Pennsylvania is the permanent or migratory home of 426 species of birds, including the state bird -- the ruffed grouse. This beautifully illustrated guide highlights over 140 familiar and unique species and includes an ecoregion map featuring prominent bird-viewing areas. Laminated for durability, this lightweight, pocket-sized folding guide is an excellent source of portable information and ideal for field use by visitors and residents alike. Made in the USA.

When you're out and about, keep this tabbed booklet by Stan Tekiela close at hand. Featuring only shore birds seen in the Southeast and the Gulf States, the booklet is organized by group for quick and easy identification. Narrow your choices by group, and view just a few shore birds at a time. The pocket-sized format is much easier to use than laminated foldouts, and the tear-resistant pages help to make the book durable in the field. The book features: Pocket-sized format -- easier than laminated foldouts Detailed photographs with key markings More than 70 species found in the Southeast Brief descriptions and size charts to help ensure positive identification

The well-loved standard reference for bird-watchers and nature lovers in North Carolina and South Carolina, ""Birds of the Carolinas"" collects information on all avian species known to have occurred in the region since 1900. This thoroughly revised second edition describes more than 460 individual species, including 59 new species that have been recorded since the publication of the first edition in 1980. Updated entries for all species reflect the current status of bird life as well as major changes in taxonomy and nomenclature. Each species account indicates when and where the bird is most likely to be found in the Carolinas, its nesting habits, feeding habits, and descriptive information useful in identifying the species. Generously illustrated with 350 color photographs, this comprehensive guide to regional birds and their behavior will quickly earn a prominent place on the bookshelf of every bird-watcher in the Carolinas.

This historic book may have numerous typos, missing text or index. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. 1901. Not illustrated. Excerpt: ... chapter vii Watching Shags and Guillemots I have referred once or twice before to the cormorant (including under this title the shag), and once to the guillemot. In this chapter I shall treat of both these birds a little more at large, for in the first place they are salient amongst sea fowl, giving a distinctive character to the wild places that they haunt, and secondly, I have watched them closely and patiently. Both are interesting, and the cormorant especially has a winning and amiable character, which I shall the more enjoy bringing before the public because I think that up to the present scant justice has been done to it. Something, perhaps, of the wild and fierce attaches to the popular idea of this bird, due, no doubt, both to its appearance, which has in it something dark and evil-looking, and to the stern, wild scenery of rock and sea with which this is in consonance, and by which it is emphasised. Perhaps the mere name even, which has by no means a harmless sound, has something to do with it. "As with its wings aslant Sails the fierce cormorant Seeking some rocky haunt," says Longfellow--lines which, to me at least, call up a graphic picture of the bird, though I do not know that the first contains anything which is specially characteristic of it; and Milton has recorded--as we may, perhaps, assume--the way in which its uncouth shape appealed to him by making it that which his grand angel-devil chooses, on one occasion, to assume. On another one, it may be remembered, Satan takes for his purposes the form of a toad, and on each, no doubt, the poet, who never appears to yield to the strong temptation (as one would imagine) of loving his great creation, has intended to conyey a general idea of fitness and symbolical similarity as between the disguised b...

A splendid and luminous celebration of one of nature's most perfect and mysterious creatures-the hawk-from the New York Times bestselling author of the "astoundingly beautiful" (NPR) The Soul of an Octopus. When Sy Montgomery went to spend a day at falconer Nancy Cowan's farm, home to a dozen magnificent birds of prey, it was the start of a deep love affair. Nancy allowed her to work with Jazz, a feisty, four-year-old, female Harris's hawk with a wingspan of more than four feet. Not a pet, Jazz was a fierce predator with talons that could pierce skin and bone and yet, she was willing to work with a human to hunt. From the first moment Jazz swept down from a tree and landed on Sy's leather gloved fist, Sy fell under the hawk's magnetic spell. Over the next few years, Sy spent more time with these magnificent creatures, getting to know their extraordinary abilities and instincts. They are deeply emotional animals, quick to show anger and frustration, and can hold a grudge for years. But they are also loyal and intensely aware of their surroundings. In this mesmerizing account, featuring sixteen pages of gorgeous color photographs, Sy passionately and vividly reveals the wonderous world of hawks and what they can teach us about nature, life, and love.

