Birds of Liberia [Hardcover]

Wulf Gatter (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 25, 1998

The first avifaunal survey of all of Liberia, this book provides a complete annotated checklist and distribution maps for all resident species and regular migrants to the country. Based on the author`s many years of residence in Liberia and illustrated by one of the world`s foremost bird artists, the volume is an essential reference for all serious birders and ornithologists.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Yale University Press (May 25, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0300075766
• ISBN-13: 978-0300075762
• Product Dimensions: 11.6 x 10 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,136,153 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great reference on life histories; not an ID guide, September 5, 2008

By 

Soleglad (Arizona, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Birds of Liberia Hb (Hardcover)

Basics: 1997, hardcover, 320 pages, color illustrations of 29 species, color photos of 55 species, 400 species discussed, distribution maps

This is a good reference that addresses a little-published area of western Africa. Covering nearly all of Liberia's birds, this book gives a brief synopsis of its 400 species and provides an atlas-type map for each bird.

The focus of this book is to give a written account of Liberia's birds and to succinctly document their life history. Each bird receives 2 short paragraphs. One describes the habits and ecology of the bird's environment. A second, called Annual Cycle, details the seasonal timing of the bird's molt, calling, and nesting.

With the text is a standard map of Liberia for each bird. In the fashion of a breeding atlas, a large dot marks a site record of where the bird has been documented.

The authors have put in some excellent information in the first 75 pages of the book, information that might be difficult to find anywhere else on Liberia. They cover a wide gamut of topics from political and ornithological history, to geography, vegetation, and climate, to biological seasons, molt, and migration, to ecology and conservation. Another 51 photos at the back of the book provide both black-and-white historical records and color images of the habitat varieties in the country.

This is primarily a life history reference, not an identification guide; thus, there are zero descriptions of the birds. However, the book does offer a small sample of superb illustrations on four plates showing 29 species. These plates are quality work and highlight some of the more colorful or unique birds of Liberia. Another 55 species are shown with color photographs found at the end of the book. Some of these photos are good (e.g., nightjars, roller), but most are of average quality (some are small or distant) that adequately exhibit some of the country's birds.

This book will be a good supplement to those birders with a special interest in the life histories Liberia's birds or, in the western region of coastal Africa. If you intend to go birding in Liberia, this book does not need to accompany you. It is a reference that should be read at home. It is not a field or identification guide. For that, there are several quality field guides available. (e.g., Sinclair/Ryan or Borrow/Demey).

I've listed several related books below...
1) The birds of Mount Nimba, Liberia by Colston
2) Birds of Africa South of the Sahara by Sinclair/Ryan
3) A Field Guide to the Birds of the Gambia and Senegal by Barlow/Wacher
4) Birds of West Africa by Serle/Hartwig
5) A Guide to the Birds of Western Africa by Borrow/Demey
6) A Photographic Field Guide to the Birds of The Gambia and West Africa by Silva et al. (ISBN 9080828416)

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars USING IT IN LIBERIA, July 10, 2000

By 

Thomas J. Banks (Encinitas, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Birds of Liberia (Hardcover)

I own a safari camp in Liberia next to Sapo National Park, near where the author did a lot of his research. We use this book in our camp for our safari clients to help in identifying birds and for our native guides to learn the English names of birds. This is an excellent book and has become extremely important to our camp. For anyone going to Liberia or any nearby country to Liberia, who is interested in birds, this book is a must to have in your backpack in the field.