Best bird watching books according to redditors

We found 83 Reddit comments discussing the best bird watching books. We ranked the 58 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the top 20.

Next page

Top Reddit comments about Bird Watching:

u/Bananamcpuffin · 1773 pointsr/explainlikeimfive

It's because humans don't follow the rules.


Every animal has a personal space bubble and they do "alarm" signs to show when another is getting in their bubble.


Example: A Robin is hunting worms. A deer is walking in the area. The Robin will stop feeding and look up at the deer. If the deer notices, it will shift course and go around the robin. If the deer doesn't notice and keeps heading towards the robin, the robin will stand up a little taller and maybe pump it's tail or fluff it's wings, using motion to show the deer, and any other animals, that he is not being respected. (Check out starting at 2:22) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y8GBA7DmeM0&t=21s


If the deer keeps coming, the robin may jump a couple feet to the side or into a bush above the deer's head - a larger motion to show alarm. Other animals will notice this and look in that direction (the same behavior the robin first used to get the deer's attention.) If the deer would have started running at the robin, or jumped at it, the Robin would fly further up into the tree and given off a little "chirp!" alarm while pumping it's tail and maybe wiping it's beak on the branch, using movement and sound to show alarm. Making noise is dangerous for animals, so it's only done when absolutely necessary to alert all the other animals around it. (around 3:26 in the video, you can hear the robin chirp when it flies off)


Birds close to the robin will fly up and observe, and the birds a little further away will stand up and look. This creates pockets or bubbles of alarms around the landscape - the stronger the alarm, the bigger the bubble.


Humans now, we don't see the robin stand up and look at us. We don't see it stand taller, or take a few steps to the side. We don't see it fly up just above head level. When we notice a bird, we get an alarm because we startled it pretty bad, causing the bird to fly up and tell everyone about it by alarming. We don't follow the common courtesies of the natural world and so animals can't accurately predict our behaviors. This scares them, so the scream in panic.


If you slow down, walk slowly and quietly, and walk around the birds when they show the first stage of alarm - the standing up and looking - you can move through the landscape without setting off alarms.


If you want to learn more about this or have questions, let me know - I teach it occasionally, as well as other survival skills, and enjoy spreading it around.


Tl;dr: We are rude, don't follow the rules, and this scares animals.


EDIT: a good starter place for this type of awareness stuff: https://www.amazon.com/What-Robin-Knows-Secrets-Natural/dp/054400230X
and a shameless plug for https://wildernessawareness.org/

u/TinyLongwing · 45 pointsr/whatsthisbird

They're extremely different! For starters, a Red-tailed Hawk is a buteo. Big rounded head, broad shoulders, medium-length tail, thick legs and big feet. Merlins are falcons so they're long and slender with long tails, and thin but very long toes.

Additionally, the coloration on these two birds is totally different. Red-tailed Hawks are super variable, admittedly, but they never have this gray tone to the back - rather, various shades of brown and sometimes slightly gold, with white-mottled scapulars. Most Redtails will also have an apparent belly band pattern - clear whitish breast, dark feathers across the lower belly, and then whitish or very slightly streaked leg feathers.

I'd recommend familiarizing yourself first with the general shape differences between buteos, accipiters, and falcons, as well as a handful of oddities like harriers, kites, and osprey. Eagles are kind of their own set of weird things but if you can figure out the first three on sight then you can look closer when something doesn't fit one of those. And when it does, you can then narrow down into which buteo, accipiter, or falcon you have based on finer plumage and habitat details.

A really good book to check out, if you're interested in raptor ID, is Hawks in Flight. It's a perfect primer to figuring these guys out.

u/Gullex · 14 pointsr/foraging

Keep filling your head with that information. Once you get a good grasp on foraging plants & fungi, you might be interested in picking up these books too:

What the Robin Knows

Reading Nature's Signs

How to Read Water

After you've gone through those, you go out into the woods.....