Go beyond bird feeders! Learn how to create outstanding bird habitats in your own yard with native plants that offer food, cover, and nesting sites for birds. This guide is packed with color photographs, sage advice, detailed instructions, and garden plans. It features nine different habitat gardens for hummingbirds, bluebirds, wintering birds, migrant birds, and birds that frequent prairies, wetlands, lakes, shrublands, and woodlands, along with advice about maintaining your plantings and augmenting them with nest boxes, birdbaths, misters, and perches. The information on recommended plant species includes their native ranges in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Ohio, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, and Wisconsin; the birds they attract; their visual characteristics; and their cultivation. Mariette Nowak also describes how gardeners featured in this book have gone beyond their own garden gates to work for the protection and restoration of bird habitat in their neighborhoods and communities. Birdscaping in the Midwest provides many sources of further information, including publications, web sites, organizations, and native plant nurseries.

"Undoubtedly the finest guide to North American birds."--Guy McCaskie, "Birding"
The publication of "The Sibley Guide to Birds "in 2000 quickly established David Allen Sibley as the author and illustrator of the nation's supreme and most comprehensive guide to birds. Used by millions of birders from novices to the most expert, "The Sibley Guide" became the standard by which natural history guides are measured. The highly anticipated second edition builds on this foundation of excellence, offering massively expanded and updated information, new paintings, new and rare species, and a new, elegant design.
The second edition of this handsome, flexibound volume offers a wealth of improvements and updates:
- All illustrations reproduced 15 to 20 percent larger for better detail.
- Includes nearly 7,000 paintings digitally remastered from original art for enhanced print quality.
- Expanded text includes habitat information and voice description for every species and more tips on finding birds in the field.
- More than 600 new paintings, including illustrations of 115 rare species and additional paintings of common species and regional populations.
- More than 700 updated maps of ranges, showing winter, summer, year-round, migration, and rare ranges.
- 85 bird family pages now cross-referenced to species accounts.
- Revised taxonomic order and most current common names for every species.
"The Sibley Guide to Birds, " second edition, brings the genius of David Allen Sibley to the world once again in a thoroughly updated and expanded volume that every birder must own.

From the moment Jeff Guidry saw the baby eagle with broken wings, his life was changed. For weeks he and the staff at Sarvey Wildlife Care Center in Puget Sound, Washington, tended to the injured bird. Miraculously, she recovered, and Jeff, a center volunteer, became her devoted caretaker. Though Freedom would never fly, she had Jeff as her wings. And after Jeff was diagnosed with stage three non-Hodgkin's lymphoma in 2000, Freedom returned his gift. Between sessions of debilitating chemotherapy, Jeff's visits to Freedom and their special bond soothed his spirit and gave him the strength to fight. A tender tale of hope, love, trust, and life, this moving true story is an affirmation of the spiritual connection that humans and animals share.

A stunning photographic showcase of the birds of Cuba Cuba is now one of the most popular birding destinations in the world. Its rich avifauna includes 25 endemic species, and the island is also home to a range of regional scarcities and an important stopping point for migrants as they cross the Caribbean. Containing hundreds of stunning photographs by Yves-Jacques Rey-Millet, A Photographic Guide to the Birds of the Cuba, the latest addition to Helm's Photographic Guides series, provides full photographic coverage of every species on the Cuban list. Concise text for each species includes identification, similar species, voice, habitats and behaviour, status and distribution, along with a map. This guide is an essential companion for any birder or naturalist visiting this beautiful and bird-rich island.

Foreword by Chris Packham. Do you have a passion for wildlife, and do you enjoy watching birds? Are you also hopeless at identifying some of the more difficult ones? Do you feel lost without a field guide, and can you count on both hands the number of birds that you can identify by their calls alone? If the answer to these questions is 'yes' you are not alone. In Winging it - Birding for low-flyers, Andrew Fallan recounts the highs and the lows, the trials and tribulations, of being an avid birder in a world seemingly populated by experts and high-flyers. All those with an interest in birds and other wildlife will identify with and enjoy these engaging tales. Hence, they are invited to join an often humorous and irreverent journey around the UK: from the heavily industrialised Thames estuary to Minsmere and the north Norfolk coast, from the Scilly Isles to the majestic scenery of Wales, all the way in fact to the rocky grandeur of the highlands and islands of Scotland. Against the backdrop of our green and pleasant land, the author examines - through his own experiences - the often spectacular beauty of our wildlife, and encourages us to seek solace in the simple enjoyment of birds.

Many of the photographs in this magnificent volume appear for the first time and have been carefully selected to show the most important features of the species illustrated. In several cases, different plumages or flight shots are included. The concise text provides vital information on the plumages, voice and habits of each species covered and includes new information. Over a hundred related species are also mentioned in the texts. The maps are accompanied by a note on the status and distribution. This book will enable accurate field identification in one of the world's most diverse avifaunal regions. Indispensable reading for all bird lovers.

