Dick Dekker is a remarkable individual, and Stories of Predation is a remarkable book. The tagline, "60 Years of Watching Wildlife," gives away the fact that this is actually an autobiography, summarizing Dekker's accomplishments over the years. On page 209, he can't resist letting us know that this was his original choice for the title. Still, the book is indeed about predators, mostly, and there are plenty of well-told stories here about wolves, falcons, and eagles. But the book also contains tales of shorebirds, ungulates, forests, and water levels, and on another level, it chronicles Dekker's opinions on various aspects of park management (and mismanagement), conservation, life in the backcountry, and life as a Dutch immigrant to Canada. It is important to realize that in many ways, Dick Dekker's perspective is singular. He is not a university academic, although he now holds a PhD, and his publication record looks a lot like one of theirs. Likewise, he is not a government biologist, or a typical environmental journalist.

Instead, Dekker describes himself as an independent naturalist. In a world where most biological studies take place over one or two "field seasons," Dick Dekker's datasets were amassed over decades. Whereas most biologists frame their studies in terms of "hypothesis testing," Dekker is relentlessly inductive, mulling over thousands of observations before suggesting a general explanation for what he has seen. Even among birders and weekend naturalists, Dekker's observational record stands out prominently. For this reason, Stories of Predation should be right there on the bookshelf of anyone interested in the natural history of Western Canada, be they professional or amateur. Recognizing the importance of diverse perspectives on all environmental issues, a voice as unique and powerful as Dick Dekker's deserves to be heard, and this book will ensure his legacy as a truly insightful naturalist." -- John Acorn, Naturalist and Research Associate at the Royal Tyrrell Museum of Paleontology.