“It was formed of twigs woven vertically into two thick, parallel walls that created a tunnel in between, and just outside each entrance lay a pile of white stones, bleached bones, and green leaves, clearly arranged by design.” Lest we think that the bower is the future home of the wooed mate, Strycker reminds us that after a quick copulation, female bowerbirds are done with the males, flying off to build a more humble nest and raise their young on their own. As for the male, he soon gets back to what is most important: his art. He works on the nest with monomaniacal intensity. “The perfect bower leaves no time for anything else,” Strycker writes.