Sunday, December 5, 2021

BEST BIRD BOOKS OF 2021

 

The following are my picks for the best bird books of 2021:

BEST BOOK:

 

 


 

1) Harrison, Peter, Martin Perrow, and Hans Larsson. Seabirds: The New Identification Guide. 2021. Lynx Edicions. Hardbound: 600 pages. Price: $90.00 U.S. 

PUBLISHER’S SUMMARY: This is the first comprehensive guide to the world’s 434 species of seabirds, to be published since the 1983 publication of Harrison’s Seabirds: An Identification Guide. It covers all known seabirds, beginning with seaducks and grebes and ending with cormorants and pelicans. Lavishly illustrated and detailed throughout the 600 pages, this guide gives full treatment to all known seabird species including recently rediscovered and rarely seen species.

- The essential new field guide to the seabirds of the world.
- 239 superb, full-colour plates with extensive captions and detailed facing-plate identification texts and maps, to enable identification at a glance.
- More than 3,800 full-colour figures with illustrations of distinct subspecies, sexes, ages and morphs, are further supported by in-text identification keys and figures.
- Comprehensive and definitive, the text covers status and conservation, geographic range, movements and migration, breeding biology and feeding habits, plus identification and latest taxonomic treatments.
- The only seabird guide to cover all known seabird groups and species. Seabirders worldwide will find this to be an authoritative, one-of-a-kind publication for use around the globe.

RECOMMENDATION: A MUST have for all pelagic birders! This book will be the standard seabirds reference for years to come!

 

 HONORABLE MENTIONS:

 

 


 

1) Huisman, G. Jelmer. Estrildid Finches of the World: A Photographic, Descriptive and Factual Guide to All 34 Genera of Estrildidae. 2021. Self-published. Hardbound: 396 pages. Price: about $120.00 U.S.

PUBLISHER’S SUMMARY: Estrildid Finches of the World was written over a period of nine years and is intended for a wide audience, not only bird lovers and bird watchers, but also ornithologists and other scientists. Estrildid finches are among the most fascinating bird families of the Old World with surprising and special characteristics. The family of Estrildidae comprises 34 genera with 145 species and 239 subspecies, each having its own quirks.

     All 145 species and their subspecies are described in detail and the unique distribution maps present the spread of all subspecies in different colours. The descriptions of the species are supported by beautiful photographs of the birds in their natural habitats.

     These photos represent the work of close to 300 photographers from 40 countries around the world, whose achievements were vitally important to this huge project. Not only did they afford the author permission to use their photos, but they also provided valuable information on the species directly through their first-hand field experience. In fact, some species have never been illustrated photographically before. In addition, the author was very fortunate in that several renowned universities, such as Cambridge and Yale, were extremely helpful.

     The reader will also be treated to photos of nestlings at different stages of their development, which were taken by bird breeders so as not to unnecessarily disturb the breeding birds in their natural habitats. Estrildid Finches of the World depicts the largest number of mouth markings ever published, with 111 species being illustrated. Original photos show nestling mimicry of estrildid finches and their parasitic whydahs and indigobirds, making this a fascinating resource for evolutionary biologists.

RECOMMENDATION: A MUST have for anyone with an interest in Estrildid Finches and/or collect bird family monographs! The book can be ordered here

 

 


 

2) Cofta, Tomasz. Flight Identification of European Passerines and Select Landbirds: An Illustrated and Photographic Guide. 2021. Princeton University Press/WILDGuides. Flexibound: 496 pages. Price: $45.00 U.S.

PUBLISHER’S SUMMARY: Opening up new frontiers in birdwatching, this is the first field guide to focus specifically on the identification of European passerines and related landbirds in flight. Showcasing 850 stunning and remarkably lifelike colour illustrations from acclaimed bird artist Tomasz Cofta, produced using the latest digital technology, backed up with more than 2,400 photographs carefully selected to show typical flight profiles, it provides detailed and unsurpassed coverage of 205 European passerines and 32 near-passerines. This cutting-edge book brings a new dimension to birdwatching, the concise and authoritative species accounts presenting novel yet essential information on the flight manner of individual birds and the structure and behaviour of flocks―features that are key to identification. It also includes precise transliterations of flight calls, supported by sonograms, and links to a unique collection of hundreds of online audio recordings. Beautifully designed and written in an accessible style, this book will appeal to birdwatchers of all abilities. It presents the latest knowledge on flight identification of a group of birds that is poorly covered in the literature and is therefore a must-have for all professional ornithologists and scientists involved in migration studies.

