| | National Geographic Complete Birds of North America |  | Creator: Jonathan Alderfer
Publisher: National Geographic
Category: Book
This item is no longer available
Avg. Customer Rating:  9 reviews
Sales Rank: 7126211
Format: Import
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 672
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1.1
ISBN: 1426202148
EAN: 9781426202148
ASIN: 1426202148
Publication Date: February 19, 2008
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| Customer Reviews:
| Showing reviews 6-9 of 9 | | « PREV | | |
 Not For Beginners - but a good book February 10, 2006
17 out of 30 found this review helpful
I can't echo a lot of the praise lavished on this book by many of the other reviews. It is a good book with a lot of information and I have found it very helpful. But there are also some real problems with it. The book uses drawings rather than photos - more photos would be helpful. I have found that using Kaufman's "Birds of North America" in conjunction with this book to be very helpful. Some of the range maps for various species were omitted... Where there is no range map you must read the "Status and Distribution" section of a given listing to get some idea of whether the bird is in a given area at any time or not - this is very inconvenient - especially as some range maps are understandable omitted for non-North American birds - but also omitted for birds that are North American.. there seems no obvious reason why some of these range maps were left out. The worst flaw I find in the book, however, is some of the technical terms used - many I can't even find in a dictionary (if it's not in the complete Oxford English Dictionary nor in Webster's Unabridged Dictionary it either shouldn't be in the book or they should have a glossary and diagrams explaining the terms. It would be helpful for beginners (like me) if some illustrations were made showing exactly what they mean by "scapulars", "upper-tail coverts", "lesser coverts", "malar region", "supercilium", "lores", "supraloral", "dihedral", "primaries", "inner secondaries", etc. Help with these things would be of far more benefit that the so-so "Backyard Birding" section at the back of the book.
Informative but more Drawings than Photographs January 9, 2006
3 out of 14 found this review helpful
This book is very informative and full of nice drawings. However, as an artist, I would have liked to have seen more actual photos of the birds than drawings. I sculpt and would rather use an actual photo of a bird to sculpt from than another artist's idea of what the bird looks like to them. This book does have many good qualities, especially one that I hadn't thought of until I looked at some of the drawings. Most photos of birds, especially shore birds, do not show the bird's feet. This is tough for artists who sculpt because even a book's verbal description usually doesn't describe feet. However, the drawings in this book, at least, give you a good idea of what they look like. I know for non-artist this is probably not a big deal, but those of us who need as much detail as possible about a bird, this book helps a lot. It would make a nice addition to any artist's or birdwatcher's library.
 Must-have Geo Companion Book of Birds December 2, 2005
20 out of 23 found this review helpful
This new book published by National Geographic, "Complete Birds of North America: Companion to the National Geographic Field Guide to the Birds of North America," edited by Jonathan Alderfer, is a must-have book for bird watchers-yes, even backyard birders.
The National Geographic's "Field Guide to the Birds of North America" has long been a field guide of choice-it's all about the text, rather than the illustrations in this guide.
The "Geo" guide offers fine artwork, as do many other field guides, but the clincher to making a positive identification is found in the textual descriptions of the birds in the "Geo" more frequently than in any other guide. And it's the text in the new companion that makes this book so special, and worth every penny of the $35 price.
Each of the 82 bird families, 962 species, found on the continent north of Mexico, plus islands within 200 miles of the coast with the exception of Greenland, opens with a photograph of a bird representing the family and a general essay about the family. Topics covered include the family's general behavior and distribution, among other details.
For instance, under "taxonomy" for skuas, gulls, terns and skimmers, recent genetic work shows that "skuas and jaegers are found to be more closely related to the alcids than to the gulls." Such information adds a new dimension to birding, making us think anew about the birds we observe so casually.
The artwork of the individual species displays seasonal plumages and different poses of the birds as they might be seen in the field. Within the individual biographical sketches, for instance, the white-breasted nuthatch, the basic information on identification, voice and habitat also has added comments on similar species for comparison purposes, and comments on its dispersal and migration.
Throughout the book, sidebars offer insightful details on topics such as aid to identifying female bluebirds or ways to distinguish between two similar birds in confusing fall plumage, Tennessee and orange-crowned warblers.
At this time of year, large flocks of common redpolls are beginning to arrive in this area, and sometimes a hairy redpoll is hanging out with its cousin, the common. It's no easy task to distinguish a hoary from a common. There is nothing more fun and challenging-and frustrating-than distinguishing two similar species.
With the "Geo" companion in hand, the flock of redpolls at the feeder can be studied and compared, and the sidebar referred to for the finer differences between the two, pointing the way to making a positive identification.
The new hefty tome, at 664 pages, has updated range maps for each species. In some accounts, the Arctic tern for example, an additional, larger "specialty" map shows its long-range migration routes. Having such a visual display, a bird's eye view as it were, on the same page as its range in North America brings a new appreciation for this tiny, 12-inch circumpolar migrant.
National Geographic's Complete Guide, with its 4,000 illustrations of common birds to rare migrants and detailed information on each species, easily acts as a soft step between a field guide and scientific studies for the enquiring birder. For the backyard birder, having such a comprehensive reference tool built into a single guide is the essential fuel needed to lead a birder into looking deeper into the lives of these feathered creatures.
A great new birding book has arrived! November 15, 2005
36 out of 38 found this review helpful
National Geographic have done it again.When it comes to Field Guides for the birds of North America,none surpass their (Nat. Geo.) most popular "Field Guide to the Birds of North America.It was first published in 1983 with 295,000 copies.It took the birding world by storm and immediately became the favorite.I can't think of a Birder who hasn't got a copy,for the simple reason there is no better overall choice.Since first appearing,it's now in it's 4th Edition and a total of 1,565,000 copies.Also a 5th Edition is planned for 2006.Each new edition is an update with a small number of rare birds being added plus other updates.In spite of the new edition,the earlier editions are still very good and useful.These guides are manufactured with the highest quality so as to stand tremendous use and abuse in the field.See my review of this book dated February 7,2005.
So now we get something new from National Geographic which I expect to be just as popular.It is intended as 'companion' to the above field guide.It is a much larger book,being 7" by 12" and 2" thick,much too big and heavy to carry in the field.This book will be used at home to get more information about a bird that simply can't be included in any reasonably sized field guide.It covers all birds found in North America,including Greenland.There are 4,000 illustrations covering sexes,seasonal plumages,variations,range maps,migration maps and just about anything a Birder would want.It does an excellent job of showing how to differentiate between similar species.There are also 150 stunning color photographs of birds which include the location and month the photo was taken.The book is extremely well made;has excellent paper,printing and color rendition;and has 664 pages.Another outstanding aspect of this book is its cost,$35 US or $48 Can.;unbelievable compared to the cost of books today.
This book has just 'come out'and would make an appreciated gift for any Birder.Whether they are new to the hobby or have been Birding for a long time,or have a casual interest and want a good bird book around the home,cottage ,school or library;it's a terrific choice.
What you got here is a book without equal at a great price,you simply couldn't go wrong.
On top of all that Jon Dunn ,one of the top Birders,was the Chief Consultant for the Field Guide and is also involved with this book;so it is little wonder that this book is so good.
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