Rare Birds of North America by Steve N.G. Howell: A review

(Cross-posted from The Nature of Things.)

Rare Birds of North America by Steve N.G. Howell
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Readers might at first be misled by the title of this book. Rare Birds of North America is not, in fact, about the endangered and rare species of endemic birds of this continent. Rather, it is a comprehensive illustrated guide to the birds that don't belong here but manage to find their way here anyway. 

These are the birds that are referred to as vagrants. They are native to some other part of the world - East Asia, Western Eurasia, Africa, the Southern Hemisphere, islands - but, for some reason, they have turned up on this continent.

The book explains how and why these vagrants arrive here. 

The "how" is simple enough. Birds have wings and they tend to use them to fly to different places. Though they generally follow fairly well-defined routes in migration and in their wanderings about the planet, sometimes when they are in flight something might happen to steer them in a different direction. Most often this is probably related to weather, but other factors may play a role as well, and the authors explore some of the means of dispersal of species.

But why do birds end up in places where they shouldn't be? Again, this is probably most often related to weather conditions, but sometimes birds might simply overshoot their mark. Or, as the population of a particular species increases in one place, they may begin to expand their range and disperse into other areas. This is how many Central and South American species have come to find their way into the states along the southern U.S. border and some have moved even farther north. There is also the possibility that disorientation or misorientation might play a role in the dispersal of species to new areas.

However the vagrants manage to find their way here, when a birder spots one of them and gets the word out, other birders race to the scene, eager to add that bird to their life list. We love watching and documenting the everyday and familiar birds of our region, but the possibility of seeing something exotic from a whole  different part of the world is an opportunity that no self-respecting birder would care to miss. And now we have an illustrated guide to help us identify and learn more about these unexpected visitors.

The authors define rare vagrants as those which have had five or fewer individuals reported annually in North America since about 1950. They include species accounts of 262 such birds. These accounts give identification field marks and also discuss the patterns of vagrancy and where the bird might be most likely to be found.  The text is accompanied by 275 informative color plates by Ian Lewington.   

The book includes helpful appendices which provide a list of birds that are new to North America from 1950 to 2011 and also explanations of why some birds that have hypothetically occurred on the continent are not included in this book. 

Overall, I think this book should be a valuable resource for any birder interested in the "birds that shouldn't be here but are." And that, I believe, includes most birders.

(Note: A free copy of this book was provided to me by the publisher in return for an honest review of it. The opinions expressed here are entirely my own. )

The Crossley ID Guide, Britain & Ireland by Richard Crossley and Dominic Couzens: A review

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The unique Crossley ID guide series continues with this volume covering the birds of Britain and Ireland. This beautiful book covers all the regularly occurring birds in Britain and Ireland. Several of them will be familiar to American birders, even those who have never traveled to either location. This is especially true of the shorebirds and raptors, many of whom are international fliers.

These guides are geared toward beginner and intermediate birders, but even advanced birders will find their approach to identifying birds an innovative one that will not bore them.

Richard Crossley's method is to use actual photographs of each species of bird in many different poses and place them against a background which shows appropriate habitat for that species. In many ways, it combines the best of the traditional field guides which use paintings of the birds to emphasize their most noticeable field marks and the newer guides that use photographs of birds. His method allows one to see the bird in naturalistic poses within the type of habitat where it would be expected to be found. It really leaves very little excuse for not being able to identify that bird.

The images and settings of the birds are accompanied by a concise text provided by Dominic Couzens, one of Britain's leading nature writers.

This user-friendly guide features over 300 species. I have not birded Britain and Ireland and so I was somewhat surprised by that low number. There are more species of birds than that to be found in my corner of Texas in a year's time, but one has to remember that these are relatively small islands. The species that are represented here are those that one could likely see within the right habitats on those islands. 

The guide emphasizes size and shape of birds, as well as having images that demonstrate flight patterns, plumages, and unique behavior. It really is a very usable reference work and one that should find a home with anyone planning to do some birding in Ireland or Britain. For birders (twitchers?) living in that area, here is a new book for your bookshelves, one that will help you be a better birder. Highly recommended.

