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Best Bird Guides? (1 Viewer)

Ryan

Active member
Hello all- Let me apologize in advance if this post is in the wrong area or has been addresses a billion times already. Anyhow, Im moving this summer from Southern Japan to Central Coastal California (Monterey to be exact) can anyone suggest a good field guide for this area that makes ID simple- as I am a true novice. Thanks.
 
Sibley guide, Western version. If you feel that is too many birds, try Peterson First Guide, but you will soon see Sibley as more useful.

I have little experinece with shore birds therre in CA, but the Sibley should cover that too.
 
Ryan said:
Hello all- Let me apologize in advance if this post is in the wrong area or has been addresses a billion times already. Anyhow, Im moving this summer from Southern Japan to Central Coastal California (Monterey to be exact) can anyone suggest a good field guide for this area that makes ID simple- as I am a true novice. Thanks.

Two great guides for any part of the western US would be the "Sibley Guide to Birds" and Peterson's "Western Birds." The Peterson guide might be a little easier to use at first than the Sibley because it prominently shows the field marks that distinguish each species. It's also about 2 pounds lighter than the Sibley's! :)

However, since you'll be in Monterey where albatrosses, petrels, fulmars, etc., and other normally pelagic birds can be occasionally seen from shore, I would also highly recommend Rich Stallcup's "Birds of the Nearshore Pacific."

You're in for great birding in Monterey! With that deep submarine canyon that runs right up to the beach, they get birds there that you'd otherwise have to go 20+ miles offshore to see. It's one of my favorite places for birding and for whale watching on the entire California coast.

Katy
 
Much Obliged

Katy Penland said:
Two great guides for any part of the western US would be the "Sibley Guide to Birds" and Peterson's "Western Birds." The Peterson guide might be a little easier to use at first than the Sibley because it prominently shows the field marks that distinguish each species. It's also about 2 pounds lighter than the Sibley's! :)

However, since you'll be in Monterey where albatrosses, petrels, fulmars, etc., and other normally pelagic birds can be occasionally seen from shore, I would also highly recommend Rich Stallcup's "Birds of the Nearshore Pacific."

You're in for great birding in Monterey! With that deep submarine canyon that runs right up to the beach, they get birds there that you'd otherwise have to go 20+ miles offshore to see. It's one of my favorite places for birding and for whale watching on the entire California coast.

Katy

Thanks so much- Im really looking forward to going out there.
 
You've got some good advice there,Ryan,but as you describe yourself as a novice,the Sibley Western guide that Tero recommended is a true 'Field' guide and would perhaps be of more use than the full version of the Sibley Guide to Birds.
 
Hi, Ryan!

You've gotten some wonderful advice from the others above, but I notice that no one has told you this -- yet:

every birder I know owns a bazillion birding books of all shapes, colors, and sizes. I hope you own an empty bookcase -- you'll need it! LOL!

One of the unacknowledged money pits of birding seems to be the compulsion to own every book about birds and birding you can get your hands on.

You certainly can't go wrong with the Sibley books.
 
Beverlybaynes said:
One of the unacknowledged money pits of birding seems to be the compulsion to own every book about birds and birding you can get your hands on.
Ah so its not only me!!

Never been Stateside but what about the National Geographic? Thought I'd throw in an alternative.
 
National Geographic nice one volume book as well. I have the old edition I got on sale for 5.99.

The Sibley Western for about 20 dollars is a good investment, high quality with reasonable price and weight.
 
Compared to the National Geographic, the Sibley is NOT reasonable weight -- assuming you're referring to the Guide to Birds and not the eastern or western guide.

I've carried the NG 3rd edition for several years -- it's wonderful. I keep it in a nylon carrying case that has a place for a notepad and pen/pencil, with a handle and an adjustable strap for over the shoulder or over the chest.

My life list is noted in the book (just dates and locations), so if I ever lost it, I'd be lost!

I really enjoy the fact that it covers the entire country -- you never know when that out-of-range bird will show up and confuse you (I'm thinking of the Green-tailed Towhee from SE Arizona that hung around a southern Indiana feeder for two months this season).

There is a 4th edition out, just haven't bothered to pick it up (in complete contradiction to my earlier statement about the book money pit).
 
I s'pose books will stir up a different opinion for every reader. I myself live in Vancouver, a thousand miles north of San Fransisco. I like Katy's advice best.

I own every bird guide there is. This is all IMHO, but it's not prejudiced--I have them all!

The big Sibley reference, plus Peterson's FG2WesternBirds, is an excellent combination.

The best illustrations will always be Peterson's. They are beautifully rendered AND they look like the living birds do.

Singer was also an excellent artist. He did the pictures in the Golden Guide's Birds of North America. If you can find that little gem, it is the most portable. It's a bit out of date, but ideal in the field.

Geographic's pictures are done by various artists. Some are better than others. They all look good on paper, but quite a few are really poor representations of the living birds.

Sibley represents the new generation of birders. His pallid diagrams are meant for detail accuracy. Although any of these books do the job, Sibley would be the favourite right now. It's not MY favourite in the field, as I said; I'd prefer the big version as an at-home.

Changes in the AOU listings render every bird book currently on sale as WAY out of date in terms of sequencing and DNA relationships. You WILL be updating anything you buy now. It is already out of date, Sibley included. No more loons at the start; now it will be the Greater White-fronted Goose on page one!

