1) Lees, Alexander and James Gilroy. Vagrancy in Birds. 2022. Princeton University Press. Hardbound: 400 pages. Price: $35.00 U.S.
PUBLISHER’S SUMMARY: Avian vagrancy―the appearance of birds outside of their expected
habitat―is a phenomenon that has fascinated natural historians for
centuries, from Victorian collectors willing to spend fortunes on a rare
specimen to today’s bird-chasing “twitchers.” Yet despite the
obsessions of countless ornithologists, what do we actually know about
the enigma of vagrancy? In Vagrancy in Birds, Alexander Lees and James Gilroy explore the causes, patterns, and processes behind the occurrences of these unique birds.
Lees
and Gilroy draw on recent research to answer fundamental questions:
What causes avian vagrancy? Why do some places attract so many vagrant
birds? Why are some species more predisposed to long-range vagrancy than
others? The authors present readers with everything known about the
subject, and bring together different lines of evidence to make the case
for vagrancy as a biological phenomenon with important implications for
avian ecology and evolution.
Filled with a wealth of photographs, Vagrancy in Birds will fascinate avian enthusiasts everywhere.
RECOMMENDATION: A MUST have for anyone with an interest in this aspect of bird migration!
2) Howe, William H. (editor). New Mexico Bird Finding Guide: Fourth Edition. 2022. New Mexico Ornithological Society/Outskirts Press. Paperback: 404 pages. Price: $38.95 U.S.
PUBLISHER’S SUMMARY: New Mexico has the 4th highest bird diversity of any state in the U.S. with nearly 550 species documented within its borders including over 300 species known to breed. At a biological crossroad between east and west and north and south, the state's birdlife is influenced by the Rocky Mountains, Great Plains, Great Basin and Chihuahuan deserts, and the sierras of northwest Mexico. An elevational range from lowland desert and rivers below 3,000 feet to alpine tundra over 13,000 feet also greatly contributes to its diversity. This Fourth Edition of the New Mexico Bird Finding Guide contains chapters covering each of the state's 33 counties addressing nearly 400 birding locations to explore. These include easily accessed, well known destinations as well as sites that are obscure and remote. Detailed maps, directions, and lists of expected and 'specialty' species accompany each location. The guide also includes an annotated checklist presenting the status, distribution, frequency, and abundance, for all species recorded in the state. This will be a valuable reference for resident and visiting birders alike.
RECOMMENDATION: A MUST have for anyone birding New Mexico!
3) Leichter, Jill (editor). All About Birds Northwest: Northwest US and Canada. 2022. Princeton University Press/The Cornell Lab Publishing Group. Paperback: 296 pages. Price: $17.95 U.S.
PUBLISHER’S SUMMARY: The All About Birds Regional Field-Guide Series brings
birding enthusiasts the best information from the renowned Cornell Lab
of Ornithology’s website, AllAboutBirds.org, used by more than 21
million people each year. These definitive books provide the most
up-to-date resources and expert coverage on bird species throughout
North America.
This dynamic guide is the perfect companion for
anyone interested in the birds of the northwestern United States and
western Canada. The guide offers fascinating details about the birds
around you, useful bird ID tips, and handy bird-watching information. It
presents full accounts of the 213 species most commonly seen in these
regions; beautiful photographs of male, female, and immature birds, as
well as morphs, and breeding and nonbreeding plumage (so you can ID
birds all year long); current range maps; and so much more. The
northwestern USA and western Canada edition of All About Birds is easy to use and easy to share.
This
volume features the following states, provinces, and territories:
Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, Wyoming, British Columbia, Yukon,
and western Northwest Territories.
- Descriptions of 213 bird species, including four photos for each bird chosen specifically for better ID and sourced from the Macaulay Library (a collection of bird photos from citizen scientists)
- Quick and easy index with illustrations on cover flaps, with complete index at the back
- Information on Cornell Lab citizen-science programs and how to participate
- Bonus content includes identification best practices and tips on bird photography, birdscaping, food and feeding, and more
- Free MERLIN Bird ID app (downloaded more than 5 million times) for quick ID in the wild using photos and birdsong
RECOMMENDATION: Best for beginning birders.
4) The Wryneck. 2022. Pelagic Publishing. Paperback: 202 pages. Price: $41.99 U.S.
PUBLISHER’S SUMMARY: A comprehensive study on the natural history and cultural symbolism of an unusual woodpecker. Detailed information is presented on the species' origins, taxonomy, anatomy, appearance, calls, distribution, conservation status, habitats, movements, breeding, diet and relationships. With a chapter on its closest relative, the Red-throated Wryneck.
