Field Guide to the Birds of North America($21.23Value)

Description

Title: Smithsonian Field Guide to the Birds of North America [With DVD ROM] <>Binding: Paperback <>Author: TedFloyd <>Publisher: CollinsPublishers This new field guide provides a suite of modern tools to effectively aid in the identification of more than 750 species of birds across North America. It introduces a "whole bird" approach by concisely gathering a collection of information about birds into one portable and well-organized volume. 2,000 stunning color photographs of birds in natural habitats show the most important field marks, regional population differences, life stages, and behaviors 700-plus detailed and up-to-date color range maps show summer, migration, winter, year-round, and rare but regular occurrences of every major species A DVD of birdsongs for 138 major species (587 vocalizations in all for 5½ hours of play); each high-quality MP3 file is embedded with an image of the bird, perfect to view on home computers and portable MP3 players Concise descriptions of habits and ecology, age-related and seasonal differences, regional forms, vocalization, and informative captions pointing out the most important aspects of the bird 46 group essays with information outlining taxonomy, feeding, migration, habitats, behaviors, and conservation status A thorough and accessible introduction to birds and birding includes sections on parts of a bird, plumage and molt, food and feeding, migration, habitats, conservation, tips on bow to become a better birder, and more A detailed glossary of terms, species checklist, and quick index The new Smithsonian Field Guide to the Birds of North America is perfectly designed to give birders the most powerful and user-friendly collection of information to carry into the field or wherever they enjoy learning about birds and nature. A Look (and Listen) Inside the Smithsonian Field Guide to the Birds of North America Click on an image below to sample one of the 587 different downloadable bird songs included with the guide. American Wigeon Common Loon Mallard Red-Winged Blackbird Mourning Dove Northern Cardinal Following some general introductory material about birds, this guide describes more than 750 species. The information and code notations are those used by the American Birding Association (ABA), and readers will want to consult the introduction for help in interpreting the codes used in the species accounts. The more than 700 range maps use more colors than most bird-guide maps. Songs are briefly described and imitated as “words.” Molting patterns are noted along with feather condition and color variations. Size (length, wingspan, and weight) is also noted, with birds weighing less than one ounce also listed in grams. Most entries include several good photographs, usually side or three-quarter front views, with some birds shown in flight. The book is divided into groupings, with an introduction for each group: e.g., “Skuas and Jaegers,” “Thrushes.” One desirable but missing feature is some way to indicate the major field mark identification cues for each bird. A considerable amount of information is found in each entry so the print is quite small though very legible. Following the species accounts are a list of recommended resources (including Web sites), a glossary, a species checklist, and a species index. The book weighs a little over two pounds—a bit on the heavy side to carry in a jacket pocket. Included with the book is a birdsong DVD with 587 MP3 files for 138 species. When the MP3 files are played, a small JPG image of the bird appears on the viewer. The number and quality of the sound files for the selected birds are quite good and will be useful to those learning calls. Libraries with field-guide collections will want to add this one because of the ABA approach to descriptive information and the DVD, which might be circulated as a separate item. --Linda Scarth This new field guide provides a suite of modern tools to effectively aid in the identification of more than 750 species of birds across North America. It introduces a "whole bird" approach by concisely gathering a collection of information about birds into one portable and well-organized volume. 2,000 stunning color photographs of birds in natural habitats show the most important field marks, regional population differences, life stages, and behaviors 700-plus detailed and up-to-date color range maps show summer, migration, winter, year-round, and rare but regular occurrences of every major species A DVD of birdsongs for 138 major species (587 vocalizations in all for 5½ hours of play); each high-quality MP3 file is embedded with an image of the bird, perfect to view on home computers and portable MP3 players Concise descriptions of habits and ecology, age-related and seasonal differences, regional forms, vocalization, and informative captions pointing out the most important aspects of the bird 46 group essays with information outlining taxonomy, feeding, migration,