  • The first field guide to flight identification of European passerines and related landbirds
  • Covers 205 European passerines and 32 near-passerines
  • Features 850 stunning colour illustrations
  • Includes more than 2,400 photos showing typical profiles of each species in flight
  • Provides detailed information on flight calls, with links to online recordings

RECOMMENDATION: A MUST have for anyone birding Europe! I wish there was something like this for North America! 

 

 



3) Meiburg, Jonathan. A Most Remarkable Creature: The Hidden Life and Epic Journey of the World's Smartest Birds of Prey. 2021. Knopf. Hardbound: 366 pages. Price: $30.00 U.S.

PUBLISHER’S SUMMARY: An enthralling account of a modern voyage of discovery as we meet the clever, social birds of prey called caracaras, which puzzled Darwin, fascinate modern-day falconers, and carry secrets of our planet's deep past in their family history.

     In 1833, Charles Darwin was astonished by an animal he met in the Falkland Islands: handsome, social, and oddly crow-like falcons that were "tame and inquisitive . . . quarrelsome and passionate," and so insatiably curious that they stole hats, compasses, and other valuables from the crew of the Beagle. Darwin wondered why these birds were confined to remote islands at the tip of South America, sensing a larger story, but he set this mystery aside and never returned to it.
 
      Almost two hundred years later, Jonathan Meiburg takes up this chase. He takes us through South America, from the fog-bound coasts of Tierra del Fuego to the tropical forests of Guyana, in search of these birds: striated caracaras, which still exist, though they're very rare. He reveals the wild, fascinating story of their history, origins, and possible futures. And along the way, he draws us into the life and work of William Henry Hudson, the Victorian writer and naturalist who championed caracaras as an unsung wonder of the natural world, and to falconry parks in the English countryside, where captive caracaras perform incredible feats of memory and problem-solving. A Most Remarkable Creature is a hybrid of science writing, travelogue, and biography, as generous and accessible as it is sophisticated, and absolutely riveting.

RECOMMENDATION: Fans of Owls of the Eastern Ice should enjoy this book!

 

 

 

 

4) McFarland, Casey et al.. Peterson Field Guide to North American Bird Nests. 2021. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Paperback: 500 Pages. Price: $24.99 U.S. 

PUBLISHER’S SUMMARY: A comprehensive field guide to the nests and nesting behavior of North American birds.

     Beyond being a simple reference book, the Peterson Field Guide to North American Bird Nests is a practical, educational, and intimate doorway to our continent’s bird life. The diversity of nests and nesting strategies of birds reflect the unique biology and evolution of these charismatic animals. Unlike any other book currently on the market, this guide comprehensively incorporates nest design, breeding behavior, and habitat preferences of North American birds to provide the reader with a highly functional field resource and an engaging perspective of this sensitive part of a bird’s life cycle.

RECOMMENDATION: A must have for anyone with an interest in the breeding biology of North American birds!

Saturday, December 4, 2021

New Titles

 


1) Alderfer, Jonathan and Jon Dunn. National Geographic Complete Birds of North America, 3rd Edition. 2021. National Geographic. Hardbound: 752 pages. Price: $45.00 U.S.

PUBLISHER’S SUMMARY: This desk reference is the most up-to-date and comprehensive source of knowledge on North American bird identification, distribution, behavior, habitat, and conservation concerns available today.

     More an encyclopedia than a field guide, National Geographic's Complete Birds is a browsable treasure trove of facts. This comprehensive volume profiles every bird observable in the continental United States and Canada, featuring species accounts with details that include calls and songs, breeding behaviors, molting patterns, and the vast extent of their polar and neotropical migrations. The precision maps, illuminating photographs, and more than 4,000 exquisite pieces of annotated art make this the biggest and best bird book ever.


     This third edition, thoroughly updated, includes:
  • Information on more than 1,000 species and subspecies
  • Overviews of every family
  • Organization reflecting current taxonomy
  • 850 range maps, more than half updated since the last edition
  • Sidebars on identification challenges such as distinguishing between Bay-breasted and Blackpoll Warblers in fall or separating the various species of white egrets

RECOMMENDATION: The taxonomy in this book is through July 2018. This title is basically an expanded version of the National Geographic Field Guide to the Birds of North America (7th edition).

 


 

2) Gibson, Sarah. Swifts and Us: The Life of the Bird that Sleeps in the Sky. 2021. William Collins. Hardbound: 328 pages. Price: $29.99 U.S.