(Disclaimer: A free copy of this book was provided to me by the publisher for the purposes of this review. The opinions expressed here are entirely my own.) 

Cross-posted from The Nature of Things. 

Gardening for the Birds by George Adams: A review

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

If you are interested in creating a habitat garden, a garden that fits seamlessly into your local environment and is welcoming to local wildlife, this is a book that can help you achieve your goal. George Adams' emphasis is upon attracting birds to the garden, but, in fact, his gardening method will also attract butterflies, bees, and other pollinators, small reptiles and amphibians, as well as avian visitors. It will be a place that is welcoming to them all and that is much more interesting for any humans that spend time in it.

One of the most popular hobbies in the country is feeding birds. An entire multi-million dollar industry has grown up around supplying feeders and feed to the hobbyists, but putting up a bird feeder in your yard is not necessarily the best way to attract birds or to attract a wide range of species. You might wind up with nothing but House Sparrows, which is not what most people who want to watch birds in their yards are aiming for.

A better approach is to actually put in the effort to create the kind of habitat that the birds are looking for. The author advises us to look at our yards from a bird's eye view. When we do that, we can begin to see that a bird-friendly landscape is what they are seeking. They want plants that are familiar to them, plants that provide food, shelter, and a place to raise their young. And, of course, they want a source of clean, fresh water.

In his introduction to his book, George Adams writes:

To attract birds to your garden, the backbone of your landscaping plan should be local native plants. By putting in native plants and using an organic, sustainable approach to gardening, you establish a balanced ecosystem in your yard. A greater variety of birds and butterflies will visit and linger, insect pests will be kept under control by insect-eating birds (reducing the need for harmful insecticides), and the wonder of nature will be part of your everyday living environment.

That is a succinct summary of the philosophy behind this book and the philosophy behind habitat gardening in general. It is one that I subscribe to and try to put in practice in my garden.

Adams explains that when you use native plants, plants with which birds and other wildlife are familiar, you will be mimicking their natural ecosystems. In doing so, you will provide birds with food, water, shelter, and nesting places, so that, instead of simply visiting and passing through, they will linger. They will call your garden home and you will have the bonus of observing them, up close and personal.

This book provides helpful calendars which list native plants from each region of the country. The calendars show the light needs of the plants, which animals make use of them and which months they will bloom, as well as other useful information. There are calendars for hummingbird and butterfly flowers, wildflowers, and for seasonal fruiting.

The author shows how to develop your landscape plan, according to the properties of your own particular region. He shows that even small garden spaces can create friendly habitats for birds. He also discusses some of the problems which may arise - things like nuisance birds such as House Sparrows and European Starlings, cats, and the unwelcome guests like rats and mice that bird feeders can sometimes attract.

Finally, there is a substantial plant directory, covering more than one hundred pages, which lists native plants from all sections of the country and their needs, as well as some of the birds they may attract. And there is a cross reference directory with profiles of the individual bird species, featuring wonderful pictures, which gives information about their preferred habitat and their behavior and, most importantly, what plants you can plant to attract them. 

This book, in short, gives a helpful but not overwhelming amount of detail regarding the horticulture of the plants and the garden design strategies. It features wonderful pictures of plants and birds that should be useful to both the birding and non-birding gardener. And the charts are well-organized and easy to understand. It is a book that provides a primer for anyone who is interested in creating a bird-friendly habitat in their yard. It should find a place on the bookshelves of gardeners and birders alike. And, yes, they are quite often the same people.

(A free copy of this book was provided to me by the publisher for the purposes of this review. No other compensation was given and the opinions here are entirely my own.)

*~*~*~*

Does this sound like a book you would like to have? Well, this may be your lucky day. The publisher is offering a chance to win a free book as well as a framed pen-and-ink bird illustration done by the author. Just click on the link and enter. All it takes is an email address. Good luck!


