Colophon

The animal on the cover of React Native Cookbook is a northern goshawk (Accipiter gentilis), a bird of prey that is widespread throughout Eurasia and North America. It has been a popular bird in the sport of falconry for centuries, both for its speed and tendency to follow prey into thick vegetation. The name “goshawk” is derived from the Anglo-Saxon word for “goose hawk,” though it is more often used to hunt rabbits, waterfowl, partridges, and pheasants. (These animals are also part of its natural diet.)

Goshawks are medium-large members of the hawk family but have proportionately large beaks and talons that provide an advantage over other raptors when hunting. Their wings are short and broad, and their tail long, both of which give them great maneuverability within their forest habitat. There are variations in color in different geographic areas, but generally, adult goshawks have orange or red eyes, blue- or brown-gray backs and wings, with a pattern of pale grey and dark bars on their bellies. Juveniles have brown plumage and yellow eyes.

Females of the species are much larger than males. Mating pairs will often use the same nest for multiple years, or at least stay in the same vicinity. It is common for the male to construct the nest, with the female supervising nearby, though she may help reinforce an older nest. These structures can be 31–47 inches long and 20–28 inches wide. Goshawks are territorial birds who will defend their hunting range and nesting site against other birds of prey, as well as goshawks of the opposite sex.

Many of the animals on O’Reilly covers are endangered; all of them are important to the world. To learn more about how you can help, go to animals.oreilly.com.

The cover image is from Wood’s Animate Creation. The cover fonts are URW Typewriter and Guardian Sans. The text font is Adobe Minion Pro; the heading font is Adobe Myriad Condensed; and the code font is Dalton Maag’s Ubuntu Mono.