RECOMMENDATION: This well illustrated monograph is a MUST have for anyone with an interest in the Wryneck!
5) Ellis, David H. and John N. Schmitt. Behavior of the Golden Eagle: an illustrated ethogram. 2017. Hancock House. Paperback: 96 pages. Price: $
PUBLISHER’S SUMMARY: No animal shakes the human consciousness quite like a bear, and
few compare to the giant short-faced bears that stalked North America
during the Pleistocene. Even among the mammoths and saber-toothed cats,
they were a staggering sight: on all fours, the biggest would stare a
six-foot person in the face and weigh close to a ton. On hind legs they
towered more than ten feet, with jaws powerful enough to crush skulls
and snap bones like twigs.
The bears weren’t invincible,
however. Despite their size, they were swept off the planet in a
mysterious wave of Ice Age extinctions more than ten thousand years ago,
then mostly forgotten. Chasing the Ghost Bear is Mike Stark’s
journey into the bear’s enigmatic story—its life, disappearance, and
rediscovery—and those trying to piece it together today. An engaging
guide through his intrepid search, Stark’s story leads us from the La
Brea Tar Pits in Los Angeles to a cornfield in Indiana, the far ends of
the Arctic, the plains of Texas, and the swamps of Florida.
Part natural history, part travelogue, and part meditation on extinction and loss, Chasing the Ghost Bear returns these magnificent beasts to their rightful place in our understanding of the world just an epoch past.
RECOMMENDATION: A must have for anyone with an interest in prehistoric bears!
7) Dijkstra, Klaas-Douwe B. and Callan Cohen. Dragonflies and Damselflies of Madagascar and the Western Indian Ocean Islands. 2022. Association Vahatra. Paperback: 194 pages. Price: $45.00 U.S.
PUBLISHER’S SUMMARY: This is the first book on the spectacular dragonflies and damselflies of the Malagasy Region, covering over 190 species known from Madagascar, as well as thirty-six additional species found in the archipelagos of the Comoros, Mascarenes, and Seychelles. About 180 species, four of every five present, live nowhere else on Earth. Over 205 photographs illustrate 138 species, many in print for the first time.
RECOMMENDATION: A must have for anyone with an interest in the Odonata of the region!
8) Scheer, Roddy. Oregon and Washington's Roadside Ecology: 33 Easy Walks Through the Region’s Amazing Natural Areas. 2022. Timber Press. Paperback: 367 pages. Price: $
PUBLISHER’S SUMMARY: Have you ever seen a raging river disappear completely into a lava tube? Petrified subtropical plants in the middle of a high desert? Do you know how a 10,000-year-old argillite boulder can wind up 800 miles away from any similar rocks? In this insightful guide, environmental journalist and photographer Roddy Scheer reveals the hidden stories of the Pacific Northwest's unique ecosystems and teaches you how to "read a landscape," as you explore 33 spectacular natural areas. All hikes are within easy walking distance of the road, less than 2 miles long, and include clues to deciphering the terrain—making Oregon and Washington's Roadside Ecology a must-have guide to some of the area's most spectacular and unusual natural sights.
RECOMMENDATION: A must have for anyone with an interest in the ecology of these two states.
9) Knoll, Andrew H.. A Brief History of Earth: Four Billion Years in Eight Chapters. 2021. Custom House. Hardbound: 260 pages. Price: $24.00 U.S.
PUBLISHER’S SUMMARY:
How well do you know the ground beneath your feet?
Odds are, where you’re standing was once cooking under a roiling sea of lava, crushed by a towering sheet of ice, rocked by a nearby meteor strike, or perhaps choked by poison gases, drowned beneath ocean, perched atop a mountain range, or roamed by fearsome monsters. Probably most or even all of the above.
The story of our home planet and the organisms spread across its surface is far more spectacular than any Hollywood blockbuster, filled with enough plot twists to rival a bestselling thriller. But only recently have we begun to piece together the whole mystery into a coherent narrative. Drawing on his decades of field research and up-to-the-minute understanding of the latest science, renowned geologist Andrew H. Knoll delivers a rigorous yet accessible biography of Earth, charting our home planet's epic 4.6 billion-year story. Placing twenty first-century climate change in deep context, A Brief History of Earth is an indispensable look at where we’ve been and where we’re going.
Features original illustrations depicting Earth history and nearly 50 figures (maps, tables, photographs, graphs).
RECOMMENDATION: A readable introduction to Earth's history.
