The ultimate must-have guide for identifying migrant raptors, Hawks at a Distance is the first volume to focus on distant raptors as they are truly seen in the field. Jerry Liguori, a leading expert on North American raptors, factors in new information and approaches for identifying twenty-nine species of raptor in various lighting situations and settings. The field guide's nineteen full-color portraits, 558 color photos, and 896 black-and-white images portray shapes and plumages for each species from all angles. Useful flight identification criteria are provided and the accompanying text discusses all aspects of in-flight hawk identification, including flight style and behavior. Concentrating on features that are genuinely observable at a distance, this concise and practical field guide is ideal for any aspiring or experienced hawk enthusiast. * The first guide to focus on distant raptors as they are viewed in the field * New information and approaches for identifying distant raptors * Illustrates twenty-nine species in various lighting situations and settings *558 color photos and 896 black-and-white images depicting plumage and shape characteristics * All aspects of in-flight hawk identification, including flight style and behavior

Part of the revolutionary "Crossley ID Guide" series, this is the first raptor guide with lifelike scenes composed from multiple photographs--scenes that allow you to identify raptors just as the experts do. Experienced birders use the most easily observed and consistent characteristics--size, shape, behavior, probability, and general color patterns. The book's 101 scenes--including thirty-five double-page layouts--provide a complete picture of how these features are all related. Even the effects of lighting and other real-world conditions are illustrated and explained. Detailed and succinct accounts from two of North America's foremost raptor experts, Jerry Liguori and Brian Sullivan, stress the key identification features. This complete picture allows everyone from beginner to expert to understand and enjoy what he or she sees in the field. The mystique of bird identification is eliminated, allowing even novice birders to identify raptors quickly and simply.

Comprehensive and authoritative, the book covers all thirty-four of North America's diurnal raptor species (all species except owls). Each species is featured in stunning color plates that show males and females, in a full spectrum of ages and color variants, depicted near and far, in flight and at rest, and from multiple angles, all caught in their typical habitats. There are also comparative, multispecies scenes and mystery photographs that allow readers to test their identification skills, along with answers and full explanations in the back of the book. In addition, the book features an introduction, and thirty-four color maps accompany the plates.

Whether you are a novice or an expert, this one-of-a-kind guide will show you an entirely new way to look at these spectacular birds.The most complete guide to North American raptors, written by some of the foremost experts The first raptor guide using Richard Crossley's acclaimed, innovative composite images that show birds as they actually appear in the field 101 stunning color plates--including thirty-five double-page layouts--composed from thousands of photographs Comparative, multispecies plates and photos of mystery species that allow readers to test their growing identification skills Complete with introduction, 34 color maps, and detailed species accounts

"Jerry Liguori has spent most of the last twenty years in the field watching and photographing hawks, and thousands of hours poring over photos and research to piece the puzzle of identification together. The result . . . is this guide, which is the most detailed and confident explanation yet of the myriad clues that lead to successful identification of hawks. This book is the first of its kind that deals with the real-world problems of identifying flying raptors from different angles. . . . The understanding of what hawkwatchers actually face in the field comes through on every page."--David A. Sibley, author of the National Audubon Society's "The Sibley Guide to Birds"

"There is nobody in North America whose identification skills and knowledge base concerning the flight identification of birds of prey surpasses Jerry Liguori. If you want to know where the high water mark in raptor identification falls today, it is in your hands. If you aspire to pin names to birds that fly just this side of the limit of conjecture with a high degree of confidence, start reading."--Pete Dunne, Vice President of Natural History Information, New Jersey Audubon Society, coauthor of "Hawks in Flight"

"We have all been perplexed and downright dumbfounded trying to identify flying raptors when seen at odd, but regularly viewed angles! Such difficult angles often offer only glimpses of identification markings shown in typical raptor field guides and bird guides. This impressive book, with its superb collection of color and black and white photographs and concise and informative data, tackles raptor identification problems that hawkwatchers face under real field conditions. Jerry Liguori has created abook that can easily be toted in the field, and is an absolute must-have for any raptor enthusiast!"--Brian K. Wheeler, author of "Raptors of Eastern/Western North America," illustrator and coauthor of "A Field Guide to Hawks of North America"

"Jerry Liguori has long been one of our best raptor experts, and this stunning book proves it yet again. Depicting hawks in the real world, in the hawkwatching arena-and not in an idealized situation that rarely occurs-is this book's forte. Comparisons, contrasts, key points, and even potential pitfalls are highlighted in the excellent photos-and set the book apart. There are a number of raptor guides available, but we finally have one that shows hawks as they are truly seen in the field."--Clay Sutton, coauthor of "Hawks in Flight" and "How to Spot Hawks and Eagles"

""Hawks from Every Angle" takes in-flight identification further than any previous book. Being a seasoned hawkwatcher, I can attest to the accuracy and usefulness of the material presented. Until now, much of the information herein has resided only in the heads of very experienced hawkwatchers and some of it, in the heads of only one or two very experienced hawkwatchers. Well organized and well written."--Tony Leukering, Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory

""Hawks from Every Angle" will be quite useful to those seeking a better understanding of the field identification of raptors rather than a feather-by-feather description of plumages. Ultimately, birders want to know which species they are seeing, and this book will guide them to the correct identification."--Brian L. Sullivan, Cornell Lab of Ornithology