This eagerly awaited new edition of The Larger Illustrated Guide to Birds of Southern Africa has been brought fully up to date with the third edition of the Field Guide to Birds of Southern Africa. The new edition incorporates the most recent information about bird taxonomy, as well as the latest bird names based on recommendations of the International Ornithological Committee. All distribution maps have been revised and feature dual shading to show relative abundance of a species in the region, as well as crosses to indicate the occurrence of vagrants. Numerous illustrations have been updated and revised where necessary. The essays on identifying problem species have also been revised and updated to bring the book in line with international birding developments.
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Norman Arlott is a recognized leader in the fine art of bird illustration. His bird illustrations have appeared on more than 20 British Commonwealth stamp issues and in many magazines and books. Peter Hayman is a recognised leader in the fine art of bird illustration. He was trained as an architect, which has enabled him to illustrate birds with extraordinary precision and accuracy of form and made him a widely published illustrator of birds. Phil Hockey, Associate Professor at the University of Cape Town's Percy FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, is a leading international specialist on birds. He is a recognized authority on the biology of southern African birds, with a special interest in coastal and migratory species. He has written several books, among them Waders of Southern Africa and Beautiful Birds of Southern Africa. He is also co-author of Birds of Southern Africa. Ian Sinclair is renowned in African birding circles for his field knowledge and expertise in identifying the region s many bird species. His vast experience has been gained in expeditions to every corner of Africa, as well as to the Himalayas, Antarctica and Marion Island. He has authored or co-authored several successful bird books, including the hugely successful Field Guide to Birds of SA and the equally successful Birds of Southern Africa.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent field guide - larger version of same book,
By Soleglad (Arizona, USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Larger Illustrated Guide to Birds of Southern Africa (Paperback)
BASICS: 2005, 463pp., 2nd edition, softcover; 198 color plates show excellent illustrations for all 950+ species found in southern Africa; text is not extensive but does offer very useful and concise identification notes; range maps show the southern six countries that display the abundance of the species
This is a larger version (9 ½ x 7 ¾ inches) of nearly the same, earlier book by these authors. This larger version is meant to be more of an at-home reference -- unless you don't mind carrying a slightly oversized field guide in your vehicle or in your backpack. Caring it into the field will definitely require an extra large pocket or pouch; and, you'll feel the weight. Of the various field guides for southern Africa, this is my favorite for four reasons. One, is due to its excellent illustrations and the variety of poses. The birds are facing multiple directions, giving the plates a more natural look. Two, these plates show larger illustrations which is the cause of the increased size of the book. Three, the illustrations show a crisper color reproduction than most other guides. And, four, there are small identification tips written next to the illustrations. Having identification notes next to the bird is (to me) quite handy. It also reduces the time required to flash over to the text and skim through the lines in search of important notes -- all while the bird moves about quickly. In all, there are 198 color plates which cover all 950+ species found in southern Africa. Like most similar guides for southern Africa, you'll be able to use this in the six countries that constitute "southern" Africa. It also includes the southern half of Mozambique. The outlines of each country are shown in the multi-colored range maps. The ranges offer some nice detail and not simply a general "wash" over an area. However, I do have one small critique with these maps. Like some other guides, I do not favor the practice of creating an artificial boundary of the bird's range. The range of the bird is shown to stop at the artificial political boundaries. This is most noticeable where the bird's range would normally cross into Angola or Zambia. If the natural range advances (which many do), then show it. One last quirk of these range maps is the lack of a legend to let the reader know what solid vs. hatched coloration means. The only clue is a short line on the back cover of the book. Here, it reads "maps distinguish regions of high and low abundance". Presumably, the solid shading refers to high abundance. As for the text, this material offers good but only brief identification notes. Scant information is given for the bird's status and its various vocalizations. The key notes for identification are in bold font and begin the paragraph. At the rear of the book can be found a very nice addendum called "Identifying Problem Species". These 13 pages focus on fourteen groups of problematic species such as large brown pipits, glossy starlings, or small migrant reed-warblers. This section contains information rich in detailed identification that consists of several pages per group. As an example, a table compares 10 different body features of 6 of the Accipiters to help tell them apart. I highly recommend this book for your trip to southern Africa, despite its size. The slightly smaller (but thicker and same weight) version might be handier, but it lacks some of the newer plates and some additional extralimital species. -- (written by Jack at Avian Review or Avian Books, July 2008) I've listed several related books below... 1) Illustrated Guide to the Birds of Southern Africa by Sinclair/Hockey/Tarboton 2) Roberts Bird Guide: A Comprehensive Field Guide Southern Africa by Chittenden 3) Ian Sinclair's Field Guide to the Birds of Southern Africa by Sinclair 4) Birds of Africa South of the Sahara by Sinclair/Ryan 5) Newman's Birds of Southern Africa by Newman 6) Complete Book of Southern African Birds by Ginn/McIlleron, Milstein 7) Southern African Birds: A Photographic Guide by Sinclair/Davidson
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Inside This Book
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Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs):
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marsh warbler, wandering albatross, golden weaver, red lark, common cuckoo, great snipe, little egret, village weaver, martial eagle, localised resident, locally common resident, localised summer visitor, rare summer vagrant, dry thornveld, resembles juv, locally common summer visitor, white eyebrow stripe, pale eyebrow stripe, black moustachial stripes, less deeply forked tail, black underwing coverts, breeding summer visitor, breeding endemic, rare summer visitor, rufous form Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Peregrine Falcon, Lanner Falcon, Ovambo Sparrowhawk, Western Cape, Gabar Goshawk, South Africa, African Reed-Warbler, Pallid Harrier, African Goshawk, Karoo Lark, Icterine Warbler, Eurasian Reed-Warbler, Montagu's Harrier, Olive-tree Warbler, Great Reed-Warbler, Cape Gannet, Long-billed Pipit, Cape Glossy Starling, Levaillant's Cisticola, Spectacled Weaver, Basra Reed-Warbler, Augur Buzzard, Little Sparrowhawk, Chirping Cisticola, Eastern Cape Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
marsh warbler, wandering albatross, golden weaver, red lark, common cuckoo, great snipe, little egret, village weaver, martial eagle, localised resident, locally common resident, localised summer visitor, rare summer vagrant, dry thornveld, resembles juv, locally common summer visitor, white eyebrow stripe, pale eyebrow stripe, black moustachial stripes, less deeply forked tail, black underwing coverts, breeding summer visitor, breeding endemic, rare summer visitor, rufous form Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Peregrine Falcon, Lanner Falcon, Ovambo Sparrowhawk, Western Cape, Gabar Goshawk, South Africa, African Reed-Warbler, Pallid Harrier, African Goshawk, Karoo Lark, Icterine Warbler, Eurasian Reed-Warbler, Montagu's Harrier, Olive-tree Warbler, Great Reed-Warbler, Cape Gannet, Long-billed Pipit, Cape Glossy Starling, Levaillant's Cisticola, Spectacled Weaver, Basra Reed-Warbler, Augur Buzzard, Little Sparrowhawk, Chirping Cisticola, Eastern Cape Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Index | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
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