You know the scene in Superman, where he's a kid at school and locks himself in the closet because he's totally overwhelmed with sensory information? That's what going into the woods is like. Everywhere you look, more information coming in than you can possibly process.

u/iSereon · 10 pointsr/movies

I use my Grandfather’s binoculars, they’re an old model but they still have modern versions of it available.

http://www.birdwatching-bliss.com/jason-binoculars.html

This is a great book for beginners

https://www.amazon.com/Kaufman-Field-Guide-Birds-America/dp/0618574239

u/stikeymo · 8 pointsr/whatsthisbird

I love the Sibley guides, and also make heavy use of the iBird app

u/anotherep · 8 pointsr/whatsthisbird

General field guides like Sibleys and Petersons probably are going to have to generalize a bit on shorebirds which can be pretty complex. I've been using this book which has been super informative!

u/kmoonster · 5 pointsr/birding

Welcome! The answer is yes, there is a dictionary and some equipment, but it's not as much as you might think. A book and even a basic pair of binoculars will take you most of the way. Bird feeders are optional: some people do feeders as their entire effort, other people don't do feeders at all. It's up to you.

While you can go out with just your eyes and/or ears, most people prefer to take binoculars, a camera, or a spotting scope [miniature telescope]. Most people also either take some sort of ID aid.

A low-end but usable pair of binoculars will run $25-100 depending on the size, most "decent" to "good" binoculars will run $100+, with really high-end pairs up to $2500; it just depends on how much you're willing to spend.

With binoculars there are a couple things to look for:

  • Style: all binoculars have a hinge and some sort of outer covering. A pair with a rubbery or plastic coating is ideal, though not required. The body may be narrower or wider, for general purposes the difference is aesthetic; there are differences but for your purposes they are not important. The hinge may be single or double; a double may have open space around the barrels, which is nice if you have bigger hands. Fiddle with the focus knob to make sure it is easy for you to reach and turn. Basically, make sure they are comfortable to hold and use.

  • Power: A scope or pair of binoculars will have two numbers, like this: (8x32), (10x50), (12x50), or some similar set of numbers.

    • The first number is magnification. An 8 power gives you an 8x view, a 10x gives you a view ten times closer, and so on. The bigger the magnification, the "more" image you will see, but the harder it is to keep the image stable for reasons of physics.

    • The second number measures the diameter of the larger lens [the one away from your eye]. A "32" means the larger lens is 32mm across. A "50" means your largest is 50mm. The bigger the number, the more light-gathering power you have. If you plan to be out in lower light situations, or if you want to use the binoculars for astronomy, you want the biggest number you can get here. If you mostly plan to be out during the day a smaller number is recommended. Keep in mind that the bigger your binoculars, the heavier and bulkier they are.

    • Brightness matters. If you divide the lens size by the power, you get a number that helps you figure your brightness. For example, 8x32 works out to "4". 8x25 works out to "3". And if you go with 10x50 you get "5". The larger the resulting number, the better/brighter your image in general.

    • Most people settle on 8x42 because it gives you a good brightness with a magnification number most people can hold steady. By no means is this required, though. There are a variety of options available, and the best binocular is the one that is [1] comfortable in your hands, and [2] produces a steady image.

    • Scopes have similar specs and considerations, but are obviously more like a telescope. Cameras are very different, if you decide to go into cameras there is a whole other ball of wax to consider.

      Bird ID.

      You can use a book, an app, or both. Any bookstore or bird-feeder store should have bird id books, usually called "field guides". They include pictures of the birds and short descriptions, along with a map showing areas of the country where they are usually found. You can also download a variety of apps that will do this. They organize birds by type, so all the ducks are together, all the sparrows are together, all the herons are together, all the hawks are together, etc. Some use photos, some use drawing or painting. Some are big, some are small. Some are national, some are local. The most recognized names to look for are:

  • National Geographic
  • Peterson
  • Sibley
  • Kauffman
  • Audubon
  • Smithsonian

  • Others: There a great many authors/compilers, look through whatever books your local store has available and find one that makes sense to you. As with binoculars, any book is useful, but the best one is the one you are most comfortable with. You can even get simple waterproof plastic folding "handout" type guides that only include the most common birds.

