The Shorebird Guide

It's too bad that other birds aren't described with as much detail and clarity. The book is superb for a few reasons. 1) Range of photos. If you read the introduction, the point of the book is to help you learn how to identify a shorebird even if you can't identify the primaries, secondaries, etc. They teach you "GISS" -- general impression of shape and size. While this is obviously done by most birders when they see a curlew sitting next to a plover, how many can pick out different species of plovers in sillouette? Some photos are "blurry" or shadowy on purpose. Sometimes the best you can do is to see a flock of birds far off in the distance. Does that mean you should give up? No! 2) Range of plumages. The ability to compare birds in this book is truly its asset. Think about the range of plumages a shorebird could have, and imagine how Sibley or Stokes would incorporate all of the different plumages effectively into a field guide. They can't. Molting details have to be left out for space reasons. This book shows many different molts and covers different races of birds. One of the best pages is a comparison between each stage of plumage between Eastern and Western Willets on the same page. PERFECT. 3) Follow-up. The book has many photos with a question in the caption. "Are all of the Oystercatchers adults?" "What bird is in the background?" Effectively picking out birds is half the battle, and I really appreciate the drills to lock these details into my mind. The answers (with an explanation) are in the back so that you can know if you are right or not. No field guide helps to educate you in such an explicit way. 4) Flow. The book is not inundating you with information like many Peterson guides do. After all, you aren't an expert, (you're looking to become one!). I like to look at the pictures, see what I notice, then read the captions... take a look at some of the other photos... compare... do the "Where's Waldo" thing... You get the idea. The point is that I don't have to imagine the bird using 10 pages of description and one small plate. After birding for almost 20 years, this is the first book that has really made me take a look at primaries and secondaries in isolation, because the photos are stunning and the descriptions are more than helpful. This is the kind of book that you will want to leave on the coffee table but also want to carry with you in the field. Not many books can accomplish that. I just wish they did this for warblers, gulls, hawks, sparrows..... ! Word to the wise: Before buying any book, see if you can find a preview, either via amazon or google books. Check the index for birds you want so you don't buy this for a range it doesn't cover. After looking at the book online, I was positive I wanted this one. It's even more stunning in person. Best book purchase I've made since the Sibley Guide 11 years ago.

If you are searching for a way to improve your birding skills regarding shorebirds, then this may be the guide for you. I have been spending a lot of time at the beach, trying to identify shorebirds and build my skills. I have a Peterson's Guide, which is the best basic guide out there and indispensable because it points out (with arrows) the identifying characteristics of the birds you see. But it is basic and there are a lot of cases where I just am not sure, e.g. is that a Western Sandpiper or Semipalmated Sandpiper? The Shorebird Guide includes excellent photographs, e.g. a dozen for each species, and the photos not only include the target species but also show that bird in relation to other shorebirds with which it may be seen. This is invaluable for getting a better feel for relative sizes and detailed markings which can be used to distinguish a species. The plates are in the beginning section of the guide. Each set of plates starts with a broad description of the species including: size; structure; behavior; and status. A range map is also included. Then, you have about a dozen pictures with captions that include points you should note in identifying the bird. The birds are generally shown both in basic and alternate (breeding) plumages, which is a huge asset. The second section of the book includes details about each species. I do wish (like a lot of other readers) that the detailed descriptions were included/interspersed with the photographs so you would have all the information about a bird in one location. The details are good, though, and include: Status; Taxonomy; Behavior; Migration; Molt; and Vocalizations. It is worth noting that the behavior section does include some of the information, like head bobbing or tail wagging, that makes the Peterson Guide so essential (unlike some guides which fail to note characteristic identifying behavior). So, for example, for the Solitary Sandpiper, the behavior section includes information about the characteristic head bobbing. Please note that not all birds you see at the shore will be included, and the guide focuses on birds seen mostly in North America. The birds included are: Lapwings & Plovers; Oystercatchers; Stilts & Avocets; Sandpipers, Phalaropes, & their Allies; and rarities of those families mentioned. I use a guide to Seawatching for similar details on Gulls, Terns, Jaegers, Kittiwakes, and other pelagic species (the guide uses photographs with detailed descriptions very similar to this book, but for pelagic birds, and has the detailed descriptions alongside the photos). I consider my three guides: Peterson's Guide to North American Birds; The Shorebird Guide; and the Seawatching Guide to be a complete and necessary set if you are serious about identifying birds at the shore. I still consider the Peterson's Guide my primary reference, however, I have to admit that there are birds I would not have been able to accurately identify without the help of The Shorebird Guide (or the Seawatching Guide for Gulls/Terns/etc). If you are serious about birding at the shore, this is a "must have" guide.

This book is packed full information on shorebirds, their life cycles, migration, feeding habits and much more. I particularly like the summary pages in the rear of the book that gave statistical date on species population and trends. Each species has numerous photos and captions that either shows the bird individually or side-by-side with commonly confused species leading to misidentification in the field. I mainly use this guide after a trip to assist in photo review for ID purposes. The guide is limited on information for rare migrants that could be found in North America. The only down side about this guide is that when it comes to similar species the photo comparisons could be placed in a little more of an orderly fashion to show the fine features in both basic and alternate plumage (Western Sandpiper vs Semipalmated and Dowitchers species).

