What is the author's focus in Part I of the book, The Feather Thief?

Part One focuses on the history of natural history collection with a particular emphasis on the Victorian era. This section then chronicles the historical evolution of humanity's relationship to nature from this period, which ultimately led to the establishment of legislation and international treaties for protect endangered species. Part One also introduces the history behind salmon fly tying and some of its evolution to the present day. As this section moves through history to the current era, Edwin Rist is also introduced in the section's last chapter as a teenager who falls in love with salmon fly tying. Part One includes six chapters which vary in length from 10 to 25 pages.