    If you prefer birds to be listed by color you need to look for the series by Stan Tekiela. The link is for his Colorado book, which is where I live, but he has books for every state.

    I would also recommend setting up an account at ebird, you can keep a checklist there along with all kinds of pictures, maps, and other useful stuff. The same people who run ebird also run All About Birds, and produce an app called Merlin. Merlin is free, and might be a good app to start with even if you eventually add others later.

    You might also google "birding + [home area]" as there are facebook groups in most areas, and there are often area specific websites. Here in Colorado, for example, we have both Colorado County Birding and the Colorado Birding Trail along with a variety of facebook groups, a google group, and a listserv. Your state/region likely has similar.

    I would also look up the Audubon chapter in your area. Some are more active than others; it is worth looking up your local unit to see if they are active in doing trips. Some areas may even have multiple active chapters.

    There may also be a bird or nature specific store in your area that does trips or other events. There are also a lot of birding festivals/events around the country at various times; many birders travel to them, but it is also ok to wait for one near you.
u/lastpieceofpie · 4 pointsr/starterpacks

I carry a Kaufman personally.

u/madgraf · 4 pointsr/birding

I prefer Kaufman's field guide for carrying with me while I'm birding. It's well organized and has a lot of great info/illustrations:

http://www.amazon.com/Kaufman-Field-Guide-Birds-America/dp/0618574239/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1382709486&sr=8-1&keywords=kaufman

At home, I like to use Sibley's book (which is far too large to carry with as a field guide). It has even more illustrations and is a bit more in depth than Kaufman's field guide due to its size:

http://www.amazon.com/Sibley-Guide-Birds-David-Allen/dp/0679451226/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1382709539&sr=8-1&keywords=sibley+guide+to+birds

u/sotlite · 4 pointsr/birding

I like to use Sibley's Eastern or Western in the field - the smaller size makes it more manageable.

u/AllEternals · 3 pointsr/femalefashionadvice

Sibley ahas pocket guides which are pretty good. Is that what you have?

u/Shiny_Altaria · 3 pointsr/birding

For me, Sibley's is a must-have, but it's very detailed and can be intimidating for new birders. While I do recommend it, you might consider something smaller, easier to use, and more Oregon-specific like this, for example.

u/LarryThePolarBear · 3 pointsr/blogsnark

I'm really fond of this book, Birds of Washington Field Guide. It doesn't have everything but it has most. I also am more likely to carry it with me somewhere because it's small enough and light enough. I have Sibley's and Stokes' guides to North American Birds too, but this is the one I'll take with me to the lake or whatever.

u/TheForrester7k · 3 pointsr/birding

Hi, I've spent about 1.5 years in Colombia working on research projects and birding for fun (my Colombia bird list is 998 species). I made this video which should help get you hyped up for birding in Colombia! The Proaves McMullan bird guide is indeed your best option for actually carrying in the field, but honestly many of the illustrations are TERRIBLE. For example you are basically shit out of luck with some flycatchers with that book. Many of the funarids are pretty bad too. But its not too expensive and light so I'd go with that in the field. Another issue is Proaves is kind of a shady organization, but thats a whole other issue.

I prefer Restal's "Birds of Northern South America" over Hilty's "Birds of Colombia", But Hilty is pretty good too. The problem with Hilty is how big it is, how the maps are separate from the illustrations, the varying quality of the illustrations (the ones by guy tudor are great but some of the other illustrators aren't as good), how outdated it is, and how it doesn't have all of the species (doesn't include migratory species). For this reason I would recommend Restal (the second part, the illustrations). It's not perfect, and for example I'm not a big fan of many of the hummingbird illustrations, but mostly the illustrations are pretty good! The maps aren't perfect but they are at least next to the plates. So my usual strategy is to bring the Proaves guide in the field (and let it get trashed since its cheaper, I'm on my third copy) and keep Restal back at my camp, and Hilty too if possible.

