New Titles

1) Phillipps, Quentin and Karen Phillipps. Phillipps' Field Guide to the Birds of Borneo: Sabah, Sarawak, Brunei, and Kalimantan (third edition). 2014. Princeton University Press. Paperback: 372 pages. Price: $35.00 U.S.
PUBLISHER'S SUMMARY: This is the fully revised and updated third edition of an acclaimed field guide to the birds of Borneo, covering Sabah, Sarawak, Brunei, and Kalimantan. The result is the most up-to-date, comprehensive, and user-friendly guide to the island's remarkably diverse birdlife. The book covers all 673 species living or reported on Borneo, including all 59 endemic species. Each species is superbly illustrated in 141 color plates containing more than 2,000 full-color bird images, which provide multiple large views of each species, including most of the sexual variants and immature forms of polymorphic species. Each plate is accompanied by facing-page species descriptions covering taxonomy, size, call, range, distribution, habits, and status. Distribution is also shown with 567 detailed color thumbnail maps on facing pages. Other features include seven habitat plates, twelve regional maps showing Borneo's top 90 birding sites, fast-find identification plates to the birds of Kinabalu and other habitats, and a full overview of Borneo's vegetation, climate, and ecology. This is a guide that any outdoor visitor to the island will treasure.
     This book features:

•The most up-to-date, comprehensive, and user-friendly guide to the birds of Borneo
•Features handy, facing-page format
•Illustrates and describes all 673 species, including 59 endemics
•Contains more than 2,000 superb full-color images, providing multiple large views of each species, and 567 color maps
•Describes and maps Borneo's top 90 birding sites
•Includes fast-find identification plates to the birds of Kinabalu and other habitats
•Provides a full overview of Borneo's vegetation, climate, and ecology


RECOMMENDATION: A MUST have for anyone with an interest in the birds of the region.

 

 

 

 

 

2) Williams, Paul H., Robbin W. Thorp, Leif L. Richardson & Sheila R. Colla. Bumble Bees of North America: An Identification Guide. 2014. Princeton University Press. Paperback: 208 pages. Price: $24.95 U.S.

PUBLISHER'S SUMMARY: More than ever before, there is widespread interest in studying bumble bees and the critical role they play in our ecosystems. Bumble Bees of North America is the first comprehensive guide to North American bumble bees to be published in more than a century. Richly illustrated with color photographs, diagrams, range maps, and graphs of seasonal activity patterns, this guide allows amateur and professional naturalists to identify all 46 bumble bee species found north of Mexico and to understand their ecology and changing geographic distributions.

      The book draws on the latest molecular research, shows the enormous color variation within species, and guides readers through the many confusing convergences between species. It draws on a large repository of data from museum collections and presents state-of-the-art results on evolutionary relationships, distributions, and ecological roles. Illustrated keys allow identification of color morphs and social castes.

      A landmark publication, Bumble Bees of North America sets the standard for guides and the study of these important insects.

     This book features:
         *The best guide yet to the 46 recognized bumble bee species in North America north of  Mexico
     *Up-to-date taxonomy includes previously unpublished results
     *Detailed distribution maps
     *Extensive keys identify the many color patterns of species
RECOMMENDATION: A MUST have for anyone with an interest in these insects.