Product Description
A shocking 1186 bird species risk becoming extinct in the next 100 years. Even worse, 182 of these are critically endangered - meaning they could be extinct in just 10 years. The good news is that there are many opportunities to help these species. This book highlights these, providing full information on each species. The challenge is to use these facts and figures to ensure that action takes place before it is too late. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Remarkable tome of reference
Basics: hardcover, 2000, 852pp., 1,186 species with color illustration, detailed map, and concise text; another 500 lower risk birds with brief paragraph of status; useful list of birds by status and country

Of the several books to focus on rare, endangered, or extinct birds, this is easily the best one.This is a wonderful tome in terms of information and illustrations.The core of this large book is its coverage of 1,186 threatended species across the globe.

Each bird receives a half-page which includes an illustration, a map, and data-packed and descriptive information.The maps are customized to accurately display even the smallest or fragmented ranges of some of these very restricted species.The illustrations, all in color of the adult male, are of very good quality.The text is the most impressive aspect of the book.

The textual account for each bird consists of an overview of its status and population along with its range, ecology, threats, and related conservation efforts.This information proves to be very concise as well as potent.Another nifty inclusion is the "Target" information.This gives pointed tips on what should be done to more accurately identify the bird's status and distribution along with further conservation efforts that should be adopted.These efforts include specific localities in need of protection.

Another 500 birds are included at the end as lower risk or near threatened species.For these birds, a single paragraph is provided to cover the bird's distribution, habitat, and population status.A section listing and summarizing all extinct species has also been provided.

An excellent tool found at the end of the book is a presentation of every country with a listing of its associated threatened birds.I especially like this feature, having looked for this without success in the past.

The first 30 pages of the book introduce the reader to the pertinent issues of our threatened species.It covers the causal problems, solutions, what and where we should focus conservation efforts, and the categorization of the various threat statuses.

Without a doubt, this is an exceptional book that would be of interest to nearly every birder and naturalist with conservation at heart.This is definitely the best compendium available on our threatened birds.

1) Rare Birds of the World by Mountfort
2) Extinct and Vanishing Birds of the World by Greenway
3) Birds in Jeopardy by Ehrlich
4) Rare and Vanishing Australian Birds by Slater
5) Threatended Birds of the Americas by Collar
6) Threatened Birds of Africa and Related Islands by Collar
7) Endangered Birds of the World: The ICBP Bird Red Data Book by King
8) Extinct Birds by Fuller
9) A Guide to Threatened Birds of Taiwan by Fang
(written by Soleglad at Avian Review or Avian Books, June 2009) ... Read more

Product Description

Customer Reviews (1)

a realistic look at the days of a prosperous family
The Birds were wealthy and religious and intelligent. They were aware of the larger issues and they were appealing persons.There is sadness in the book's depiction of everyone's losses, including the slaves'. Works well asa much more readable companion piece to the massive book, The Children ofPride. ... Read more

Product Description
This digital document is an article from Endangered Species Update, published by University of Michigan, School of Natural Resources on March 1, 2003. The length of the article is 869 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: This partnership is for the Birds!.
Author: Heidi Hanlon
Publication: Endangered Species Update (Newsletter)
Date: March 1, 2003
Publisher: University of Michigan, School of Natural Resources
Volume: 20Issue: 2Page: S36(2)

Distributed by Thomson Gale ... Read more

Product Description
This digital document is an article from E, published by Earth Action Network, Inc. on May 1, 2004. The length of the article is 525 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Last stand for Hawaiian birds.(Hosmer Grove)
Author: Jim Motavalli
Publication: E (Magazine/Journal)
Date: May 1, 2004
Publisher: Earth Action Network, Inc.
Volume: 15Issue: 3Page: 10(1)