I would also recommend buying this book. I honestly can't emphasize enough how much this book has helped me bird independently in Colombia. If you're using a bird tour guide service (expensive), then this probably isn't necessary, but if you're birding independently then this book is extremely helpful. Especially if you aren't too familiar with the many different habitats of Colombia, then this book will help you to understand what your options are for planning trips. For example, you mentioned you want to see Cock-of-the-Rock and Hoatzin, but these occur in vastly different habitats and you have to plan accordingly to see both in one trip.

I have loads of recommendations of where to bird in Colombia but I would need more info first, such as how much time you plan on staying there, if you're traveling solo, and if you have any idea what kind of habitats or birds you want to focus on. Unless you have at least 3 months, you're going to have to pick to focus on certain areas. Happy to help with recommendations though. I would recommend trying to avoid the Proaves lodges though unless money is no issue, as they are absurdly expensive (in colombian terms) and there are almost always much cheaper options available. It may be worth it once or twice though (i.e., el dorado lodge in the sierra nevada de santa marta, there isn't many options for staying up there at high enough elevations to get all the good endemics).

u/ilovedonuts · 3 pointsr/houston

i recommend the birds of texas field guilde to everybody in this thread if they dont already have a guide they like. My BIL has a copy by his back porch and it's nice for quick IDing because it's organized by color.

u/bmwnut · 3 pointsr/longbeach

For birds, you could get a bird book like Birds of California. My wife uses this for birds in our yard. We also have a pair of pocket binoculars for identifying them without scaring them off.

Flora is a little tougher, since plants aren't quite as scoped as the birds in the area. As mentioned apps on mobile devices are quite good. Short of a zoology book and having a flower from the plant and counting stamens and pistils it's tough to have a simple guide for identification (at least that I know of).

u/birds_of_berlin_ny · 3 pointsr/birding

You might want to get this book - Birds of California - which will focus on the birds of your state. That and the Sibley's make a pretty solid pair.

u/NuclearBunny · 3 pointsr/birdpics

The book The Warbler Guide is a great resource. They also have At a glance PDFs you can download that summarizes the info

u/bghenson23 · 3 pointsr/birding

Go on some group walks (http://www.nvabc.org/trips.htm http://www.loudounwildlife.org/Programs_and_Field_Trips.htm) and meet some other birders - they'll have some thoughts on places to visit and can tell you about other local resources.

Woodend has some great classes for example.

Ditto what LigoRider says - As for guides to birds, having a good field guide is key (iBird pro is good for an app, but book can be handy too). Sibley is the generally recommended book.

For learning, I think specific guides can be helpful. For example:

u/JackTheStripper420 · 3 pointsr/birding

I would always reccommend an actual field guide over an app, they are just more useful, but apps can be a good complement. For field guides, Sibley just came out with his new guide, which is probably the best one you can get.

You could also try National Geographic or Peterson's Guides, they are good. Kaufman has a really good guide that is geared more towards beginners, but has as much info as a full-sized guide.

As for Apps, there is Sibley, National Geographic, Peterson's, and iBird PRO, all of which are decent and have bird songs on them, which is probably the best feature. Its mostly personal preference between these.

u/steve626 · 3 pointsr/birding

I'd recommend getting Kenn Kaufman's guide, it isn't huge and is good for comparing birds. There are some good apps out there too, if you'd rather bring a phone or tablet. I usually just use the Sibley app on my phone.
Binoculars are pretty important. I started with a pair of $50 ones from a sports store and they were junk. and then I got a pair of big Nikons for around a $100, and they were better, but too big. I finally have a pair of Eagle Optics Rangers, they are $300 and I really like them. But I've looked through a pair of $1000+ Swarovskis and wow, those are great, but not much better than mine. I have 10x42s, which I would recommend. But get these Atlas binoculars for $100. They are really nice, I bought my dad a pair for Christmas and they felt as good as my other pair, for a third of the price. They would treat you really good for a long time. Plus they are water and fog proof, important for Florida.

