A Field Guide to the Birds of Mexico and Adjacent Areas: Belize, Guatemala, and El Salvador, Third Edition (Corrie Herring Hooks Series) [Paperback]

Ernest Preston Edwards (Author), Edward Murrell Butler (Illustrator)

Book Description

Series: Corrie Herring Hooks Series | Publication Date: 1998

More than a thousand species of birds occur in Mexico and in the adjacent countries of Belize, Guatemala, and El Salvador. Of these birds, a unique mixture of temperate-zone and tropical species, less than half are found in the United States, and many cross the border only a short distance into the southwestern states. This practical field guide contains detailed annotations for easy identification of all of Mexico's regular species. The descriptions include the English, Spanish, and Latin names; a general range statement for each bird, along with its specific occurrences in the region; its typical habitat(s) and abundance; and its physical characteristics, including size and plumage. Excellent color plates with drawings of over 850 species make this the most fully illustrated guide to the region. Published by the author in 1972 and 1989, this convenient take-along guide is now totally revised, updated, and re-designed to provide handy assistance and enjoyment to professional ornithologists and amateur birders alike.

Editorial Reviews

Review

This conveniently priced guide will find a niche among both tourists and locals. The illustrations are excellent and provide immediate and easy access to bird identification. For the average birder who wants to identify a good number of species, this book is a useful and convenient way to go. (Robin W. Doughty, author of The Return of the Whooping Crane )

Product Details

• Paperback: 285 pages
• Publisher: University of Texas Press; 3 Sub edition (1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0292720912
• ISBN-13: 978-0292720916
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.8 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #616,927 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #21 in Books > History > Americas > Central America > Belize
  • #45 in Books > History > Americas > Central America > El Salvador
  • #80 in Books > History > Americas > Central America > Guatemala

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

44 of 45 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A great book with a pesky fault, December 7, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: A Field Guide to the Birds of Mexico and Adjacent Areas: Belize, Guatemala, and El Salvador, Third Edition (Corrie Herring Hooks Series) (Paperback)

This field guide will enable you to see paintings of all of the birds that occur in the area. It also discusses (briefly) each bird. The paintings are excellent and the copy is quick and to the point. To pick at nits, though, the arrangement of the paintings is confusing. Not all birds in a specific family are illustrated on the same plate, and some are found pages away from the rest of their family. The logic seems to be that if the bird is found regularly in northern North America (the elegant trogon, for example) its picture does not need to run with the rest of its relatives. Close study of the guide can overcome this problem, however, making it an easy, economical way to pack the information of other guides into the field.

35 of 36 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Substandard in almost every regard, November 15, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: A Field Guide to the Birds of Mexico and Adjacent Areas: Belize, Guatemala, and El Salvador, Third Edition (Corrie Herring Hooks Series) (Paperback)

To be sure, this field guide is better than having no field guide. If birds posed for observation, it would be a great field guide. But for the real world this guide is disorganized in text and illustrations beyond excuse. I'm not sure this is the author's fault. It may be due to the publisher cutting costs. Still, no excuse. A birder will pay a premium for a great field guide. Illustrations are jammed together on each plate with no regard to proportionate size, or to other birds on that plate. For example, kingfishers are intermixed with trogons, motmots, swallows and woodpeckers on 3 separate plates. The amazon kingfisher is on one plate; the similar green kingfisher is 2 plates later. Quick comparison is impossible. Seven trogons are together on one plate, but the elegant trogon is 2 plates later. Some woodpeckers are on each of plates 20, 21 & 22; the imperial woodpecker is on plate 45. First I cried, then I laughed.

35 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Birding in Belize, April 20, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: A Field Guide to the Birds of Mexico and Adjacent Areas: Belize, Guatemala, and El Salvador, Third Edition (Corrie Herring Hooks Series) (Paperback)

We used this book on a recent trip to Belize. It is THE book in use by local Belizian birding enthusiasts, and we only saw it for sale at one shop during our 12 day stay, so it might be hard to get once you're there. Birds of same species on different color plates slow you down, but the pictures are very good. Highly recommend taking this book with you if you plan to do any serious birdwatching.