View all my reviews

The Warbler Guide by Tom Stephenson and Scott Whittle: A review

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Wood warblers are sometimes referred to as the rock stars of the bird world, and they certainly do draw vast and enthusiastic crowds of birders when they are in migration. And even as devoted followers of loud rock concerts might suffer from damage to their hearing, warbler fans often suffer from a common malady. It is known as "warbler neck." It comes from standing long periods under a large tree, looking straight up into its leafy canopy, trying to see a tiny bird perhaps 5.5 inches long and weighing maybe 1/3 of an ounce. For that is where most of these particular rock stars are routinely found and seeing them is not easy.

If you are able to actually see one and get a good look at it in spring and you have a moderately good field guide nearby, you will probably be able to identify it, because warblers in springtime are at their most colorful and most distinctive. If you encounter that same bird in autumn when it has shed its breeding colors and taken on the dull cloak of winter, you might not recognize it at all.

Well, Tom Stephenson and Scott Whittle are out to help you with that. They have put together a very useful book to aid the serious warbler fan in identifying the object of his or her devotion. Their guide to identification covers not just the markings of the birds but how to age and sex warblers on the wing and, especially, because their song is one of their main identifying features, how to listen to warbler songs and how to identify their "chip" and flight calls.

There are some 56 species of warbler that spend at least part of the year - usually spring and summer - on the North American continent and this big book features more than 1000 color pictures of them. These photos cover all color phases of the birds and show them in various poses. There are even visual "quick finders" included which show the birds side by side from different angles, including that angle of looking at the underparts of the bird when you are standing under that tree and looking straight up. Detailed species accounts show multiple views with diagnostic points emphasized and direct comparison of the plumage and songs of similar species.

The book uses sonograms to teach a new system of song identification that makes it easier to understand and hear differences between similar species, and, since this is the age of technology, there are interactive companion apps for iPhone and iPad.

In addition to all that, there are field exercises, flight shots, general identification strategies, and even quizzes to help you familiarize yourself with warblers and have a better shot at actually being able to identify that tiny scrap of feathers when you see it moving quickly from limb to limb in the field.

It is an impressive book that certainly will find a space on the bookshelf of many serious birders.

(A free copy of this book was provided to me by the publisher for the purposes of this review. The opinions expressed here are entirely my own and were not compensated in any other manner.)


View all my reviews

Cross-posted at The Nature of Things.

The World's Rarest Birds by Erik Hirschfeld, Andy Swash, and Robert Still: A review

The most striking thing about this fascinating book is the wonderful photographs of birds. Many of the photographs were obtained through the method of organizing and running an international photo competition. More than 300 photographers from around the world submitted over 3,500 photographs. The winning images along with 800 others appear in the book. Yes, this is a very photo-rich volume! 

There are some 650 birds that are considered Endangered or Critically Endangered by conservation groups which monitor the status of birds in the wild. There are a number of those species that have never been photographed. They may, in fact, be extinct, but at the very least they have rarely been seen and no usable photographs exist. This category includes some 76 species and these were illustrated for the book by Polish artist Tomasz Cofta. But for the rest of the birds included here, photographs were obtained.

The book begins with several introductory pages which explain the diversity and distribution of birds around the world. For example, we learn that the birdiest places on Earth are the northern half of South America and the islands of Indonesia. 

Further, it explains how bird species are assigned to certain threat categories and goes on to explore the many threats which these rare birds - and, indeed, all birds - face. Most of these threats are related to human activities and include things like residential and commercial development, agricultural practices, logging, energy production and mining, dams, etc.

There are threats to birds which know no borders. Birds on migration face habitat degradation, hunting, trapping, as well as the growing menace of powerlines and wind turbines. The need for aggressive conservation practices is paramount. 

Following the very informative introductory sections, the book is divided into seven regional sections--Europe and the Middle East; Africa and Madagascar; Asia; Australasia; Oceanic Islands; North America, Central America, and the Caribbean; and South America. Each of the geographical sections includes an illustrated directory to the bird species under threat there, and gives a concise description of distribution, status, population, key threats, and conservation needs. 