Crap, I just saw that those Atlas binoculars are out of stock, sorry.

u/scythefalcon · 2 pointsr/birdsofprey

I would highly recommend Tim Gallagher's "Falcon Fever". It's a great little autobiographical account with some insight on both the sport and its history. http://www.amazon.com/Falcon-Fever-Falconer-Twenty-first-Century/dp/B005CDVBJO

u/OrbitRock · 2 pointsr/Psychonaut

Definitely. Sorry, this will be a bit long, but read through.

I think the first thing, is just getting out a little bit more often, of course, there's a sort of qualitative change that happens in you when you get out in nature.

But then there are nature observation skills you can develop. And this really can change the game a bit, and make it much more engaging to get out when you do.

The first thing I would suggest, and this you can do from your backyard, is learning to observe birds. The societies of the birds are omnipresent, more complex than you might think, and quite interesting and engaging once you break into the ability to watch them. It's best if you have something you can zoom in on them with. A pair of binoculars. I use a cheap camera that has a superzoom (Panasonic fz70). Of course, you don't need anything extra to observe the nature around you, that's just a suggestion.

There are different skills to develop here. One is learning to tune in with your audiovisual system. What I've been taught to do is to get very still, widen your vision, tune in with your ears, and soon you will detect a flicker here, a sound there, and the birds which you normally would have trouble finding can't help but reveal themselves to you.

If your location is anything like mine, there are some interesting things about the birds in your average backyard. First there are the ways they interact with eachother. What I've found most interesting though is that maybe 3 or 4 times each day, a Hawk will swoop through and try to catch one. Birds exist in cooperative multispecies complexes, and they all help eachother against these threats. You will be sitting there, and then suddenly, every bird will dart off into a hiding place, and then maybe 1 second later, a Hawk will come soaring through. Sometimes the Hawk will succeed. Just the other day I went outside to find a Hawk on a branch with one of the sparrows from my yard in its claw.

Another thing about birds is their language. If you observe for just like 2 or 3 months, by that time you will soon be able to distinguish each common species by the noises they make. And then you can go deeper and begin to understand what calls are just baseline behavior singing (most prevalent in the morning and afternoon choruses), what noises are made when two birds are fighting, what noises signify the aporoach of an aerial predator, what noises signify the approach of a ground predator, etc.

This isn't all about birds, but you'll notice as you explore more that birds are the most omnipresent type of animals in the wild. In the same way that they cooperate as a multispecies complex that warns eachother of a predators approach, if you enter a wooded area, the birds will begin making alarm noises to each other, sometimes even behaving as if they are "yelling at you". Not only do all the birds in an environment get alerted by this, so too do the mammals sense the change in baseline behavior and begin to hide.

When most people explore nature, they tramp through noisily, alerting every animal in there, and thus do not find much. They behave out of place, disrupt the baseline of an environment. Furthermore, their audiovisual systems are not attuned, not used to picking out where an animal might be, they may not even notice a huge raptor in the tree nearby, or the raccoon or fox as he slinks out of sight at the approaching commotion.

And finally, people do not understand how to observe animal track and sign. Everything that passes through an ecosystem will make marks upon it. We can begin by observing the overt signs. Everywhere the coyote goes, he leaves big canid footprints. As does the fox. Skunk and raccoon tracks are easily distinguiahable. Feline tracks may be a bobcat, maybe even a mountain lion, although they tend to be more light footed. And they all make different looking scat along the way. If there are beavers, you will see their signs everywhere. They gnaw at the bottom of trees, first removing the bark, then chewing into the tree, finally toppling them. As well as making dams and scent mounds, and big dens out of sticks. All the lumber beavers chew down has a particular pointed tip on it, and once you know it you see their sign everywhere.

If you learn how to follow the tracks of an animal, you enter into a perceptual relationship with it. It can bring you through an ecosystem in a way you would never have done, show you a bit of the ways the locals do things, bring you into new interesting areas, as well as give a glimpse into the mind and habits of that particular animal. But also, even if you just know the very basics of which tracks belong to which animal, you can come across a watering hole where the banks stay wet and muddy, and instantly know every animal which has visited the place.

