Bird Guide Books (1 Viewer)

[tigglestiger]

I am fairly new to birding and the main problem I have is identification.

I have the Collins Guide which is excellent, however I think it almost covers too many species when I am trying to identify most UK birds

Does anyone have any recommendations for any 'simpler' guide books?

 

[Stephen Dunstan]

I am fairly new to birding and the main problem I have is identification.

I have the Collins Guide which is excellent, however I think it almost covers too many species when I am trying to identify most UK birds

Does anyone have any recommendations for any 'simpler' guide books?

I quite like Dominic Couzens; Birds by Behaviour but it seems to be out of print.

The Macmillan Guide to Bird Identification by Harris, Tucker and Vinicombe is probably the best one to have alongside the Collins guide, as it largely sticks to regular UK species. Unfortunately it is also out of print but they come up for sale regularly.

 

[TheBirdGarden]

RSPB Pocket guide, it is simple and easy enough to understand and is what I used and only used, no need for over complicating things with pricey books when ultimately if you are stuck you would turn to the internet.

 

[Simon Wates]

Why not give yourself a project with the fab Collins? Memorise the 200 or so commoner species and maybe the regular scarcities by name and family placement - you will then be able to quickly find them in the book and it will help you know when you find something truly unusual.

 

[John Cantelo]

You might find the newly published 'Bird ID Insights' fits the bill. It's a guide to the more difficult species mainly British birds (though it has a few continental species).
See -
http://www.nhbs.com/birds_id_insights_tefno_184606.html

Looking further forward the British birds only version of the Collins Guide due out in 2014 (March?) could be just the ticket.
See -
http://www.nhbs.com/collins_british_bird_guide_tefno_180703.html

 

[tigglestiger]

Thank you all for the advice -if ever in doubt i can turn to the internet as 'thebirdgarden' suggests.

I like the sound of the project Simon, will begin the weekend on my local patch.

I picked up a copy of the Collins British Birds: A Photographic Guide to Every Common Species this morning for £5.

The British only version of the Collins guide looks great!

 

[bluesinlondon]

RSPB Pocket Guide to British Birds

It actually fits into your pocket and only has those birds you're actually likely to see... Don't worry about the rarer stuff until you're familiar with these!

 

[tigglestiger]

Looks a good little book - will have a look in the Minsmere shop the weekend

 

[Allen S. Moore]

RSPB Pocket Guide to British Birds

It actually fits into your pocket and only has those birds you're actually likely to see... Don't worry about the rarer stuff until you're familiar with these!

That's a very wise bit of advice!

 

[Fozzybear]

That's a very wise bit of advice!

Indeed! I have the larger handbook version of that RSPB book, it's very good and I tend to use it in preference to the Collins since it doesn't throw a vast number of unlikely possibilities at you... I've been tempted to go through the Collins crossing out all the non-UK birds before now!

 

[Alcina]

It has been out of print for a while, but the Shell Guide has the advantage that it has all the common British birds at the front and the 'out of the ordinary' in a separate section at the back. Second hand copies are quite easy to come by on one of the well known second hand sites.

 

[JustArran]

I second these suggestions. I'm only a beginner but for what's it's worth I use Colins and the Internet at home and the RSPB book mentioned earlier when I'm out and about

 

[Andy Hurley]

I live in Germany, so the Collins is of more use to me. I have the hardback version, so I keep that at home where I can look up stuff when I look at my photos, if I'm not sure. I keep the RSPB pocket guide in the car in case I spot something I'm unsure of on the way home. (I don't drive anymore, so I'm not going to crash!) I wish the Collins was not so geared to the UK, because I take it on holiday wherever I go in Europe and some birds which are easy to see and have breeding populations in one country are marked V***, which is a bit off putting. I've been birding for just over 3 years and don't have any difficulty finding birds in the Collins, but sometimes, a species is portrayed with the typical british look and thus the local birds where I am might look slightly different. So what I'm trying to say is that it depends where you want to bird or how widely you are going to travel, e.g. on short breaks at weekends to go looking for other species. We could be in about 11 countries in 7 hours of driving or less, so once you roughly know whats where in the Collins, it is far more useful than books written for just one country.

 

[DeaneRenata]

I find that identification is easier than actually going out and looking at the birds themselves. 9.9 But since all the field guides I have are for North America only, I can't help you.

 

[DeaneRenata]

Don't any of you use field guides? C'mon...

 

[Boro Birder]

I will has others have said recommend the RSPB Pocket Guide and to save you a few pennys i have a brand new one spare, i had to rejoin the RSPB and got it has a free gift for a friend not knowing he already had it. If you send me a private msg with your address i will gladly post it for you to help a fellow birder in need.

Damian.

 

[John Cantelo]

The Macmillan Guide to Bird Identification by Harris, Tucker and Vinicombe is probably the best one to have alongside the Collins guide, as it largely sticks to regular UK species. Unfortunately it is also out of print but they come up for sale regularly.

A new version of this book combining information from its sister volume and re-titled as "The Helm Guide to Bird Identification" is due out in March 2014.