Peter Goodfellow's recent book, Avian Architecture: How Birds Design, Engineer & Build, captures a lifetime of not just observing birds but the unsung structures they create. Bird nests can be simple or elaborate, as small as a hazelnut, like this hummingbird nest, or enormous, weighing several tons. They can last a few weeks or a century, and can be isolated or one among a half million of similar nests.

Divided into 12 chapters based on types of nests and other avian construction, the book revives Goodfellow's "schoolboy excitement of 'bird nesting'" with case studies from around the world accompanied by intricate line drawings and blueprints, as well as hundreds of photos.

"It is the architectural ability of birds to build a variety of nest types," Goodfellow writes, "that has enabled them to diversify into so many habitats--from the desert to the Antarctic, from high trees to underground, from open ground to out on the water--and which creates some of the best engineered structures in the world." Inspired by the book, this gallery explores nests around the world.