PUBLISHER’S SUMMARY: Swifts live almost entirely in the air. They eat, drink, sleep, mate and gather their nesting materials on the wing, fly thousands of miles across the world, navigating their way around storms, never lighting on tree, cliff or ground, until they return home with the summer.

     Sarah Gibson has written a fascinating story of discovery, exploring what is known about these mysterious birds, their ancient ancestry and how they have been regarded through history. But the swifts are in real danger: often unintentionally, we are sealing our homes against wildlife of any kind. Cracks, gaps and crevices which for thousands of years have offered nesting space in buildings, are being closed off, while new housing rarely offers entry holes for nesting birds. Loss of breeding places is considered to be a significant factor in the steep decline of these birds over the last twenty years.
 
     Thankfully, there are people in the UK and across Europe striving to ensure a future for swifts. Their actions and stories are woven into the narrative, demonstrating how change is brought about by passionate, determined individuals, whose actions show that everyone can do something to keep these superb birds screaming through our skies.

RECOMMENDATION: I see this book as the modern day version of David Lack's Swifts in a Tower, so it's a must read for anyone with an interest in the Common Swift!

 


 

3) Painter, Martin. Birding in an Age of Extinctions. 2021. Whittles Publishing. Paperback: 171 pages. Price: $24.95 U.S.

PUBLISHER’S SUMMARY: This is a book about what it's like being a birder in an age of natural decline. It is part autobiographical - tales of spell-binding birding encounters that left indelible memories - and it is part reflective. The travellers' tales of birding adventures are about places and events that were variously entertaining, amusing, captivating, inspiring, exciting and awesome, literally. They also feature the amazing, eccentric, dedicated, inspiring people in the birding community. There is birding in the Himalayas, in the Australian outback, on the Southern Oceans and in hotel gardens and city parks and there are tales of the 'big-listers', 'big-lensers', professional guides, and local conservation workers who try to keep their habitats safe for us.

     Martin's experiences in becoming a birder late in life revealed some strange behaviour which he soon learnt to take for granted as a member of the birding community. Why tear off chasing the next tick when we were having such a good time in the forest we were already exploring? Why was seeing a rare parrot in a cage less significant than seeing a 'wild' one that was being hand-fed in a nature reserve?

     There are chapters about all of these puzzles and oddities, and more - their origins and, in some cases, how they shape our behaviour in somewhat perverse ways. All these tales and reflections are shaped by birding during an extinction crisis and the growing biodiversity crisis. As he observed trashed habitats and vanishing bird populations during his travels, Martin's growing dismay and alarm about these issues coloured everything. There is the paradox of 'extinction birding' - it is not difficult today to see some vanishingly rare birds because they are hanging on in reserved, fenced spaces, kept alive by artifices such as captive breeding. Because our visits to these places provide funds, we are among these species' last hopes for survival. Is this the best we can do? Faced with the growing crisis, we can all do better.
RECOMMENDATION: This narrative will be relatable to many birders on many levels!



4) Kennedy, Philip. The Bird: The Great Age of Avian Illustration. 2021. Laurence King Publishing. Hardbound: 352 pages. Price: $60.00 U.S.

PUBLISHER’S SUMMARY: The Bird explores the fascinating world of eighteenth- and nineteenth-century ornithological illustration. This was a period of scientific, artistic and geographic discovery, when people began to fully appreciate the immense variety of form and colour within the natural world. This book celebrates this beauty through the lavish illustrations produced at that time.

     Each chapter focuses on a category of birds, from shorebirds to birds of prey. Feature sections on key ornithological artists such as John James Audubon, Elizabeth Gould and Edward Lear demonstrated how technology, travel and ambition shaped these amazing images, and how their work transformed our understanding of the wonderful world of birds. 

RECOMMENDATION: A must have for anyone with an interest in bird art! 

 


 

5) Parker, Steve. The World Encyclopedia of Fossils & Fossil-Collecting. 2020. Southwater. Paperback: 256 pages. Price: $13.99 U.S.

PUBLISHER’S SUMMARY: How to find, classify and date fossils, and assess their geological context, together with an illustrated directory of more than 375 fossil examples.

RECOMMENDATION: A well illustrated introductory guide to fossils and fossil hunting.

 


 

6) McElwain, Jennifer et al.. Tropical Arctic: Lost Plants, Future Climates, and the Discovery of Ancient Greenland. 2021. University of Chicago Press. Hardbound: 138 pages. Price: $30.00 U.S.