Finally, there are some sixty species of birds that are considered "Data Deficient." This simply means that they are so poorly known that their threat status cannot be assessed. But there is summary information included which details their presumed population trend, the population size (if known), the apparent distribution, and, when possible, notes on status, habitat preferences, and ecology. 

There is an enormous wealth of information here which would be of interest to bird lovers everywhere and to everyone who is concerned with protecting and preserving these wonderful creatures whose very existence is so seriously threatened by our activities. It is a concise and easily accessible compendium of what is known about these birds and, most importantly, about ways that interested individuals and groups can work to assist their survival.

(A copy of this book was provided to me free-of-charge by the publisher for the purposes of this review. The opinions expressed are entirely my own.)

The Crossley ID Guide: Raptors by Richard Crossley, Jerry Liguori, and Brian Sullivan: A review

Roger Tory Peterson revolutionized birding in the 1930s with his innovative way of presenting images of birds in field guides. His drawings showed the birds in stylized poses that emphasized their most noticeable markings which helped to identify them. Arrows pointed to those marks, and texts named them to help even the most novice birders find identifying field marks and "name that bird." Peterson was godfather to generations of birders and was one of the prime movers in popularizing the hobby.

Since that time, most authors of bird guides have followed in Peterson's footsteps, using some variation of his methods. It was time for a new revolution. Enter Richard Crossley.

Crossley's ID guides, not field guides because they are not really meant to be taken into the field, utilize a radically different method of looking at and identifying birds. Crossley uses photographs of the birds, doing what birds do - perching, flying, eating, preening, catching prey, and, in the case of water birds, occasionally swimming. He takes multiple pictures of a bird species in differing poses and places those pictures against a background of a naturalistic setting for the bird. The effect is that we see the bird as it would appear in real life in its natural habitat. It is a brilliant innovation in the depiction of birds for identification.

His first guide using this method was The Crossley ID Guide: Eastern Birds, which I reviewed here.  Now he and his two co-authors add this new book which specifically deals with North American raptors.

The raptors, from the lowly vultures to the majestic eagles, are presented in all their beauty and uniqueness. In most instances, there are multiple pages of beautiful photographs of each species. The Red-tailed Hawk, for example, which has a daunting number of color phases and variations, has ten pages of photographs devoted to it.

Many raptors are maddeningly difficult to differentiate. Looking at them from the ground as they fly overhead, they can all appear to be big brown birds, or, sometimes, big brown blurs. Among the most difficult can be the Accipiters. The Sharp-shinned Hawk, Cooper's Hawk, and Northern Goshawk, where they appear together, can mostly be told apart on the wing by their size or the shape of the tail. But all things are relative. And confusing. In the case of these hawks, the authors have included pages of photographs of the birds side by side, again in naturalistic settings, so that the eye can more easily discern the differences. The same method is used for other similar and confusing species. Some such pages have tests for the reader to compare the pictures and try his/her eye at identifying the birds. Answers to the tests are presented in the back of the book

Though the emphasis is on the visual effect of the beautiful photographs in the book, the text is also comprehensive and extremely helpful, containing a wealth of information about each individual species, much more than one would find in a typical field guide. The range maps, as well, are clear and beautifully depicted, and must have been somewhat of a challenge with many species expanding their ranges in response to climate change. The Swallow-tailed Kite, for example, until recent years was very rarely seen in my area of Southeast Texas. Now it is fairly common in summer and has already appeared over my yard this spring. The range map in the book shows it just to the east of my area. The same could be said of the Harris's Hawk which appears increasingly here in summer and seems to be expanding its range from the west. The range map shows it just west and south of me.

This ID guide, like Crossley's earlier works, are ideal tools for the birder to use to familiarize him/herself with the shape and appearance of these fascinating raptors before going birding. Returning from a birding trip, they can be used again to review one's notes and confirm identifications. They are, in short, an essential addition to birding literature and may, in time, have the same kind of impact as the revered Peterson.

(A free advance copy of this soon-to-be published book was provided to me by the publisher for the purposes of this review. The opinions expressed are entirely my own.)

