Anybody who has enjoyed other writings by Alexander Skutch on the subject of neotropical birds will also appreciate this book. After all, where else can you find interesting and informative writing about these two large and important families of neotropical birds? Not only is there a wealth of data concerning behavior, habitat, etc - but it is all presented in Skutch's very personal style, and intermingled with intimate anecdotes that really put you right there in the forest with that Bicolored Antbird, etc. Read this book before birding in lowland rainforest in Central or South America, and you will be rewarded with a much greater understanding of what you are witnessing. If you haven't yet, also read "A Birdwatcher's Adventures in Central America", and "A Naturalist in Costa Rica", as well as "Birds Asleep" - all by Alexander Skutch.

When I first picked up "Arizona Game Birds" a couple of years ago, I looked at it as a serious textbook on Arizona's upland birds (partridges/pheasants, grouse, turkeys, quail, cranes, pigeons and doves). And it certainly is: with it's good-quality black-and-white figures, carefully designed maps, generous captions and an extended bibliography supplemented by a sufficient index, it ranks far above average when compared to similar scientific references. But this book is a lot more than a textbook: it is a unique comprehensive guide offering a straightforward path to both the novice and the expert through the complex, and at times confusing, interaction between the birds and their habitat. The general pattern Brown lays out in his clear, figurative language for each species in terms of life history, distribution, management history and hunting strategies is unsurpassed in the literature, a knowledge and expertise which can only be accumulated through decades of experience in the field as a wildlife biologist, AZ G&F game manager and a hunter. This book has served me as a faithful companion for not only planning hunting trips into new areas, but also to better understand the many biotic communities in the Southwest. Such information does not come easy, and one has to always work for it. Above all, I consider Brown's hunting anecdotes among the best put on paper. Loaded with practical advice and written with respect for the quarry by a true gentleman hunter, these short stories take you right into the field. Read e.g. about Brown looking back to Ward's Dove Night in Tuscon during the early 1970es and you will understand why this fine book is on my shelf standing right next to such classics as Jack O' Connor "Game in the Desert" and Charles A. Sheldon's "Wilderness of the Southwest". May it never go out of print!

This book provides the reader with a sufficient knowledge on the bidding and the bridge conventions, and yet it is so easy to understand! I'm grateful to come across it when I'm looking for books on bidding; a must-have for those who wishes to improve and master on bidding.

A well written realistic adventure of two children visiting a wildlife refuge made to protect the American Bald Eagle. Their naturalist guide introduces them to facts about the life cycle of the eagle, folklore, and environmental issues. Beautiful watercolor illustrations enhance the story.

Reading level: 4th grade

The amount of information in The Bird Almanac, and the diversity, is staggering, and there is far too much to cover in a short review. The information covers both birds and bird watching, starting with a complete checklist of the world's birds. There is a chart showing the suggested fossil history of birds. The sections on anatomy include not only the traditional bird diagram, but also labeled drawings of the skeleton, digestive system, brain, eyeball, feather tracts, and other systems. There are charts on heart rates, metabolic rates, hearing range, and number of taste buds in various species, and dozens of others in the physiographic section. There are also charts on wing loading, flight speed, daily flight distance, average altitudes of migrating birds, and the ability of birds to transport prey after capture. The mortality section includes charts on the relative occurrence of a long list of diseases and lists of threatened and endangered birds.

There is a section on biggest, smallest, longest, most traveled birds, etc. A section on who's who in bird biology and conservation includes not only the expected names, but important figures less well-known. Do you want to know who was president of the AOU in 1938, or any other year? Who are the recipients of the Elliot Coues Award? It's all here, as well as which teams have won the World Series of Birding and who has won the Duck Stamp competition. There is a section on resources for bird watchers that includes a list of the world's bird watching and ornithological organizations, with addresses, lists of Internet resources, a compilation of the world's bird watching magazines, lists of rare bird alerts, tour companies, CD ROMs, and on and on.

This is one of the most impressive, and useful, one-volume collection of information about birds and bird watching available anywhere. Readers will find themselves delving into it for pleasure over and over, and it will be one of the most frequently used references on the shelf. My copy is going on the shelf next to the Birder's Handbook and the small set of references that are my first line of defense whenever anyone asks a question or I need a quick answer. This book belongs in every bird watcher's library.-Eirik A.T. Blom

I am a Cockatiel breeder and I believe This is one of the best books on Cockatiels, it has everthing you need to know from new pet to breeding for color. I always recommend this book to my clients.If you have a Cockatiel or are thinking of getting one, get this book.

This book is great for a beginner or bird enthusiast. It even has a section on how to build avairies. It is very thorough and the pictures are great. Much more detailed than some of the other beginner finch books.

This is a nice reference guide for all ages. I have a 4 year old who is VERY interested in nature and I bought this book to aid myself and her in identifying various birds that we run across. It is perfect for an adult as well as children. There are plenty of pictures that even a child who cannot read, can still understand.

Reading the sections on the extinct birds is quite distrubing since has an acute sense of frustration that they are in fact gone forever and cannot be braught back to life. This book in question, i.e., Birds in Jeopardy : The Imperiled and Extinct Birds of the United States and Canada by Paul R. Ehrlich, et al, is a good reminder that we have a huge responsibility towards other species in other surrounding enviroment and we have the obligation to keep the list of extinct animals from growing since loosing more species would indeed be quite devestating. Highly Recomended.

This is the only major work available in english on the subject. It describes in detail the migration, breeding, habitat distribution and much more of all species recorded in Israel. It is not however a identification guide, but I have found the distribution info most usefull as a aid to ID.

Walter Neser