PUBLISHER’S SUMMARY: An illustrated visit to the tropical arctic of 205 million years ago when Greenland was green.

      While today’s Greenland is largely covered in ice, in the time of the dinosaurs the area was a lushly forested, tropical zone. Tropical Arctic tracks a ten-million-year window of Earth’s history when global temperatures soared and the vegetation of the world responded.

      A project over eighteen years in the making, Tropical Arctic is the result of a unique collaboration between two paleobotanists, Jennifer C. McElwain and Ian J. Glasspool, and award-winning scientific illustrator Marlene Hill Donnelly. They began with a simple question: “What was the color of a fossilized leaf?” Tropical Arctic answers that question and more, allowing readers to experience Triassic Greenland through three reconstructed landscapes and an expertly researched catalog of extinct plants. A stunning compilation of paint and pencil art, photos, maps, and engineered fossil models, Tropical Arctic blends art and science to bring a lost world to life. Readers will also enjoy a front-row seat to the scientific adventures of life in the field, with engaging anecdotes about analyzing fossils and learning to ward off polar bear attacks.

      Tropical Arctic explains our planet’s story of environmental upheaval, mass extinction, and resilience. By looking at Earth’s past, we see a glimpse of the future of our warming planet—and learn an important lesson for our time of climate change. 

RECOMMENDATION: A must have for anyone with an interest in paleobotany and/or prehistoric Greenland!

 



7) Wilkinson, David M.. Ecology and Natural History (Collins New Naturalist Library). 2021. William Collins. Paperback: 368 pages. Price: $50.00 U.S.

PUBLISHER’S SUMMARY: Ecology is the science of ecosystems, of habitats, of our world and its future. In the latest New Naturalist, ecologist David M. Wilkinson explains key ideas of this crucial branch of science, using Britain’s ecosystems to illustrate each point.

     The science of ecology underlies most of the key issues facing humanity, from the loss of biodiversity to sustainable agriculture, to the effects of climate change and the spread of pandemics. In this accessible and timely addition to the New Naturalist series, ecologist David M. Wilkinson introduces some of the key ideas of this science, using examples from British natural history. Extensively illustrated with photographs of the species and habitats that can be seen in the British countryside, this book shows how the observations of field naturalists link into our wider understanding of the working of the natural world.

     Investigating ecosystems across the British Isles, from the Scottish and Welsh mountains to the woodlands of southern England and the fens of East Anglia, Wilkinson describes the relationships between organisms and their environments. Factors such as climate and chemistry influence populations of every kind of organism, and the interactions between these organisms determine the makeup of ecological communities. Using examples from the full range of organisms on Earth – from bacteria to badgers – Wilkinson introduces the crucial ecological processes that support life, addressing how these ideas can be applied to understand our effect on the environment not just of Britain, but of the whole planet.

RECOMMENDATION: A must have for anyone with an interest in British ecology and/or collect the New Naturalist series!


 8) Shipman, Pat. Our Oldest Companions: The Story of the First Dogs. 2021. Belknap/Harvard. Hardbound: 247 pages. Price: $25.95 U.S.

PUBLISHER’S SUMMARY: How did the dog become man’s best friend? A celebrated anthropologist unearths the mysterious origins of the unique partnership that rewrote the history of both species.

     Dogs and humans have been inseparable for more than 40,000 years. The relationship has proved to be a pivotal development in our evolutionary history. The same is also true for our canine friends; our connection with them has had much to do with their essential nature and survival. How and why did humans and dogs find their futures together, and how have these close companions (literally) shaped each other? Award-winning anthropologist Pat Shipman finds answers in prehistory and the present day.

     In Our Oldest Companions, Shipman untangles the genetic and archaeological evidence of the first dogs. She follows the trail of the wolf-dog, neither prehistoric wolf nor modern dog, whose bones offer tantalizing clues about the earliest stages of domestication. She considers the enigma of the dingo, not quite domesticated yet not entirely wild, who has lived intimately with humans for thousands of years while actively resisting control or training. Shipman tells how scientists are shedding new light on the origins of the unique relationship between our two species, revealing how deep bonds formed between humans and canines as our guardians, playmates, shepherds, and hunters.

      Along the journey together, dogs have changed physically, behaviorally, and emotionally, as humans too have been transformed. Dogs’ labor dramatically expanded the range of human capability, altering our diets and habitats and contributing to our very survival. Shipman proves that we cannot understand our own history as a species without recognizing the central role that dogs have played in it.