The Unfeathered Bird by Katrina van Grouw: A review

(Cross-posted from The Nature of Things.)  

Heft this book, open it at random, and your first reaction might be, "Ah, a coffee-table book." And it could well be, but this is much more than just a coffee-table book, even as birds are much more than just their feathers.

The birds in Katrina van Grouw's astonishing book have been defeathered, often skinned and disassembled right down to their musculature or their skeletons, but they are always fully recognizable as birds. 

Their unfeathered selves are real specimens that are posed in the act of flying, walking, or standing, even as they would have in life. Ms. van Grouw has rendered them in monochromatic drawings that are remarkably detailed and absolutely mesmerizing. 

The author hastens to assure us that "no birds were harmed" in the production of the book. She has taken specimens that were already dead and prepared them for her drawings.

If that were all there was to this book, it could pass as a beautiful art book, but it is really much more than that. The text is informative and is written with great good humor. It tells us much about the lives of these birds and how they go about making their livings. It is almost as riveting as the drawings, and it is the perfect accompaniment to them.

Now, I am an avid birder, so perhaps it is not surprising that I should find a book about how their bodies are put together and how they work to be a fascinating bit of work. But I really don't think that you need be even very interested in birds to be able to enjoy this book. If you simply possess a modicum of curiosity about the natural world; if you are charmed by art that depicts animals, especially birds; if you enjoy erudite and witty writing, then I think you are the perfect audience for the book. 

Katrina van Grouw is a gifted writer and artist who obviously knows her birds. As a former curator of the ornithological collection at London's Natural History Museum, she also knows her bird art. She says that the creation of The Unfeathered Bird has been her lifetime's ambition. It was a worthy ambition and she has fulfilled it beautifully.

(A free copy of this book was provided to me by the publisher for the purposes of this review. The opinions expressed here are entirely my own.)

Enjoying Big Bend National Park by Gary Clark: A review

(Cross-posted from The Nature of Things.)

Gary Clark is a well-known naturalist and writer on Nature in my neck of the woods. He's also an educator who has taught "leisure-living" courses on birding at the local college, one of which I took several years ago. He is a very knowledgeable guide to all the birding hot spots in Texas, of which there are many since this is one of the birdiest states in the union. 

In Enjoying Big Bend National Park, Clark has not focused on the birds of the park but has given a general guide to the interesting geology and history, as well as the wildlife and flora of that wild and beautiful area. Big Bend, named for its placement at a big bend in the river that separates Mexico from the United States, is one of the wildest and largest of America's national parks. It covers more than 800,000 acres, making it slightly larger than Yosemite National Park. Moreover, it encompasses a vast variety of ecological systems that include the Chihuahuan Desert, the rocky Chisos Mountains that reach up to 8,000 feet, steamy riparian floodplains, and cool mountain forests. 

Sounds a bit daunting, doesn't it? But Clark has broken all of that down into bite-sized pieces that should lead the visitor to just the type of experience he or she is looking for. He has suggested adventures within the park that range from two-hour to half-day to full-day time frames and that can be had on foot or on a drive. He rates each trek on its degree of difficulty from easy to strenuous and includes sections for families and small children and for people with limited physical mobility. The message here is that anyone can find a way to experience and enjoy Big Bend.

Clark does not neglect the safety cautions in regard to being in the wild. He repeatedly warns about the dry air of this environment and the importance of keeping hydrated. His most urgent advice is to carry water at all times, even if you are only going on a short hike and even if you don't think you'll need it. Also, the sun is intense here and it is important to protect yourself from it with sunscreen, hats, and sunglasses. Long-sleeved shirts and long pants are not a bad idea either. And if you are going to get out of that car and go hiking, it is vitally important to have sturdy walking shoes or boots and to wear socks that will protect your feet. But if you forget every other warning, Clark begs you to remember this: "DRINK WATER! DRINK WATER! DRINK WATER!"

Big Bend has over four hundred species of birds that either live there or pass through at some time of the year and that's why I'll be heading that way in a few hours. The park also has a plethora of mammals from ground squirrels to striped skunks to gray foxes to the occasional black bear and mountain lion. One must always be on the alert when hiking or camping in this wilderness and respect these animals. 