So, do what Katy says! And take this seconder from someone who learned on a truly superb book, which inspired me with 44 years of birding joy so far--I learned on Roger Tory Peterson's 1941 Field Guide to Western Birds!
---------------------------------

Special note to Beverly: As you can tell, I disagree with your NGeographic favourite, but that's okay. But here is something for you: I own all of THEM, too. The new 4th edition is an intentional cheat! It is NOT a new edition. It is merely a reprint in a different cover. Don't take my word for it--simply compare yours with a bookstore 4th edition. So, don't be fooled. That was an exercise in deceit that NGS should be absolutely ashamed of! Check it out; what I say is true--unfortunately.
 
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i'd agree with carson on the peterson guide to western birds - i think as a first guide to american birds the peterson books (of eastern and western birds) are great even if it now seems terribly unfashionable to say so. the field marks in the peterson guide are usually a great help for someone new to the species (as i asume you will be). as fantastic as the sibley is in my opinion it has almost too much information for someone starting out (even if only on a new continent) - i have the sibley but use it more for reference at home. i'd saystart with the peterson and prepare for you're collection of guides to grow rapidly. luke
 
Carson said:
Special note to Beverly: As you can tell, I disagree with your NGeographic favourite, but that's okay. But here is something for you: I own all of THEM, too. The new 4th edition is an intentional cheat! It is NOT a new edition. It is merely a reprint in a different cover. Don't take my word for it--simply compare yours with a bookstore 4th edition. So, don't be fooled. That was an exercise in deceit that NGS should be absolutely ashamed of! Check it out; what I say is true--unfortunately.

Hey, Carson, am I crazy or did the Peterson folks do the same thing when they issued the "new" FG2Western Birds in the blue and yellow cover that replaced the old white cover? I could be having a senior moment here... :brains:
 
Katy Penland said:
Hey, Carson, am I crazy or did the Peterson folks do the same thing when they issued the "new" FG2Western Birds in the blue and yellow cover that replaced the old white cover? I could be having a senior moment here... :brains:

may ask why do so many US guides get split in two ? I imagine folks over here would be miffed if say Collins had been published in the same way. It can't be volume of birds since Sibley has approx the same number.
 
pduxon said:
may ask why do so many US guides get split in two ? I imagine folks over here would be miffed if say Collins had been published in the same way. It can't be volume of birds since Sibley has approx the same number.

Just guessing here but probably for ease in packing around. Because the Rocky Mtns are a natural divide between eastern and western US for most spp, there really is no need to carry around, for instance, the Sibley's guide that covers the whole country and which weighs a ton *and* is too big to fit into any pocket. I'm ecstatic they split the Sibley's; now I can take the western edition in my backpack and leave the bigger one in the car (just in case I run across that rare eastern vagrant). :D Although I'm still fond of my old Peterson's Western Birds guide ('cause it was my first).
 
pduxon said:
may ask why do so many US guides get split in two ? I imagine folks over here would be miffed if say Collins had been published in the same way. It can't be volume of birds since Sibley has approx the same number.

I think it's for the same reason that we often have books on Western Palearctic birds. America is a continent with a huge range of birds, even though much of it is one country.
When I was in northern California I found that local birders were very friendly and helpful.... so with luck you'll be able to go birding with some more experienced birders (and of course that can be a great help). I certainly would have missed one or two of the birds without others' help.
 
Yeah, but if you live in, say, Nebraska, you have to carry both?

And each one isn't going to be half the size of the complete edition, as there's LOTS of species that occur on both sides. Probably about ¾ the size of the full edition?

Michael
 
Michael Frankis said:
Yeah, but if you live in, say, Nebraska, you have to carry both?

And each one isn't going to be half the size of the complete edition, as there's LOTS of species that occur on both sides. Probably about ¾ the size of the full edition?

Michael

Yeah, a friend who lives in Colorado Springs, Colorado, which is on the eastern slope of the Rockies, has to have the all-US books because they not only get crossover migrants but overlapping breeding ranges as well, the lucky dog.

My Western-only Sibley's hasn't arrived yet so I don't know how he ultimately divided and re-formatted the new books, but I'm sure (I sure hope!!!) they'll be considerably smaller (even if they do have 3/4 the spp) because one of the biggest ;) complaints about the first one was heft and size. I'll still keep the big one in the car 'cause even though NE Arizona where I live isn't on any main migratory paths, we still get the occasional eastern spp -- like the dickcissel with a flock of chipping sparrows, and the one or two slate-colored juncos that come in each year with the other four more common variants of dark-eyed, purple finch, and the odd rose-breasted grosbeak. Now if only we could get a Cape May warbler to come visit...
 
Michael Frankis said:
Yeah, but if you live in, say, Nebraska, you have to carry both?

And each one isn't going to be half the size of the complete edition, as there's LOTS of species that occur on both sides. Probably about ¾ the size of the full edition?

Michael

thanks Michael that was my initital point.

The original Sibley has 810 birds in it. the eastern has 601. The Western has 667 birds in it. I would have thought that a single edition the size of Collins could be produced.
 
Since you're a novice birder, I suggest the Peterson's Field Guide to Birds of North America: Western Region. Sibley's Guide to Birds: Western Region is also good, but I'd prefer Peterson's. Once you get a lot of experience with birds and birding, you might want to take an advanced step. You can get the National Geographic Field Guide to birds of North America. This book is designed for more experienced birders.

Tim
 
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