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Perhaps the only thing better than bird books is…cheap bird books! Here are the current bargains, which I’ll try to keep up-to-date.

Hamilton Book

This site has many bargain books, including a whole birds & birding section. Here are some of the better deals:

• PITTAS OF THE WORLD: A Monograph on the Pitta Family $9.95
• AVIAN ARCHITECTURE: How Birds Design, Engineer & Build $9.95
• HUMMINGBIRDS $11.95
• OF A FEATHER: A Brief History of American Birding $4.95
• Peterson Reference Guides: Molt in North American Birds $9.95
• PETERSON REFERENCE GUIDE TO SEAWATCHING: EASTERN WATERBIRDS IN FLIGHT $9.95
• THE PRIVATE LIVES OF BIRDS: A Scientist Reveals the Intricacies of Avian Social Life $4.95
• THE BLUEBIRD EFFECT: Uncommon Bonds with Common Birds $8.95

Life-size Birds: The Big Book of North American Birds
by Nancy J. Hajeski

From Thunder Bay Press:

John James Audubon would be proud to know that a life-size bird book is alive in the 21st century. You won’t need Sotheby’s auction house to buy this volume, though! Full-size images of beautiful feathered friends offer a detailed look at each North American species, while scaled photographs of larger birds allow you to see the entire animal. Fun facts pepper the pages, and a summary of general information accompanies each avian. Get an up-close, personal look at the world’s masters of flight!

This book is huge, visually striking, and has a great concept. Unfortunately, it also has a number of issues. Still, it has a wow-factor that may get readers, especially younger ones, interested in birds.

Life-size Birds: The Big Book of North American Birds
by Nancy J. Hajeski
Hardcover; 224 pages
Thunder Bay Press; November 10, 2015
ISBN: 9781626864399
$39.95

Birds, Art & Design
by Larry Barth

From Stackpole Books:

Legendary bird carver Larry Barth has created a stunning retrospective of his life’s work, including sculptures from museum exhibits and rarely seen pieces from private collections. This is a must-have book for every bird lover, carver, and anyone who appreciates fine sculptural art.

• 24 finely detailed sculptures in wood shown in up-close photographs
• Includes his early work, the Ward world-class winners, and his most recent pieces
• Barth shares insights on how he conceives, designs, and executes his blue-ribbon masterpieces

You will not believe the images in this book are of carved and painted wood! These sculptures are phenomenal. The artist also shares insight into their production and design. Anyone at all interested in birds and art will love this book.

Birds, Art & Design
by Larry Barth
Hardcover; 232 pages
Stackpole Books; December 1, 2015
ISBN: 9780811713597
$49.95

Buy from Buteo Books
(based in the U.S.)

Buy from NHBS
(based in the U.K.)

Where did this year go? Already over a week into November before I even realized it…

Water Babies: The Hidden Lives of Baby Wetland Birds
by William Burt

From Countryman Press:

Never-before-seen photographs of baby birds of the marshlands from a noted birding photographer

Naturalist William Burt is known for seeking out wild places and elusive birds―and none fit the bill quite so well as the creatures featured in this book. This may well be his break out book, featuring the downy young of the wetlands, whose images are full of character and appeal. Most of these birds have never been captured on film until now. From the comic-monster herons to the fuzzy ducklings and stick-legged sandpipers, these tots have personality and spunk. In the wetlands, they come together, drawn by one essential need: for water. These babies then, are birds that get their feet wet; this book is one for bird lovers, naturalists, photographers, and animal lovers.

Baby ducks, grebes, shorebirds, and more – talk about an overload of cuteness! (Except for the baby herons, that is; cute isn’t the word for those “comic monsters”.) As with all of Burt’s previous books, the photos are amazing. But the short, anecdote-heavy accounts are equally great.

