Neither are my guides. They're epub, pdf etc. Not ideal but I've not met an app that properly capitalises on the format yet. In principle the paper database (=book field guide) has had its day, to be ousted by the infinitely more flexible electronic database. In practice, though...
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Field Guide to North American Flycatchers: Empidonax and Pewees (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Fritz73
- Start date
Perfectly rational (in this thread) - just different from yours.
pbjosh
missing the neotropics
This is my point - the ethnocentrism is so entrenched that people think it is acceptable. Times and standards change, people learn and adapt, and I think that the birding community is behind the ball on this issue. Not many people call it out, but I personally find it surprising and disappointing that in 2022 a new guide can be published with this mis-use of a geographic denominator.
gdhunter
Well-known member
And you make my original point. I'm neither surprised nor disappointed by the continued use of a commonly accepted demarcation between North America and Central America. But this pointless tangent cloaked in the language of a noble crusade diverts discussion from the merits of the guide. Thanks for reaffirming that's still alive and well at BirdForum.
Mysticete
Well-known member
Yep, I am sure the field guide authors back in the 70's and earlier that started this trend are kicking themselves for not thinking that!
Mysticete
Well-known member
To stay on topic, my assumption is that this is probably a desk reference, that would be most useful for either studying BEFORE going in the field, or trying to resolve the identity of "odd" flycatchers which may be vagrants. I don't think it's really something written with the assumption that the average birder would be lugging around.
To venture off on a tangent, I am sure many of us have a preference for physical guides. I find digital guides to be most useful when I already know the local bird fauna, in which I only use a guide in the rare case of me seeing something unusual or a difficult plumage. I have the Sibley app and I can't be the only one who finds it a lot less useful than a physical book, as to find the bird in question I need to physically type in a name, which means I need to automatically have it narrowed down to a degree. Versus a physical guide, where I can go to he relevant section and flip through in a fraction of the time, and direct comparisons between species are easier. I can't imagine being able to use a digital guide for a trip to a location with bird faunas that are completely alien to me (old world, neotropics, etc), even with advance study.
To venture off on a tangent, I am sure many of us have a preference for physical guides. I find digital guides to be most useful when I already know the local bird fauna, in which I only use a guide in the rare case of me seeing something unusual or a difficult plumage. I have the Sibley app and I can't be the only one who finds it a lot less useful than a physical book, as to find the bird in question I need to physically type in a name, which means I need to automatically have it narrowed down to a degree. Versus a physical guide, where I can go to he relevant section and flip through in a fraction of the time, and direct comparisons between species are easier. I can't imagine being able to use a digital guide for a trip to a location with bird faunas that are completely alien to me (old world, neotropics, etc), even with advance study.
All I use, the reason I use. I hope to go to Mexico soon... But I won't be lugging Howell and Webb, at least not on paper...
Absolutely no problem in South Africa recently with the Sasol app—although the avifauna's a bit depauperate and I had practised via ebird quizzes. Some people even relied on Merlin. That's going a little far... ...As long ago as 2016 3 of us went to Uganda. We brought field guide + app. After about 1 day we switched to app only...
That's the main problem. Some still haven't made it off the paper (e.g., unfortunately, Mexico)
pbjosh
missing the neotropics
Sorry you find it pointless or a tangent but it doesn’t mean that Mexico is not part of North America. It really is carryover from colonial history that leaves people with that „working“ definition, but whatever, not everyone cares to recognize that or try to do better.
Biogeographically, the US and Canada do form a unit that makes sense for field guides. But that unit is simply not North America - it is northern North America, or “The United States and Canada” or “the ABA area” or coin another new name.
Here you can find some sample pages of the book including a list of flycatchers included.
press.princeton.edu
Field Guide to North American Flycatchers
A richly illustrated, portable field guide to flycatcher identification
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