The isthmus of Panama, where North and South America meet, hosts more bird species than all of North America. More accessible than ever to birdwatchers and other ecotourists, the country has become a premier neotropical birding and nature tourism destination in recent years. The Birds of Panama will be an essential tool for the new generation of birders traveling in search of Panama's spectacular avifauna.

This user-friendly, portable, and affordable identification guide features:

large color illustrations of more than 900 species;

the first range maps published to show the distribution of Panama's birds;

concise text that describes field marks for identification, as well as habitat, behavior, and vocalizations;

range maps and species accounts face illustration pages for quick, easy reference;

the inclusion of North American migrants and seabirds, as well as female and juvenile plumage variations;

an up-to-date species list for the country that reflects recent additions, taxonomic splits, and other changes in classification.

Panama's unique geography, small size, and varied habitats make it possible to see a vast diversity of birds within a short time. Its western and central areas harbor representatives of species found in Central America; species characteristic of South America may be found in the east. In the winter, birds from northern climes are commonly found in Panama as migrants. This is the one field guide the novice or experienced birder needs to identify birds in the field in Panama's diverse habitats."

Bird watching, especially by enthusiastic novices, is presently one of the fastest growing pastimes in the world. It offers healthy relaxation and exercise with the added benefit to enhance the bird watcher's knowledge about nature and to contribute to our scientific knowledge. The Lowveld of South Africa, which is home to arguably the most well-known and popular game reserve in the world, the Kruger National Park, is to a large extent still unspoilt and the peaceful home of its exceptionally rich birdlife. The Spotter's guide - Birds of the Lowveld, compiled by two of South Africa's most distinguished birders and in association with ornithologists, museums and bird clubs, is an innovative and practical field guide in a handy pocket size that features all the bird species normally found in the Lowveld. The condenced list makes the identification task of the 541 regular and 47 visiting bird species a great deal easier. It includes: Dueldex, a bilingual index of common group names; a handy Shapefinder for quick and easy identification; excellent photographs for easy identification.

Read the powerful account of one woman's fight to reshape her identity through connection with nature when all normality has fallen away. When lifelong bird-lover Hannah Bourne-Taylor moved with her husband to Ghana seven years ago she couldn't have anticipated how her life would be forever changed by her unexpected encounters with nature and the subsequent bonds she formed. Plucked from the comfort and predictability of her life before, Hannah struggled to establish herself in her new environment, striving to belong in the rural grasslands far away from home. In this challenging situation, she was forced to turn inwards and interrogate her own sense of identity, however in the animal life around her, and in two wild birds in particular, Hannah found a source of solace and a way to reconnect with the world in which she was living. Fledgling is a portrayal of adaptability, resilience and self-discovery in the face of isolation and change, fuelled by the quiet power of nature and the unexpected bonds with animals she encounters. Hannah encourages us to reconsider the conventional boundaries of the relationships people have with animals through her inspiring and very beautiful glimpse ofwhat is possible when we allow ourselves to connect to the natural world. Full of determination and compassion, Fledgling is apowerful meditation on our instinctive connection to nature. It shows that even the tiniest of birds can teach us what is important in life and how to embrace every day.

Over the summer of 1821, a cash-strapped John James Audubon worked as a tutor at Oakley Plantation in Louisiana's rural West Feliciana Parish. This move initiated a profound change in direction for the struggling artist. Oakley's woods teemed with life, galvanizing Audubon to undertake one of the most extraordinary endeavors in the annals of art: a comprehensive pictorial record of America's birds. That summer, Audubon began what would eventually become his four-volume opus, Birds of America. In A Summer of Birds, Danny Heitman recounts the season that shaped Audubon's destiny, sorting facts from romance to give an intimate view of the world's most famous bird artist. A new preface marks the two-hundredth anniversary of that eventful interlude, reflecting on Audubon's enduring legacy among artists, aesthetes, and nature lovers in Louisiana and around the world.