Distributed by Thomson Gale ... Read more

Product Description
Here's how to find 100 of the rarest birds in the contiguous United States.America's 100 Most Wanted Birds is your complete guide to finding Ross' Gull, Kirtland's Warbler, Lucifer Hummingbird, Blue-footed Booby, and 96 others.No serious birder's library should be without it.Authors Steven G Mlodinow and Michael O'Brien, two of the country's top birders, have done exhaustive research on each bird and presented it in an easy-to-use format.Each species description includes information on present status and distribution, patterns of occurrence, favored locations, identification, and your best bets for a successful sighting.A special Site Guide gives you the latest information on the hottest birding areas in the country-all the important information you need to plan your next birding trip.Amazon.com Review
If you want to see a gyrfalcon or a fork-tailed flycatcher, this resource might be your best help in spotting them. Mostly for serious birders intent on adding species to their life lists, America's 100 Most Wanted Birds provides detailed strategies for locating 100 of the most uncommon-to-rare bird species in the lower 48. Driving directions are included for locating species that can generally be counted on to show their feathers in a certain area (like the gyrfalcon); the rest are dealt with more generally in relation to when and where they are most apt to appear. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (3)

Now there's a bird I'd like to get on my life list !
This is a rather unusual 'Bird Book'and certainly not a book someone just starting out in Birding would find very helpful.In the first few years of birding one finds new birds to see without chasing all over North America,to find rare birds listed in this book.However;that being said the book makes for interesting reading as to what are some of the most sought after birds that Birders are on the search for as their North America life list grows past the 500's.
What birds were included could be debated.Some are quite easily found at the right time and location while others require a lot of effort unless staked out,or on an up-to date Hot Line posting.The birds included are very well described ,with excellent directions and information on occurrence.
Even if one were not intending to chase down all these birds,it is certainly a good book covering these prized additions and where one might find them.This is not a book you would take with you during a day of birding;but certainly a great asset to turn to if you are planning a trip away from your normal surrounds and want to make sure you know about and hopefully add one of these birds to your list.
Although the book limits itself to the Lower 48 states,it is still useful to birders who keep an ABA list,although directions and details are not provided outside the Lower '48'.
All in all,a great book for an avid birder whose birding ranges over the ABA.

Usefull to listers and birders.
This book is usefull to birders and listers in delineating how to seek out some of the more unusual avian visitors to the US. At times though you wonder if the information provided would truly help you "get" the bird.

There is something here for most dedicated birders
While there is something here for everyone, there is also info that people won't want.The choice of limiting the scope of the book to the lower 48 is interesting.It makes all the locations (relativly) accessable.It also means that some birds which are included (like Ross' Gull) are difficult to pin down in the lower 48 (they can point to no pattern of occurence) but are definitly finadable in North America (Churchill, Canada in this case).

The rarity of the 100 birds varies greatly.There are many birds which are so rare that no pattern of occurence can be given, while others are quite regular in certain areas (ie Pacific Golden-Plover).The book is most usefull for the rare birds which show clear patterns of occurence (like Tuffted Duck in the San Fransico Bay Area or Cook's and Stejneger's Petrels of the California coast).This book is just usefull for listers.Each description includes information on ID, which can be very difficult to find on some of these rare species.

Is this book a must have?No.But for many birders, who seem to lust after every bird book on the planet, this book is a usefull addition to a personal collection. ... Read more

Product Description
A companion volume to Common Birds One and Two, this book details rare native birds and uncommon introduced species, mainly stragglers. All the photographs are by the renowned bird photographer Geoff Moon and many appear in print for the first time. ... Read more

Product Description
This is an OCR edition without illustrations or index. It may have numerous typos or missing text. However, purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original rare book from the publisher's website (GeneralBooksClub.com). You can also preview excerpts of the book there. Purchasers are also entitled to a free trial membership in the General Books Club where they can select from more than a million books without charge. Subjects: Birds; Plague; Dysentery; Amoeba; Hematochyluria; Filariasis; Witte's peptone; Filarial worms; Botany; Grasses; Scitamineae; Acanthaceae; Biology; Medicine; Natural history; Science; Juvenile Nonfiction / Animals / Birds; Nature / Birds ... Read more