Water Babies: The Hidden Lives of Baby Wetland Birds
by William Burt
Hardcover; 208 pages
Countryman Press; October 26, 2015
ISBN: 9781581573053
$29.95

Border Sanctuary: The Conservation Legacy of the Santa Ana Land Grant
by M.J. Morgan

From Texas A&M University Press:

The Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge lies on the northern bank of the Rio Grande in South Texas, about seventy miles upriver from the Gulf of Mexico. In Border Sanctuary, M.J. Morgan uncovers how 2,000 acres of rare subtropical riparian forest came to be preserved in a region otherwise dramatically altered by human habitation.

The story she tells begins and ends with the efforts of the Rio Grande Valley Nature Club to protect one of the last remaining stopovers for birds migrating north from Central and South America. In between, she reconstructs a two hundred-year human and environmental history of the original “two square leagues” of the Santa Ana land grant and of the Mexican and Tejano families who lived on, worked, and ultimately helped preserve this forest on the river’s edge.

As border issues continue to present serious challenges for Texas and the nation, it is especially important to be reminded of the deep connection between the region’s human and natural history from the long perspective Morgan provides here.

Santa Ana NWR is a magical place. We birders, not to mention the birds, are fortunate to have it. I’m looking forward to reading about how it came to be.

Border Sanctuary: The Conservation Legacy of the Santa Ana Land Grant
by M. J. Morgan
Hardcover; 240 pages
Texas A&M University Press; August 10, 2015
ISBN: 9781623493202
$32.00

My review of Feeding Wild Birds in America is now up on the American Birding Association blog.

The Lanner Falcon
by Giovanni Leonardi

From Giovanni Leonardi Editore:

This book provides a worldwide review of the ecology, behavior, morphology and breeding biology of the Lanner falcon (Falco biarmicus). From historical sources to the most recent ornithological literature, a comprehensive approach reveals the uniqueness and adaptability of this falcon from Afrotropic to Palearctic ecozones.

I’ve never seen a Lanner and am not likely to anytime soon, unfortunately. But it’s clear that whether you’ve seen this bird or not, if you want to know more about it you should read this book.

The Lanner Falcon
by Giovanni Leonardi
Paperback; 331 pages
Giovanni Leonardi Editore; July, 2015
50€

Buy from Buteo Books
(based in the U.S.)

Buy from NHBS
(based in the U.K.)

Peterson Reference Guide to Owls of North America and the Caribbean
by Scott Weidensaul

From Houghton Mifflin Harcourt:

This comprehensive work covering all the owls of North America, including Mexico and the Caribbean, is the newest addition to the trusted Peterson Reference Guide series.

Owls are perhaps the most intriguing of all birds — instantly recognizable and endlessly fascinating. Whether viewed as symbols of wisdom or bad omens, these unusual birds have had a hold on human imagination for millennia.

Heard more often than seen, many owls are best identified by vocalizations; this is the only owl guide to include access to a collection of recordings. It is also the only North American owl book to include the Caribbean, covering 39 species of owls, including many little-known tropical species.

With detailed information about identification, calls, habitat, nesting, and behavior, this Reference Guide has the most up-to-date information about natural history, biology, ecology, migration, and conservation status. It is heavily illustrated with hundreds of color photos, and includes the most accurate color range maps ever presented, showing breeding, wintering, and migration routes.

This is a definitive work, useful for serious birders and ornithologists but accessible for the non-expert.

Focusing on natural history, as opposed to identification, this guide includes all the owls found in North America (including – gasp! – Mexico) and the Caribbean. The geographical coverage alone makes it worthwhile to many birders, but really, how can you go wrong with lots of fantastic pictures, Scott Weidensaul, and owls?

Peterson Reference Guide to Owls of North America and the Caribbean
by Scott Weidensaul
Hardcover; 352 pages
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt; October 13, 2015
ISBN: 978-0547840031
$40.00

Buy from Buteo Books
(based in the U.S.)

Buy from NHBS
(based in the U.K.)