Birds of Washington State [Paperback]

Brian H. Bell (Author), Gregory Kennedy (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 25, 2006

Full of interesting facts and useful information, this book has something for anyone with an interest in birds, from the casual backyard observer to the keen naturalist. You'll find full-page accounts, complete with color illustrations and range maps, for 320 birds that are found in Washington State on a regular basis. The notes cover habitat, nesting, feeding, voice and similar species. There's also a Quick Reference Guide, organized into color-coded family groupings and a map of best birding sites and descriptions of a number of Washingtonís most notable birding sites. An appendix covers 33 occasional and accidental species found in the state. The book also features a glossary of terms, birder's checklist and separate indexes for scientific and common names. On the back cover, there's a color-coded guide to the bird groups for quick and handy use in the field.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

BRIAN H. BELL has birded for more than 30 years. He has lived in Washington, California and Louisiana, and has traveled throughout North America and Australia pursuing this passion. His work as a geographer and an environmental and energy planner led to his enthusiasm for birds and deepened a keen desire to learn more about these fascinating creatures. Brian is the president of the Washington Ornithological Society, a ìMaster Birder,î and Seattle Audubonís field trip chair, leading many of its field trips. He teaches birding classes for Seattle Audubon, East Lake Washington Audubon, and at Shoreline and North Seattle community colleges. A full-time professional birding and natural history guide, Brian goes out birding or leads tours several times a week. GREGORY KENNEDY has been an active naturalist and adventurer since he was a young boy. He is the author of many books on natural history and has produced film and television work on environmental issues and indigenous concerns in Southeast Asia, New Guinea, South and Central America and the High Arctic. His involvement in numerous research projects around the world range from studies in the upper canopy of tropical and temperate rainforests to deepwater marine investigations.

Product Details

• Paperback: 384 pages
• Publisher: Lone Pine Publishing (January 25, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1551054302
• ISBN-13: 978-1551054308
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #523,408 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent for PNW Newcomers, May 13, 2006

By 

Joe D. "Joe D." (Olympia, WA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Birds of Washington State (Paperback)

I moved to Washington a few months ago. Locating target birds has become a challenge in this new environment. The comprehensive continent-wide guides (sibley, peterson, golden, NG, etc...) are all wonderful, but are too vague when it comes to locating birds in a state with extremely diverse habitats (such as Washington!) This book has state range maps that are excellent, and I've found very accurate. Whereas the comprehensive guides give you mostly vital statistics about each bird, this guide has a different approach: There is usually a few interesting (and some obscure)facts about each bird. The artwork is nice, but if you're a visual learner, won't suffice for learning field marks so you'll have to supplement this book with another guide that has more artwork/photos. I've been birding for seven years now, and I find these new Lone Pine guides a breath of fresh air. They are easy to page through quickly, locally-oriented, and oddly enough have a really pleasant smell! They've also helped me become a better birder. I've used the Lone Pine Birds of Northern California guide as well while living in the SF Bay Area a couple years ago. I'd recommend this book for beginners and advanced birders. They really cover the bases that the other guides don't.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful and thourough, June 28, 2007

By 

Jennifer Spinner "wife, mom, all-around nice gal" (Western Washington) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Birds of Washington State (Paperback)

We purchased this book as a supplement to our homeschool library prior to relocating from Georgia to Washington. We have not been disappointed.

My seven-year-old daughter has become a budding naturalist, thanks in part to these books. I can typically find this book on her nightstand - accompanied by a flashlight for late night reading!

The book is slim but hefty, with lovely sketches of both male and female examples of each bird. Color-coded maps show where the bird species can be found (and when) and a very thourough introduction gives information on the best birding sites, materials to gather prior to "birding" and excellent resources for further study.

My daughter would prefer photographs of the birds, but these are exceptionally beautiful drawings. This is in contrast to the smaller, less expensive "Golden Guides."

HIGHLY recommended.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Washington birders must have, February 17, 2009

By 

Kyle Leader (Washington U.S.A) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Birds of Washington State (Paperback)

Of all the bird books that i own this one is one of the best. Every bird is given its own profile and it is filled with info on every bird. it also has a full checklist of all the species ever seen in washington.It also includes pages of birds sometimes seen in washington. the best sites are right on for example: i wanted to get a great egret for my washington list and one of the best sites was potholes resvoir so we went there and we had been birding less then two minutes before we spotted one. so if you are planning a trip to washington or are a washing ton birder you must own this guide. and for more information on birding locations i would reccomend Birding Washington by falcon guidesBirding Washington (Birding Series)