Customer Reviews

The Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Mammals

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I have several Audubon field guides, but this is the best of them all in my opinion. In this book, the editors made a wise decision to write more expansive descriptions, including a lot of information about the animal's behavior, eating habits, breeding, migration, and, often, its conservation status. The editors also show a sensitivity to man-made trends. For example, the domstic cat is listed here, as well as wild horses. In the former case, human carelessness has actually created a viable, but problematic, animal species; in the latter, humans intentionally let loose hundreds of horses at the end of the "wild west" days, and the animals have now actually found a niche.

The editors also did an excellent job of including rare species (such as the lynx and bobcat) as well as very common species (such as all the different kinds of squirrels).

It is unlikely that most amateur naturalists would have a chance to actually encounter every mammal in this book, so it is great to have a reference like this. Like other Audubon field guides, just reading the descriptions is fascinating. I would venture to guess that most people will discover species they never knew about, or learn new facts about what they thought were familiar species. Some of my favorites are the wolverine and the wild cats of southern North America.

This book, as well as most of the Audubon field guides, is a terrific resource for igniting children's imaginations. Reading about the animals' lives should help give children insights into the diversity and interconnectedness of species, and spark an appreciation for the beauty inherent in the wild.

I thoroughly enjoy my Audubon field guides and the Mammals of North America is the most Interesting of the list. It is definitely a must have for anyone interested in animals. With tons of color photos of virtually every species in North america this is a great buy! Descriptions are longer and have more information than the Peterson series but some photographs are hard to see the identifyable traits of the specimen. Perfect size to throw in the pack and head out to the field to spot your favorites.

This guide includes all sorts of animals in and around my area. It has a very thorough explanation of the animals and how to identify them. Whats really useful is the pictures. There are several pictures for each species including Summer coat & Winter coat. This is especially helpful if you are out animal watching during different times of year. I love going out exploring and coming home to look up the critters I saw.

I don't know why the individuals who gave 5 stars, did so. The most beautiful, striking part of this book is the photographs. They're great!! hands down. However the narration on each animal just follows 8 basic formatted questions, Range, Size, offspring, Etc.; definitely necessary info but it's very shallow to stop there. Besides a few scattered phrases there is very minimal specific,unique info regarding an individual mammal that any animal lover would've expected to find even some basic stuff! The narration is definitely overly general and vague. THEY created a template and just filled it in. I expected alot more. I see that there are other books that have much more info but pictures? "fahgetta- battit" (these are hard to beat!) I guess you need both. It was definitely an improvement over past Audubon books. I wouldn't buy another Audubon guide online but rather in store & see for myself. I know there's only so much space in 1 book but ITS VERY SHALLOW!

From the shrews to the bears, this guide is what one should have in the field. . .especially in Alaska.

As with all the Audubon Field Guides, so too with this one - it is well made, with good binding and a durable leatherette cover; the index is well organized with links to the color plates; and the color photos are the best of any of the field guides.

The descriptions, albeit way too brief, are concise and straight forward. There are 390 mammal species covered - range and habitat, behavior patterns, and track illustrations round out the textual information.

This edition was updated in 1996, so it's not as dated as some of the other Audubon guides. Although the #1 deficiency of these guides is the inadequate summaries (the details really need to be fleshed out), these guides are on the whole better than the Peterson and Stokes guides. This volume has its place in any serious naturalist's library.


Extracts: A Field Guide for Iconoclasts

The Cloud Reckoner

These are the BEST field guides we have ever owned. We have the trees, western USA birds, trees and sealife ones and they are a wonderful size and fit easily into a coat pocket or glove compartment of ones car and of course a back pack. They make a GREAT gift and during the Christmas season a great stocking stuffer.

They are so complete as far as information goes, telling the reader what the migration and nesting habits are, where the birds can be found and they have wonderful photographs that are so useful when out on a hike. Our son loved them growing up and with a set of binoculars on a hike a person can find hours passing and not realize it.

The covers on the books (vinyl) make it easy to keep them clean. Buy at least one and I assure you, you will be hooked..........

*Any* kind of traveling into the Country, the Plains, Mountains, and/or West requires this *compleat* reference in your to-go material, especially if you have children, who will *greatly* enjoy knowing more about the critters of our natural world! Additionally, having this *trusty* guide handy at home also opens up discussions about animals commonly seen, even in cities, such as raccoons, possums, and, yes, even skunks! The representative photos are most helpful in differenting one type of animal spotted from another, to arrive at a sure identification--and are fascinating to look at too! Altho' we reveled in our Southern California home about seeing (*really*!) coyotes (especially on golf courses) and foxes, latter of which regularly came into our yard, even with their pups, we've been *awed* at the new animals we're seeing in our retirement location elsewhere in the West: badgers, yellow-bellied marmots, covies of quail (which weren't as plentiful in our SoCal neighborhoods), chukkars, and plentiful black bear (a species also not rarely found in outskirts of Southern California cities and towns)! Obtaining this exhaustive reference was our answer and now we wonder *why* didn't we secure one before now in our lives!?! You'll love it and learn a *great* deal from it too!

The National Audubon Society's Guide to North American Mammals guide is excellent. We have learned so much for this guide!

This is an excellent guide for anyone who has interest in the animals who live near and among us. It is authoritative, easy to use. Novices and experienced observers alike will find the book useful in identifying the animals they see and will be drawn in to learn about habits and habitats around them. When planning a hike or a stroll through the woods, this book and a pair of binoculars will complete the day.