'s concentration on the distinction made between ancient and modern musical aesthetics in relation to birdsong. The chapter concludes with a brief discussion of the relationship between birdsong and music. Part 2, 'Birds as a Resource', is divided into three chapters: hunting and fowling; cooking and eating; and farming. M. does a thorough job in exploring each of these aspects. The use of visual evidence in this chapter enhances it, particularly the inclusion of a modern example of a thrush caught in bird-lime (p. 80, fig. 3.5), which would be unfamiliar to most readers. While the textual tradition provides excellent information for all three of the chapters in this section, I did find that these discussions suffered slightly from a lack of archaeological evidence. Although M.'s approach is centred on the presentation of birds within the texts, I feel that comparing these accounts with the zooarchaeological record would have enhanced the discussion, particularly in the case of what birds were eaten, and provided the reader with a broader knowledge of the use of birds in the ancient world. Part 3, 'Living with Birds', is dedicated to other types of human-bird interaction that are more symbiotic than the previous section. It deals with the use of birds as pets and aviaries/zoos in the ancient world; birds in sports and entertainment, mainly cockf...