Big Bend is also a Mecca for butterflies. Clark writes that there are "a mind-boggling variety of butterflies, many of which are still being cataloged." Yet another reason this butterfly-fancier wants to go there. 

Whether you are interested in butterflies or rocks, the Colima Warbler or the earless lizard, human culture of the past or preserving the environment for the future, Big Bend has something to offer and this guide will help you to find it.

*~*~*~*

So, I will be on the road for the next ten days, most of it spent at Big Bend, and I do not expect to have Internet access for much of the trip. If you should happen to notice my absence from this space, that will be the reason. I hope you miss me!

How To Be a Better Birder by Derek Lovitch: A review

(Cross-posted from The Nature of Things.)


Birders, even non-competitive backyard birders like myself, are always looking for something that will give them that extra edge as they pursue their winged quarry for the purposes of identification and listing. Because, let me tell you, birding is hard. Birds almost never cooperate. They flit around, constantly in motion, as you try to follow them with your binoculars, and just when you get focused in, zip! They're gone. Frustrating little critters. Warblers are the worst. 


But help is on the way. Derek Lovitch has written a book which is useful for birders at any level of proficiency from the beginner to the obsessive lister. 


It is a short book, only 179 pages in the edition which I read, and very accessible. He explores best practices and gives tips on advanced field identification, birding at night, birding and habitat, geography, and weather. He writes about how to anticipate vagrants, those birds that show up in wildly out-of-range places where they really shouldn't be. Understanding the area that you are birding and knowing what is likely to be found there, as well as having some idea of what might turn up unexpectedly, is more than half the battle in this hobby. 


One thing that I particularly liked about Lovitch's book was his emphasis on "birding with purpose." He is (as I am) an enthusiastic proponent of citizen science projects. He argues for the importance of birders of all levels participating in events such as the Christmas Bird Count, Great Backyard Bird Count, and Project FeederWatch and he strongly advocates for birders contributing checklists to the online data collecting resource, eBird. The data collected by all these citizen science projects are important to the efforts of conservationists to protect and defend birds and their habitats. 


Lovitch has a clear and readable style of writing and he includes links to additional resources for readers who want to learn more about a specific subject. No matter what being a "better birder" means to you, this is a book that can help you reach your goal. 


(A free copy of this book was provided to me by the publisher for the purposes of this review.)

Birds of India by Richard Grimmett, Carol Inskipp, and Tim Inskipp: A review

The full title of this book is Birds of India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Sri Lanka, and the Maldives. In other words, it is a field guide that covers the birds of the entire Indian subcontinent, a mind-boggling 1375 species.

The amazing variety of colorful species represented in this field guide are a feast for the mind and the eye, even if one is not planning on boarding the next plane for a birding trip to the subcontinent. I just find it interesting to contrast and compare the bird life of our continent with that faraway place. Our continent, for example, has some 854 bird species, and that includes rarities, some of them very rare indeed. Of course, that number is growing yearly as the climate changes and birds of Central America move their ranges farther north. Will there come a time when we can claim 1375 species?

But I digress.

This field guide utilizes the tried and true Roger Tory Peterson method. There are lovely drawings of the birds, male and female, and sometimes juvenile and in breeding and non-breeding plumages. The drawings emphasize the field marks of the birds in a way that actual photographs are not always able to do. The drawings appear on the right side page. On the left side are the text which describes the bird, its status, its voice and habitat, and a small map which shows the location of the bird. The map is color-coded for permanent resident, former range, summer visitor, winter visitor, migratory visitor, and "known to be occasional, scarce or erratic." Thus, on two facing pages, the reader gets a view of the bird and a very succinct written profile, as well as a visual representation of the bird's location in the world. It is a remarkably effective and efficient way of presenting a large amount of information in a relatively small space, and it has scarcely been improved upon, although often refined, since Peterson's first guides.