Product Description
As the human population skyrockets and the toxic impact of human society spreads, the natural habitats of birds degrade and diminish and the bird populations decline. Two hundred years ago, when the United States and Canada were home to less than 5 million people, they were also home to some 650 species of birds. Today, more than 280 million people live there, and 33 bird species have already been driven to extinction and well over 150 are in danger of extinction in all or parts of their range. This book, organized and written by the authors of The Birder's Handbook, and enriched by 191 strikingly beautiful color paintings illustrating all of the birds treated, is the first concise, authoritative review of the status of the birds currently imperiled in the United States and Canada - those that are federally listed as Endangered or Threatened and those that are listed by the National Audubon Society as suffering local or regional or widespread decline. It also treats the birds that have been driven to extinction in the past two centuries, since the stories of their somber fates can help us learn how to save the other birds that are in jeopardy.Because birdwatchers and others are showing increased interest in the tropical birds that survive in Hawaii and Puerto Rico, the book includes separate sections on imperiled and extinct birds of those areas. Hawaii is of special importance: because it has seen so many extinctions just in the years since Cook's arrival, it provides a laboratory for studying the impact of civilization on birds in the wild.< ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

ok book
This is just an ok book,I was disappointed in it as I expected more information, the book kind of overdoes it on tropical birds, but, of course this is probably where most of the birds in jeopardy are.There is an extinct bird section that I think should have more info and be more conclusive,the artwork is ok,but not outstanding, I think this book should cost a little bit less for what you get, but there are not a lot of good books on this subject that are as affordable as this,so the choices are limited. ... Read more

Product Description
Britain's position on the edge of the Western Palearctic means thatit receives a relatively high number of vagrant birds from both eastand west. The islands to the extreme north and west, and the fulllength of the east coast, are particularly favoured, and the many'twitchers' who patrol key sites in these places during migration timeare hoping to find rarities - but most of all each would like to find abird never before recorded in Britain - a 'first'. Since 1980, a total of 76 bird species have been found for the firsttime in Britain. Each individual, although hopelessly lost and quitepossibly doomed, has brought birding celebrity for its finder, and aswarm of admirers to view the bird itself. This new book is the successor to Birds New to Britain and irelandby Sharrock and Grant (Poyser, 1982), which covered the new birdsdiscovered between 1958 and 1980. The accounts of each new bird'sfinder are reproduced from their original sources (mainly from BritishBirds and Birding World).This is fascinating reading for everyonewho has an interest in migration and vagrancy, has made the journey tosee any of the birds concerned, or has ever dreamed of finding a'first' of their own."This book. will send many tingles of excitement through the older troops who witnessed some of these remarkable birds." British Birds"A nostalgia-fest for keen twitchers and a tantalising read for anyone who hopes to find a first of their own one day." Birdwatch ... Read more

Product Description
An environmental parable for our times -- the story of a beautiful blue bird meeting its nemesis at the end of the 20th-century.In December 1897 the Reverend F. G. Dutton lamented that 'there are so many calls on a parson's purse, that he cannot always treat himself to expensive parrots.' He was hoping to purchase a Spix's Macaw, a rare and beautiful parrot found in a remote area of Brazil. Today, the parson's search would be in vain. By the turn of the millennium only one survivor, a lone male, existed in the wild.Spix's Macaw tells the hearbreaking story of a unique band of brilliant blue birds -- who talk, fall in love, and grieve -- struggling against the forces of extinction and their own desirability. By the second half of the 20th-century the birds became gram for gram more valuable than heroin; so valuable that they drew up to $40,000 on the black markets. When, in 1990, only one was found to be living in the wild, an emergency international rescue operation was launched and an amnesty declared, allowing private collectors to come forward with their illegal birds, possible mates for the last wild Spix.In a breathtaking display of stoicism and endurance, the loneliest bird in the world had lived without a mate for fourteen years, had outwitted predators and second-guessed the poachers. But would he take to a new companion? Spix's Macaws are like humans -- they can't be forced to love. With exquisite detail, this book tells the dramatic story of the rescue operation, and of the humans whose selfishness and greed brought a beautiful species to the brink of extinction. The long, lonely flight of the last Spix's Macaw is both a love story and an environmental parable for our times. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

Spix's Macaw
This book wonderfully illustrates the difficult, if not impossible, task of trying to save endangered species. It includes accurate descriptions of the birds, the landscape, the politics and the strange mix of characters that worked together to save the Spix's macaws. By the end of the book, you are waiting with bated breath to find out the fate of the Spix's Macaw. If you have an interest in ecology and/or birds, you will love this book! ... Read more