In pairs, male and female birds appear to work as a team, competing for food, defending nests, and protecting predators, but in fact, because each individual strives to maximize its own reproductive potential, conflicts can occur if one finds a better partner. So while some birds choose one mate for life, others have many partners. In this book, fourteen classic studies of bird behavior are brought together to compare the different partnership patterns from ecological and evolutionary perspectives. Particular attention is paid to the availability of mates, the selection process and the consequences of choosing one mate over another. By comparing between and within species, each chapter outlines the features that influence a pair's reproductive performance and how this interacts with ecological and environmental constraints. Introductory and concluding chapters review the latest thinking on this fascinating subject. The book is aimed at students and researchers in behavioral ecology but can also foster new insights for bird watchers and ornithologists.

Ireland's diverse habitats - ranging from forests and farmlands to peat bogs and coastlines - is home to about 450 species of resident and migratory birds. This beautifully illustrated guide highlights over 140 familiar and unique species and includes a map featuring prominent bird-viewing areas. Laminated for durability, this lightweight, pocket-sized folding guide is an excellent source of portable information for anyone interested in birds, and is ideal for field use by residents and visitors alike. Made in the USA.www.waterfordpress.com

"Everyone who is interested in the ivory-billed woodpecker will want to read this book--from scientists who wish to examine the data from all the places Tanner explored to the average person who just wants to read a compelling story."
--Tim Gallagher, author of "The Grail Bird: The Rediscovery of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker"
In 1935 naturalist James T. Tanner was a twenty-one-year-old graduate student when he saw his first ivory-billed woodpecker, one of America's Istudent when he saw his first ivory-billed woodpecker, one of America's rarest birds, in a remote swamp in northern Louisiana. At the time, he rarest birds, in a remote swamp in northern Louisiana. At the time, he was part of an ambitious expedition traveling across the country to record and photograph as many avian species as possible, a trip organized by Dr. Arthur Allen, founder of the famed Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Two years later, Tanner hit the road again, this time by himself and in search of only one species--that ever-elusive ivory-bill. Sponsored by Cornell and the Audubon Society, Jim Tanner's work would result in some of the most extensive field research ever conducted on the magnificent woodpecker.

Drawing on Tanner's personal journals and written with the cooperation of his widow, Nancy, Ghost Birds recounts, in fascinating detail, the scientist's
dogged quest for the ivory-bill as he chased down leads in eight southern states. With Stephen Lyn Bales as our guide, we experience the same awe and excitement that Tanner felt when he returned to the Louisiana wetland he had visited earlier and was able to observe and document several of the "ghost birds"--including a nestling that he handled, banded, and photographed at close range. Investigating the ivory-bill was particularly urgent because it was a fast-vanishing species, the victim of indiscriminant specimen hunting and widespread logging that was destroying its habitat. As sightings became rarer and rarer in the decades following Tanner's remarkable research, the bird was feared to have become extinct. Since 2005, reports of sightings in Arkansas and Florida made headlines and have given new hope to ornithologists and bird lovers, although extensive subsequent investigations have yet to produce definitive confirmation.

Before he died in 1991, Jim Tanner himself had come to believe that the majestic woodpeckers were probably gone forever, but he remained hopeful
that someone would prove him wrong. This book fully captures Tanner's determined spirit as he tracked down what was then, as now, one of ornithology's true Holy Grails.

STEPHEN LYN BALES is a naturalist at the Ijams Nature Center in Knoxville,
Tennessee. He is the author of Natural Histories, published by UT Press in 2007.

Flight has fascinated humans since we first looked into the sky and saw birds on the wing, and no flights are more fascinating than the extraordinary migrations birds make every day, week, month, and season of the year. Migration explores how birds make these incredible expeditions. From first preparing to migrate, to the different types of migration and the compelling reasons why it is a must. From the high-flying adventures of bar-headed geese that soar above the Himalayan Mountains and the long-distance endurance of Arctic terns that travel from pole-to-pole, birds of all families, from vast seasonal migrators to the more casual nomad, will be explored. As readers migrate through the book's pages, they will also discover avian navigation, curious routes, the hazards of the journey, and why, occasionally, birds end up far from their original destination. Beautifully illustrated, this book will debunk the most outrageous myths about migration as it thoroughly travels the globe exploring the epic journeys these incredible birds make.

Nesting along the sandy fringe of the North American coast from Maine to Florida, terns are graceful symbols of our coastal beaches, yet they lead fragile and frantic lives. Join educator, storyteller, and photographer Peter Trull as he describes the physical and behavioral differences among the four types of terns that nest in the Cape Cod area, their migratory habits and predators, and why they are called birds of paradox. Both a photographic journey and an ornithological diary, Trull describes his ten-plus years watching, recording, and photographing these birds from Massachusetts to the coast of Guyana. More than 100 photographs depict day-to-day life and never-before-seen behaviors from inside the dynamic, noisy nesting colonies. This engaging book offers momentary glimpses into the complexities of these erratic, agile seabirds-seemingly carefree but always on the hunt-and their struggle to survive.

