Peterson Field Guide to Feeder Birds of Eastern North America [Paperback]

Roger Tory Peterson (Author, Editor, Illustrator), Virginia Marie Peterson (Editor), Noble Proctor (Author)

Book Description

Series: Peterson Field Guide | Publication Date: April 14, 2000

Slim and affordable, FEEDER BIRDS OF EASTERN NORTH AMERICA features Roger Tory Peterson's classic art in a larger format designed especially for the eighty million North Americans who watch and feed birds. This easy-to-use, at-a-glance guide simplifies identification by including only the birds that frequent feeders. And to make it even more convenient, the most commonly seen birds come first, followed by those that are harder to identify or that rarely visit feeders. Range maps, descriptions of birds and foods that attract them, and illustrations are on facing pages, so identification is fast and easy. The brand-new introduction covers important bird-feeding topics, including types of feeders and where to place them, birdbaths, kinds of food and when to feed, plantings that attract birds, and solutions to problems with squirrels and cats. A handy quick-reference list tells what kind of food each species prefers, and a feeder checklist provides a record of birds as they are seen.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Roger Tory Peterson, one of the world's greatest naturalists, received every major award for ornithology, natural science, and conservation as well as numerous honorary degrees, medals, and citations, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom. The Peterson Identification System has been called the greatest invention since binoculars. These editions include updated material by Michael O'Brien, Paul Lehman, Bill Thompson III, Michael DiGiorgio, Larry Rosche, and Jeffrey A. Gordon.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

When to Feed Birds Perhaps the most frequently asked questions about feeding birds concern when to feed them. When should I start feeding? When should I stop so I don’t affect migration? Can I feed in the summer? Several issues must be considered.
People feed birds in order to enjoy them, so why not feed them all year long? As long as you’re willing to put in the time to maintain the feeding area — supply food and water and keep the area clean — you will be rewarded by birds using the site. You may not get the variety in the summer that you’ll see during migration or in the winter when there is more of a dependency on the feeder, but you may be rewarded with the antics of young birds being introduced to the site.
Birds can become dependent on feeders for supplemental food. It has been shown, however, that they do not rely on feeders for all of their food and perhaps not even a quarter of what they eat. That said, though, the feeder can be an important resource during times of duress. When severe snowstorms blanket wild food supplies, the birds will turn to the feeder they have come to know as a food resource. It is during these times of stress that the feeder plays its most vital role. Do not let them down at this point! If it is a storm of long duration, the feeding station may mean the difference of life for some of the more physiologically unprepared birds. The feeder helps many a bird through the hard times, so it is important to be faithful to your feeding once you start.
As for the question of affecting migration by holding the birds at the feeder so that they will not go north to breed or south for the winter, the answer is that birds are not controlled by food. Once the hormones for breeding begin to flow, they head north, and once the drive for migrating south takes hold, off they go, no matter how much food is available. If a species that normally does not stay for the summer or winter remains at the feeder, it is more than likely a young bird that does not have the proper hormonal impulse to migrate or an older bird that simply can no longer make extensive journeys. You are not affecting the breeding or migrant population of the birds of the United States by feeding.

Product Details

• Paperback: 112 pages
• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt (April 14, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 061805944X
• ISBN-13: 978-0618059447
• Product Dimensions: 10.7 x 6.6 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #269,779 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #8 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Science > Biological Sciences > Zoology > Ornithology
  • #41 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Science > Biological Sciences > Zoology > General

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 27 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Feeder birds without page turning, October 25, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Peterson Field Guide to Feeder Birds of Eastern North America (Paperback)

This is more or less a rehash of the peterson field guide. It has the same (enlarged) pictures that are in the original guide. In addition, it has the type of food that each bird is likely to eat as well as the range map next to the description. I suppose it's a little convenient to have all the feeder birds grouped together, but , other than that, I felt disappointed with the book. There was some (but not enough) information on actually attracting birds and setting up feeding stations. Personally, I found the Stoke's guide to attracting, identifying and understanding feeder birds to be more helpful.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Handy convenient book, November 26, 2005

By 

J. Hince - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Peterson Field Guide to Feeder Birds of Eastern North America (Paperback)

I bought this book as a gift for my elderly parents who like to use a guide for identifying birds at their backyard feeder. It has large, colorful pictures that are nice for that purpose. This book was recommended by a local newspaper writer who writes a "bird" column weekly. I am happy with my purchase and so are my parents.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Useful and not intimidating, February 27, 2007

By 

Elizabeth A Triano "lizziewriter" (In Transition, NY (watch this space)) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Peterson Field Guide to Feeder Birds of Eastern North America (Paperback)

I like this book. It is inexpensive and easy to read. It is not an extensive resource for every single bird one might see, but that's not why I got it. There are lots of big heavy field guides. This one has birds by family or type on each page, with notes about what they like to eat. In the front it has short sections about types of feeders, food, plants, predators, etc., and they are nice and short with lots of white space, so they are easy to read and there is room for notes in the margins.

Then there is a short section about how to look at birds for identification... with black and white drawings to illustrate what is meant by how they fly and what are wing bars, crowns, etc. Then there is a handy quick reference list of common species and their preferred foods, and finally it gets into the color photo section of birds by family, with short descriptions and range maps.

There are apparently other books of this type, but this was the only one they had at Barnes & Noble the day I was shopping, and I am very pleased with it. After I read a bit of this book, and "All the Backyard Birds: East," a pocket type guide by the American Bird Conservancy, I quickly rigged a rudimentary platform feeder and plan to build or buy a better one. We have a few different kinds of feeders but it was educational to see how many additional species might be attracted to the platform type.