really only for those new to bird watchingJuly 25, 2008 Flora 3 out of 3 found this review helpful
I bought this book, hoping that it would be a replacement for the out-of-print Mitchell Beazley guide which has been my trusty companion on bird-watching excursions for many years. I was very disappointed with this book. The title does not make clear that it only covers 170 of the most common birds, and as an experienced bird-watcher I found that I already knew how to identify all of the birds in it. The only up-side was that it was cheap. I am surprised that this is a RSPB publication, I would have expected better. Why did they not include all British birds - laziness?? cost??
Having said all that, the illustrations are clear, and for those new to birding it will be a good guide - unless a less common species is encountered and then the watcher will not have a clue what it is!
The distribution maps are somewhat inaccurate, as it shows birds to be absent in areas where they are known to be present.
Excellent Pocket Bird BookDecember 14, 2007 J. Chippindale(England) 23 out of 24 found this review helpful
This book contains all the usual information that a good quality book on birds should carry within its pages. It covers 170 of the most commonly found birds in Britain and Ireland in a well laid out and easy to follow format. The illustrations by David Nurney are excellent and many bird enthusiasts prefer illustrations to photographs. For identification purposes they are first class.
This book features a bird per page and has all the usual features including descriptions of each bird's main characteristics including distribution of each species. The bird's plumage and behaviour patterns. RSPB books seem to go that extra mile with the information they provide the enthusiast.