If you are a real shorebird enthusiast, or simply enjoy looking at great bird photographs, this would be a great book for you. If you want a straightforward reference for field identification, this may not be the book for you. The book has two main sections: Species Photos (with copious identification notes and range maps, and Species Accounts. The photo section is subdivided into "Domestic Species" and ""Rarities and Regional Specialties". The photos in the book are wonderful, so it is fun to look through even if you are not trying to learn anything. Many of the photos are excellent for learning how to identify particular species and many others help to illustrate particular behaviors. Other photos are beautiful, but not very useful for illustrating identification features or behavior. The text is also excellent. Although the authors profess to use a holistic approach to identification, there is plenty of attention to specific details. For example, in the notes for the White-rumped Sandpiper: "all plumages may show unique reddish or brownish base to lower mandible". Many photos show multiple species and there are little quizzes mixed in with the identification notes. I often carry this book in my car when I'm out birding, but the book would be rather large and heavy to carry in the field. I dislike the separate sections for "Domestic Species" and ""Rarities and Regional Specialties". It would be much easier to compart similar species (like Wilson's Snipe and Common Snipe) if the photos for the two species were adjacent to eachother. I find the quizzes are fun, but they may not be to everyone's taste. Taking quizzes would be fine for home, but the quizzes might just get in the way if you were trying to use this bood in the field. This is a great book, but if you want a straigtforward reference for shorebird identification better suited for carrying in the field, you might prefer "Shorebirds of North America: The Photographic Guide" by Dennis Paulson.

The Shorebird Guide is a different kind of bird guide. It tackles a traditionally difficult subject in a unique way that makes identifying Shorebirds seem (almost) easy. The book is split into two sections: the first is a color photographic guide to each species; the second is a text write-up of standard field-guide information as well as behavioral details and such for each species. Each species gets several pages of beautiful color photographs. Each photograph shows the species under discussion in a real world setting and has a short but info packed caption. The photographs progress from juvenile birds through adults (breeding and non-breeding). Many of the photographs contain more than one bird and more than one species. Some of the captions pose questions to the reader (answers in the back). Working out the answers to these questions is a good test of your skills. The philosophy behind this book is that of GISS (general impression of size and shape) or gestalt. This means that the identification of a bird is worked out, not by plumage details or colorations as with a typical field guide, but instead by the overall impression of the bird. This is an especially useful tool with Shorebirds. In conclusion, this is an amazing bird book and one that every birder needs to have in their library. It will definitely make you a better birder.

Eleven families of shorebirds are included in this book, and shorebirds comprise more families than that. Thus, if your interest is limited to gulls and terns (Family Laridae) you will need to consult another book. But you will need to look long and hard for another book that describes those eleven families so completely as this book. The photographs are superior, as are the many diagrams and anatomical illustrations. Highly recommended for both birders and professionals.

This book came highly recommended to me by my birding teacher who will be teaching a class on shorebirds soon. I have only browsed through this book & become familiar with its structure, & already I know it's a winner. The first thing that struck me were the pictures in real life settings at different times of day and in mixed flocks which is often the case. They include flight photos w/ common flight calls, feeding behaviors, preferred habitats, and photos of the life cycle from juvenille through adult plumages. It left me with a general impression of the bird. Then I noticed the excellent captions describing plumage, age, behaviors with comparison photographs of similar birds in similar circumstances. So helpful! Next, I looked at the "How to Use This Guide" section which recommended you read the introduction to get you familiar with the different families of shorebirds. The detail and organization of this book beg me to read it!

This book came highly recommended when I began volunteering for Audubon. It's the only one I've found so far with photos of the same species showing multiple variation across age, sex, and season, while also showcasing photos with multi-species groups to demonstrate differences and teach how to better identify birds. When I'm looking at a large group of birds made up of Snowy Plovers, Semipalmated Plovers, and multiple sandpiper type birds, and they are speeding across the sand following the waves, it's difficult to sort out what I'm looking at. But this book points out how to identify birds under these types of circumstances - size, beak shape, wingtip color... I love Audubon, but their guides are a little like coffee-table books, while this is almost like a "Shorebirds for Idiots" guide.

A good collection of excellent photos showing different plumages at different developmental stages and in different seasons. It serves very well to compare field marks with what I get in my camera especially when I am confused with drawings and literal descriptions alone. Each species comes with a brief coverage of size, body structure, behavior and geographical presence. The author is suggesting that those features are as important as field marks in identifying shorebirds that are usually far away. I agree that he has good reasons. You will appreciate having this as another good reference after each field visit.

Excelente libro

Excellent Guide aux illustrations nombreuses d'oiseaux en différentes phases; très bien conçu.

シギチの仲間は識別が難しいです。 国内の写真図鑑やイラスト図鑑だけでは、 幼鳥、換羽中、冬羽、夏羽などが判別しにくいことが多いですが、 本書はいろんな角度からいろんな個体を撮影されていて、 画像が兎に角豊富です。 図鑑としても良いですが、 写真集としても楽しめる本です。 コストパフォーマンスも優れていますので、 野鳥が好きなかたや野鳥撮影が好きな方も、 多くの方々が満足する一冊だと思います。

Indispensável para observadores de aves que querem aprender mais sobre essas espécies de difícil identificação em campo.