Mary B. DickinsonRezensionen

nonfiction/bird guide illustrated with color paintings and helpful range maps

found this old 4th ed (2002) in the used pile and picked it up to help with my casual (very amateur) birding. As mentioned in other reviews, the names and taxonomies of various species are updated annually so some of this info will be out of date, but then again climate change probably makes even the newest editions out of date. Supplementing with eBird resources (online and app) as well as Cornell's Merlin app (for identifying songs and calls by sound, since most birds are hard to actually spot) helps a lot.

My edition doesn't have thumb tabs, but there is a handy "Quick-find" index at the back of the book to point to relevant pages.

A bird watcher's must have field guide to capture every bird you see by detailed paintings, check boxes for bird previously seen. And, information by type and what other birds tend to mix in season or during migration. The fine quality one expects from National Geographic.

This is an excellent reference book, invaluable for both the novice and expert birder. The brief but informative introduction is well written and well illustrated. The thumb tabs for the major bird families help speed access to the desired species. The individual descriptions of species include an overview, range maps and data, voice characteristics, and clear, colorful illustrations. My only gripe is that the book is a bit too big and cumbersome, for me at least, to comfortably use out in the field.½

Can't live without this one--it goes everywhere with me. I've since updated and bought the 4th and 5th editions, but all of my birding notes are still in this very worn copy. An excellent field guide, in my opinion. I supplement it with [b:The Sibley Guide to Birds|15832|The Sibley Guide to Birds|David Allen Sibley|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1166694299s/15832.jpg|17649], which stays at home while I drag the Ntl. Geographic guide with me.

Great, if dated, field guide. This, the second edition, was published in 1987. Subsequent printings may have lead this book to be listed as having a publication date of 1999, but that doesn't mean the information in this book was current even in 1999. Several birds have been re-named and re-categorized (e.g. Green-backed heron listed is actually now recognized as two species: the Green Heron in North America and the Striated Heron in central and south America.) Range maps are dated.

My favorite birding guide book. It has great pictures and descriptions. The blurbs with the range maps is fantastic and it has a lot of incidental species to South Texas (at least) that a lot of guide books lack since they are not "common enough", I guess.

There's a handy checklist in the back if you want to check off species as you see them, but since I'm a much more casual birder, I just write in the white space next to the bird where and when I saw it for the first time.

My favorite birding guide book. It has great pictures and descriptions. The blurbs with the range maps is fantastic and it has a lot of incidental species to South Texas (at least) that a lot of guide books lack since they are not "common enough", I guess.

There's a handy checklist in the back if you want to check off species as you see them, but since I'm a much more casual birder, I just write in the white space next to the bird where and when I saw it for the first time.

Excellent illustrations of each bird, including male and female as well as juvenile. There are illustrations of the birds in flight as well as on the ground. Maps on each page, show their range, so that you know immediately by your location if you might be looking at the correct bird.

A good choice for History teachers. This book is equal parts essay and photos. Each set of photos is supported by a short essay written by different authors. Each essay briefly talks about the topic, such as Stonehenge and the Nasca Lines. But it also leaves the reader with questions about these reasons for their creation. This book is a good start for leading students along the path of asking futher questions about the past. It best used with a middle school class. It does not give alot of detail, so it requires you to be able to look past what is written. I would want older students to use a more detailed book or article for each individual topic.½

A scripted atlas of the world with much historical information as well as fact charts.

for my money, this is one of the better field guides out there. Quick reference inside the back cover, nice drawings and good descriptions. I carry this guide over all others.

Wide variability in the quality of artists' plates. Sibley Guides are far superior½

This is the most complete North American field guide there is. It illustrates every bird ever observed in North America, even extinct species and those observed only once (in which case the bird is shown in the observed plumage). North American birders may not want to have *only* this guide, but they will definitely want to have this guide.½

The best field guide for North American Birds. End of conversation.

This is an excellent guide - beautiful illustrations, great text and maps. It is a bit on the big side, but can be carried in the field. Highly recommended.½

This is a fantastic birding guide! One of my all-time favorites. Maps on the same pages with descriptions and color plates. Yes!½

Wonderful! I spent hours trying to look up a bird I spotted on a hike and finally found it in this book and this book only. (Turns out it was a subspecies of chickadee unique to the central Californian coast -- and only this field guide provided an illustration!) I bought the book for that reason alone and I haven't been sorry. It's easy to use and thorough!