Western Birds (Peterson Field Guides) (Paperback)

by Roger Tory Peterson (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback: 432 pages
• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin; 3rd edition (1990)
• ISBN-10: 0395911737
• ISBN-13: 978-0395911730
• Product Dimensions: 7.2 x 4.6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (28 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #368,112 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

116 of 116 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Still the best general guide, November 30, 1999

By A Customer

I just got the 3rd ed. of Petersons to replace my ancient copy. Although I was tempted by the newer National Geographic guide, the illustrations in Petersons, with the birds posed consistently and without distracting backgrounds, looks cleaner and less confusing. Peterson's paintings also emphasize patterns, rather than rendering every feather, making them more useful in identification. The book's shortcoming is that the range maps are grouped at the back, rather than with the text and pictures. On the other hand, these maps are larger and more detailed than the maps in the nationwide guides. Overall, while the NGS is a beautiful book, and it certainly wouldn't hurt to have both, I think Peterson is still the best for its stated purpose of identifying birds in the field.

72 of 73 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Best regional field guide on the market, July 7, 2000

By	Alan R. Holyoak (Idaho) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

The Peterson Field Guide to Western Birds is the best such guide you will find. The nice thing about birds and birding is that there are few enough species out there that you can get virtually all of them in one regional guide.

This book is outstanding. It relies on illustrations rather than photographs to show markings and other details used to ID birds in the field. I find that photos are often sub-standard, not showing characters essential for identifying birds due to the position of the bird, markings of the individual chosen for inclusion in the book, etc.

In this book each entry includes a bird's common and scientific names, a brief physical description of the body and coloration, a drawing(s) of the bird, a brief description of habitats where they are likely to be seen, a blip about their geographic distribution, notes on their song, and reference to similar species (if any). The entry also refers the reader to a map number that shows the summer and winter ranges for each bird.

This is "the bird book" to have for western birds for the novice and experienced birder alike. If you've never had much luck figuring out which birds you are looking at try this book.

5 stars only because that's the highest rating possible.

Note: if you travel much throughout the USA, you ought to pick up the Peterson Guide to Eastern Birds as well -- it is the sister book to this one. With both of those books in hand you will be in good birding shape.

Alan Holyoak, Dept of Biology, Manchester College, IN

35 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A superb guide for all birdwatchers, especially new ones., April 30, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: A Field Guide to Western Birds: A Completely New Guide to Field Marks of All Species Found in North America West of the 100th Meridian and North of Mexico (Peterson Field Guide Series) (Hardcover)

Often called the birdwatcher's "bible," Roger Tory Peterson's Field Guides revolutionized bird identification and started a series of books on everything from Atmosphere to Wildflowers. It is still one of the best tools for bird identification, especially for those just learning how to recognize different birds. Its text is straightforward, consistent, and well-organized, and the illustrations are unsurpassed. Taxonomic (name and species) changes will come and go, and no book is going to be able to keep up with all of them for very long. Fall birding will always be challenging, but this is still the best book to have if you only want to carry one.