The book also has much useful information in the mandatory "How to use this book" section. As in most such field guides, there is a schematic drawing which shows and names the different parts of birds and their plumage. There is also a glossary with explanations of terminology that is used in describing birds, and there are sections about the climate, the main habitats and bird species.

There is also a fascinating section on conservation. It includes such topics as religious attitudes and traditional protection. It delineates current threats to the various habitats and some of the conservation measures that are being taken to try to ameliorate the situation. I found this section to be among the most interesting parts of the book because it gives a picture not just of the bird life present but of the human culture and how the world of Nature relates to that culture.

The authors of this book obviously know their subjects well. Richard Grimmett is head of conservation at BirdLife International. Carol Inskipp and Tim Inskipp are freelance wildlife consultants. All three have traveled widely in Asia and have written a series of books on the continent's birds.

If you are planning a birding trip to the Indian subcontinent, you would do well to make room in your luggage for this terrific field guide. Even if you are mostly an armchair traveler like me, this book offers a wonderful view of the world of birds and the challenges they face in that important part of the world.

(An advance review copy of this book was provided to me at no cost by the publisher for purposes of this review. The book will be published on March 7.)        

Petrels, Albatrosses, and Storm-Petrels of North America: A Photographic Guide by Steve N.G. Howell: A review

Trying to see and pick out the field marks on a tiny warbler hidden among the leafy canopy of a tree is one of the harder tasks to be undertaken by a birder. An even harder task though may be that of pelagic birding, trying to distinguish between the almost identical species of petrels, for example, while standing on a moving boat in the middle of the ocean.


Petrels, Storm-Petrels, and Albatrosses live their lives on the wing, over the oceans of the world, and those who would add them to their life lists must venture out upon the briny deep in order to see them. Moreover, these are birds that are all colored in shades of black, white, and gray, many with few distinctive field marks. They are mostly fast-flying and difficult to get a good look at even under ideal conditions, but conditions on a pelagic birding trip are often not ideal and birders need all the help they can get.


Along comes Steve N.G. Howell to provide some of that help. He is an acclaimed field ornithologist and writer and an international bird tour leader with WINGS. He obviously knows these seabirds, in the family known as tubenoses, very well indeed. He has written a book which should be very helpful, I think, to anyone planning a pelagic birding trip.


Now, I am a simple backyard birder and so I may not be the best person to review this book, but it seems very comprehensive to me. The author spends time explaining about ocean habitats and about the latest developments in taxonomy relating to these birds. He arranges his species accounts of birds into groups for comparison and contrasting in ways that should prove helpful for identification in the field. Key identification features such as plumage variations related to age and molt and the manner of the individual species' flight patterns are included as part of the detailed species accounts. Photographs of the birds in question help to illustrate key features.


This guide also includes information about seasonal occurrence patterns and migration routes, as well as distribution maps. The author offers useful tips on how to observe and identify birds at sea.


Reading passages of this book, one gets a sense that Howell has a real passion for these birds and that he wants to pass that passion along to others. It is obvious that he genuinely loves the ocean and its inhabitants and that he wants his readers to share that love. I think that anyone planning a pelagic adventure who picks up this book will find it very useful in getting to know these enigmatic birds and in making the most of their time on the ocean.


(A copy of this book was provided at no cost by Princeton University Press for the purposes of my review.)

The Big Year, the movie

"The Big Year" starring Steve Martin, Jack Black and Owen Wilson opened last Friday to moderately positive reviews, but over its first weekend in theaters it didn't make as much money as its backers were hoping and so the entertainment media immediately branded it a flop.  Now, I read and enjoyed the book last year and I had been looking forward to the movie, so I decided I had better hurry on out and see it before it disappeared from my local theater.

I went to the earliest showing of the film today, certainly not the most popular time for movie-going.  There were less than ten people in the theater which seems to confirm the public's lack of interest, although there could well have been more for later screenings.  I settled back in my comfortable rocking chair to enjoy the film - and I did!  It was a very entertaining movie.