Bird lovers are passionate enthusiasts who enjoy reading about people who share their love for birds Bernd Brunner's past books have been well received and reviewed inThe New York Times, The New Yorker, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Slate, and many more outlets. He also had a piece included in The Best American Travel Writing (2013) Features gorgeous artwork throughout with more than 100 illustrations and photographs

Soaring majestically on its broad, raised wings, the Common Buzzard is a familiar sight for many people in Eurasia. Recently, this highly adaptable raptor has demonstrated an uncommon ability to reach high densities in western Europe, returning to old haunts to impress, inspire and connect people with nature. This new Poyser monograph brings together a wealth of research on the species' origins, feeding and breeding behaviour, along with information on movement and survival from the authors' own studies. It concludes by examining the conservation conundrums that such a successful predator raises in the modern world.

Now in its 7th printing Discover more than 200 birds species in "Birds of Southwestern BC." This guide covers the Lower Mainland, including Greater Vancouver, the Fraser Valley, Fraser Canyon, Manning Park and Whistler; the mid-coast as far north as Bella Coola; Vancouver Island; the Gulf Islands; and the Sunshine Coast. Aimed at beginning and intermediate birders who wish to identify the birds they regularly spot in their area, the book will also appeal to more experienced local and visiting birders who want to learn more about the behaviour, habitat and seasonal occurrence of local birds. Packed with useful information, this handy, portable guide tells you how to identify local birds, find out where they live and what they eat, how to attract birds to your yard and how to select a pair of binoculars. "Birds of Southwestern British Columbia" features colour coding by species a checklist to record your sightings 400+ full-colour photos a compact, easy-to-carry size insights from three expert birders

From fall to spring, J.A. Baker set out to track the daily comings and goings of a pair of peregrine falcons across the flat fen lands of eastern England. He followed the birds obsessively, observing them in the air and on the ground, in pursuit of their prey, making a kill, eating, and at rest, activities he describes with an extraordinary fusion of precision and poetry. And as he continued his mysterious private quest, his sense of human self slowly dissolved, to be replaced with the alien and implacable consciousness of a hawk.
It is this extraordinary metamorphosis, magical and terrifying, that these beautifully written pages record.

The northern California coast, from Monterey County to the Oregon border, is home to some of the richest avian habitats on the North America continent. Field Guide to Birds of the Northern California Coast provides a comprehensive ecological overview of this extensive and diverse region, and detailed discussions of the most common waterbirds, raptors and landbirds found there. Accessibly written and user-friendly, this guide contains nearly 250 species accounts, including seasonal rhythms and behavioral characteristics of each species, and is illustrated with 120 color photographs. Also featured are site guides to the most productive and accessible birding locales, with each coastal county represented. Rich Stallcup (1944-2012) was a preeminent California field ornithologist, naturalist, and conservationist. He was founder of the Point Reyes Bird Observatory, former president of Western Field Ornithologists, and author of many articles and books on bird identification, biogeography, and conservation. Jules Evens is a wildlife biologist with four decades of experience observing Northern California's coastal bird life. He founded Avocet Research Associates, a biological consulting firm specializing in wetland ecology with a focus on rare, threatened, and endangered species. Previous books include The Natural History of the Point Reyes Peninsula (UC Press, 2008) and An Introduction to California Birdlife (UC Press, 2005).

"Papa Goose is destined to become a classic. This book has everything in it I love: great animals beautifully portrayed as individuals; cool science; drama, discovery, and personal transformation." -Sy Montgomery, author of Birdology and The Soul of An Octopus The charming true story of one man's journey to raise seven goslings in the name of science. In Papa Goose, Michael Quetting shares the hilarious and moving true story of how he became a father to seven rambunctious goslings-and the surprising things he learned along the way. Starting right at the beginning, with the eggs, his journey takes him from the incubator all the way to the airstrip, where he must attempt to teach the geese to fly as part of an ambitious scientific research initiative for the Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, which tracks animal migrations around the world. For the next eleven months, we follow the newly minted dad as he takes the goslings on daily swims in the lake, tracks them down when they go astray, and watches their personalities develop: feisty, churlish, and lovable. Packed with charm and humor, Papa Goose quickly draws us into the adventure as Gloria, Nemo, and the rest of the crew conquer land, water, and air.