RECOMMENDATION: If you enjoyed the author's The Invaders, you will want to read this book!

 



9) Markel, Howard. The Secret of Life: Rosalind Franklin, James Watson, Francis Crick, and the Discovery of DNA's Double Helix. 2021. W. W. Norton & Company. Hardbound: 564 pages. Price: $30.00 U.S.

PUBLISHER’S SUMMARY: An authoritative history of the race to unravel DNA’s structure, by one of our most prominent medical historians.

     James Watson and Francis Crick’s 1953 discovery of the double helix structure of DNA is the foundation of virtually every advance in our modern understanding of genetics and molecular biology. But how did Watson and Crick do it―and why were they the ones who succeeded?

     In truth, the discovery of DNA’s structure is the story of five towering minds in pursuit of the advancement of science, and for almost all of them, the prospect of fame and immortality: Watson, Crick, Rosalind Franklin, Maurice Wilkins, and Linus Pauling. Each was fascinating and brilliant, with strong personalities that often clashed. Howard Markel skillfully re-creates the intense intellectual journey, and fraught personal relationships, that ultimately led to a spectacular breakthrough. But it is Rosalind Franklin―fiercely determined, relentless, and an outsider at Cambridge and the University of London in the 1950s, as the lone Jewish woman among young male scientists―who becomes a focal point for Markel.

     The Secret of Life is a story of genius and perseverance, but also a saga of cronyism, misogyny, anti-Semitism, and misconduct. Drawing on voluminous archival research, including interviews with James Watson and with Franklin’s sister, Jenifer Glynn, Markel provides a fascinating look at how science is done, how reputations are undone, and how history is written, and revised.

     A vibrant evocation of Cambridge in the 1950s, Markel also provides colorful depictions of Watson and Crick―their competitiveness, idiosyncrasies, and youthful immaturity―and compelling portraits of Wilkins, Pauling, and most cogently, Rosalind Franklin. The Secret of Life is a lively and sweeping narrative of this landmark discovery, one that finally gives the woman at the center of this drama her due.

RECOMMENDATION: A must read for anyone with an interest in the history of science!

 


10) Jandam, Kasem. Birds' Nests: Business and Ethnicity in Southeast Asia: An Anthropological Study of Business. 2021. Silkworm Books. Paperback: 396 pages. Price: $45.00 U.S.

PUBLISHER’S SUMMARY: Southeast Asia is renowned for birds' nests and the bird's nest trade. A bird's nest is often referred to as "White Gold" or "the Caviar of the East." In Birds' Nests: Business and Ethnicity in Southeast Asia, Kasem Jandam explores the history of using birds' nests and outlines key aspects of the business: consumption and its impact on ecology and the environment, market innovations, and the legal system related to public, private, community, and nonexclusive economic nesting resources. This book also discusses the trade and relationships among ethnic groups and the influence of Hong Kong's bird's nest market on the bird's nest business in Thailand and Southeast Asia.

RECOMMENDATION: Everything you always wanted to know about the edible swiftlet nest business but were afraid to ask!

 

 


11) Smithies, Kathryn L.. Introducing the Medieval Ass. 2020. University of Wales Press. Paperback: 163 pages. Price: $16.00 U.S.

PUBLISHER’S SUMMARY: Introducing the Medieval Ass presents a lucid, accessible, and comprehensive picture of the enormous socioeconomic and cultural significance of the ass, or donkey, in the Middle Ages and beyond. In medieval times, the ass was a vital, utilitarian beast of burden, rather like ubiquitous white delivery vans today. At the same time, however, the ass had a rich, paradoxical reputation. Its hard work was praised but its obstinacy condemned. It exemplified the good Christian, humbly bearing Christ to Jerusalem, but also represented sloth, a mortal sin. It had a potent sexual reputation—in one literary work, an ass had sex with a woman—even as it was simultaneously linked to sterility. Over time, the ass also became synonymous with human idiocy, a comic figure representing foolish peasants, students too dull to learn, and their asinine teachers. This trope of foolishness was so prevalent that by the eighteenth century the word “ass” began to be replaced by “donkey.” Introducing the Medieval Ass offers a wide-ranging account of the importance, and often surprising cultural prevalence, of this common domesticated animal.

RECOMMENDATION: A must read for anyone with an interest in medieval history and/or asses!