Birds of Michigan Field Guide, Second Edition [Paperback]

Stan Tekiela (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 2004

Learn about and identify birds using Stan Tekiela's state-by-state field guides. The full-page, color photos are incomparable and include insets of winter plumage, color morphs and more. Plus, with the easy-to-use format, you don't need to know a bird's name or classification in order to easily find it in the book. Using this field guide is a real pleasure. It's a great way for anyone to learn about the birds in your state.

Product Details

• Paperback: 296 pages
• Publisher: Adventure Publications; 2 edition (August 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 159193043X
• ISBN-13: 978-1591930433
• Product Dimensions: 6.1 x 4.3 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #95,228 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Thirty eggs? I don't remember laying thirty eggs., April 15, 2006

By 

E. A. Lovitt "starmoth" (Gladwin, MI USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Birds of Michigan Field Guide, Second Edition (Paperback)

The second edition of "Birds of Michigan Field Guide" has a two-CD set (sold separately) called "Birds of Michigan Audio CD Set." It is designed as a companion to this book. The calls are in the same order as in the book, and I strongly recommend that you purchase both the audio and the field guide.

Stan Tekiela's classification scheme by color makes perfect sense for his book, but is a bit confusing for the CDs, especially if you can hear the unknown bird but have not yet sighted it.

Another minor complaint is that not all Michigan birds are represented in this field book. Among the missing are the Vireos (Red-eyed and Yellow-throated), swamp sparrow, and Michigan's most common thrushes (Wood Thrush, Veery, and Hermit Thrush). And where are the name-sayers such as the Whip-poor-will, Chuck-will's-widow, or the Eastern Wood-Pewee?

The real reason you want to buy this book, along with the more standard Sibley's or Peterson's guides is a feature called "Stan's Notes." Some of my favorite tidbits include:

* Female Goldeneyes will lay their eggs in other Goldeneye nests, leaving some poor females with up to 30 eggs to brood.

* Blue Jay feathers don't have any blue pigment. The feather structure refracts sunlight which we see as blue.

* House Sparrows are not really sparrows but belong to the Weaver Finch family.

* Barred Owls are one of the few owls to take fish out of a lake. They are also one of the few owls that hunt during the day.

* The Tufted Titmouse is notorious for pulling hair from sleeping dogs, cats and squirrels to line its nest.

The photographs of male and female birds are very clear and representative of the species. Each included species has its size recorded, as well as the coloring of the male, female, and juvenile. The nest and eggs are described, as well as incubation and fledging times. Other items include migratory habits, food eaten, and which birds a particular species can be compared to. A map of Michigan is also included, showing summer and winter ranges, as well as migratory routes across the state if pertinent.

The binding of this book is a bit loose for a field guide, but it is a nice size to tuck into your backpack.

19 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars 5 stars for beginning birders, August 10, 2005

By 

D. Bakken "dobak" (Minneapolis, MN) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Birds of Michigan Field Guide, Second Edition (Paperback)

This book and all the other "Birds of (state)" guides by Stan Tekiela seem to bring out the worst in experienced birders. While I am a beginner at birding, this dislike of Tekiela's guides is somewhat understandable. To experienced birders, a bird guide in which the birds are listed by color, not taxonomy, is bordering on criminal. Many of those birders seem to have forgotten that they were once novices and likely confused sparrows with wrens or finches.

A beginning birder is likely to be overwhelmed by all the birds listed in a Sibley Guide, Kaufmann Focus Guide, or even a Peterson Guide. What better for a beginner than a book that lists the 100+ most common birds in their state in order of color. You see a brown bird with a small beak and a light yellow chest, you flip to the brown birds and only have to browse through 40 or so birds to try and find what you saw. Easy.

After a few months, you'll begin to recognize sparrows, finches, warblers for what they are (maybe not the exact species) and will want a more advanced book.

This book is the best at what it is. A guide for beginning birders or people who only look at birds out in their backyard feeders. Don't compare it to the Sibley, Kaufmann, etc....

Highly Recommended!

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Helpful & informative, December 4, 2006

By 

Knittycat1 (PA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Birds of Michigan Field Guide, Second Edition (Paperback)

I agree with the first review written by "starmoth". Different from Peterson's Eastern Birds CD, which groups calls by similar sounds, is that the author narrates informative tidbits, which really works. Tekiela does not have a generic narrator voice, and the narrative flows well with the birdsong. The narrative is suprisingly helpful for verbal learners like myself--some of the unusual information Tekiela mentions helps the calls stand out and ties them to the verbal memory area of the brain, strengthening the recall by association of the bird call with the narrative. Because it is narrowed down to the state of Michigan, it provides a good review & selectively reinforces those birds by sound as well as sight. I really like that the CD gives a different "track" to each bird song; it makes it easy to sort out bird calls that I hear in the yard when I cannot see the birds, but have them narrowed down to a few; so it can be used as an aural field guide.

Make sure you get the set! The book is available as a set with a matching CD that comes in a tasteful leather storage binder (the set was also less expensive than the two items individually). I also strongly recommend the field guide Birds of Michigan by Black & Kennedy, which includes migrants and more specific habitat range for the state than I have seen in more comprehensive field guides.