The movie does not condescend to birders or portray them as the hopeless dorks and dweebs that we usually see when some moviemker wants to show us what our hobby is like.  These are normal, everyday people who might be your neighbor.  Or you.  The only difference between these characters and the average birder is that they were totally obsessed with birds.

We have three grown men of various ages and stations in life who decide, individually, to try for a "big year," seeing the most birds that they can possibly see in that year.  One of the rules of a big year is that it must have a geographical dimension and theirs was North America.  Their obsession soon brings them in contact with each other and two of the men, the characters played by Jack Black and Steve Martin, develop a friendship.  The character played by Owen Wilson is the reigning big year champion with 732 bird species and he is totally focused on birds to the exclusion of anything else - including his marriage and normal human relationships.  The storyline of the film is the competition among these men to break the record and become the new big year champion, or, in the case of Wilson, to retain his crown.

The photography of the film, especially of the nature scenes, is quite beautiful.  The birds are shown in all their glory, including an amazing scene of the courtship flight of a pair of Bald Eagles.  Some of the sites shown will look very familiar to Southeast Texas birders, even if you are not a person who travels around the world to see birds.  There's a scene at Boy Scout Woods on High Island, for example, that looked very familiar indeed.

This is a gentle comedy.  It's not just about birds and not just for birders.  It's about people and what makes them tick, what gives them satisfaction, and what they are willing to sacrifice for that satisfaction.  It could just as easily be about any human interest other than birding.  It's a story for people-watchers, as well as for people who watch birds.  I hope it finds its audience.

I would give it three-and-a-half out of five stars and I would certainly recommend it to my fellow birders.  Even if, like me, you are not a competitive birder, I think you'll relate to these guys and that you will enjoy the film.

Showing at a theater near you, now!

Birds of North America and Greenland by Norman Arlott: A review

Birding field guides have been getting bigger and heavier and more complicated recently, e.g., The Crossley ID Guide and Stokes Field Guide to the Birds, both of which have been previously reviewed here.  Now comes a book which bucks that trend and returns to the smaller, simpler format pioneered by Roger Tory Peterson in the 1930s and 1940s.

Birds of North America and Greenland by Norman Arlott does not actually claim to be a field guide. Instead, it is billed as an "illustrated checklist" of the more than 900 species of birds which occur in the Nearctic region which spans most of North America, including Canada, and Greenland.  It is a small book, 5" x 7 1/2", containing just 239 pages.  It will easily fit into a birding vest pocket or a backpack and will not weigh you down, as many recent so-called "field" guides will.

The bird drawings (and he does use drawings, again bucking the popular trend toward using photographs) are very simplified affairs and include, generally, at most two views, one of the bird in breeding plumage and one in non-breeding plumage.  The range maps that are included are described as "thumbnail" maps, an apt description indeed.  At first, I didn't even see them!  It was only when I flattened the pages out that I could see the little maps near the right-hand side of the left page, along the spine of the book.  All the bird drawings are on the right-side page and the descriptions and maps are on the left page.

As noted, the book includes over 900 species, many vagrants, accidentals, and introduced species, as well as the native species.  One egregious omission which I noted was the Nutmeg Mannikin, an introduced species which has established itself in some areas of the country, including Harris County, Texas.  This made me wonder if there might be other omissions, but all the other species that came to mind were represented, so perhaps this was a single oversight.

I think this book's greatest usefulness will be for beginning birders in the field.  It is easily handled and easily referenced.  Several related species of birds are shown on each page, making ready comparisons an uncomplicated exercise.  The simple bird drawings are easy for the eye to take in and, for the most part, I think, would be useful to a new birder in identifying what s/he is seeing in the field.

The range maps, on the other hand, are pretty useless, but perhaps that is of less concern to the neophyte birder than having accessible and understandable bird drawings.  I would hope, though, that such a birder would have a Sibley, or a Crossley, or a Stokes, or a Kaufman, or even an old Peterson guide back home to refer to and match this illustrated checklist against when s/he returns from the field.

(An advance review copy of this book was provided free of charge by the publisher for purposes of this review.  The book will go on sale to the public on November 2, 2011.)