Of course, you have to know how to move through an ecosystem so as to not disturb everything in it. The best way is to move quietly as possible, move strategically, and otherwise, move and behave as if you belong there. You should learn the Fox Walk, which you can read about in the Tom Brown book I'll link at the end. It takes a bit to practice, but once you get used to it you begin to naturally use it everytime you move in nature.

A general rule of thumb is this: in every little bit of nature there are many more animals than you know about, and they only come out when things are quiet and they feel like no one is around. It is very difficult to see even large animals in a thicket, and you have no idea how many countless smaller ones are wandering around in there. Every book I've ever read on the subject has recommended trying out the technique of finding a sit spot and hanging out there for awhile. It shows you nature in a way that is not possible when you are continually moving, it allows the possibility for things to resume normal behavior and pop out for you to see.

Another thing too is to observe little microcosms. Get your face really really close to a little patch of ground. You'll be astounded to realize that it is its whole own complex little world with all sorts of crazy fauna that you would never have seen otherwise. Then when you pull out, you'll be shocked to look around and realize just how vast everything really is, from that perspective. Oh how much we pass right over with each step!

I'm saving this right here because I am going to link some books and I have to see which ones to link, so if your reading this part give me one moment...

Some reccommended reading:

Tom Brown's Nature Observation Field Guide. This book is kind of hyped up and exaggerated, with a lot of native american lore, but what he teaches you is legitimate. The way to walk in nature, the way to look and listen, a lot of what I've told you comes from Tom Brown, and the more you read people from this genre, you'll see his ideas again and again. But if you where to only get one book on this subject I'd recommend this one. Despite me calling it hyped up, this book can really change your life if you practice what he says. (Although there are much better books on tracking itself though, look for actual guidebooks to learn more about that, but this book gives a good intro).

Art of Bird Finding. This one is about the perceptual skills needed to pick out birds. I found it very helpful.

What the Robin Knows. How I told you you can begin to analyze bird language and know what sounds mean what, and how their communications alert things in an ecosystem to disturbances in the baseline... This book is about that and how to learn to decode their language.

The Healing Art of Tracking. This book isn't that great, but it gave me some really useful concepts, such as the idea that you create concentric rings of disturbances around yourself as you move in an environment, and to always check the "dead zones" or hiding places in the brush around you as you move.

The forest unseen. This is a pretty entertaining and educational book by a biologist who goes back to one sit spot again and again over a year and describes what he observes there. Shows how much you can find if you look.

final word: sorry man, I have overloaded you with info here. No need to over think things. Ultimately, if you just begin to move through nature more slowly, carefully, and observantly, you will find so much. Don't try too hard, and most importantly have fun with it. Nature is great and we are a part of it too, we just have to learn how to inhabit it best. I hope you find a renewed connection with it, and have many great times. If you ever have anything you want to ask about it or what I've told you here, feel free to ask me!

u/ACompanionUnobtrusiv · 2 pointsr/ireland

I got the RPSB Birds of Britain and Europe and I swear by it. I got it when I knew nothing about birds and it's very easy to navigate. It breaks it down in groups so if you know a bird looks like, say a sparrow then you can work from there. You'll never want for another guide (as long as you don't leave Europe).

If you want something more specific there's Ireland's Garden Birds but if I were you I'd go with the RSPB guide if you plan on going out into the field.

The Birds of Ireland might be good but I've not looked at it so I can't recommend it.

There's also Ireland's Birds: Myths, Legends & Folklore which is a lovely book filled with folk tales about Ireland's birds but isn't a guide just nice background info and there's also one for Ireland's Animals

Check out the Irish Wildlife Trust website and Bird Watch Ireland. Look for them on FB too, I bet there's Cork branches of both that could probably give you more specific advice for that area of the country.

With regards to equipment I don't think you need invest much at the beginning, a pair of binoculars couldn't hurt but you don't need to break the bank with a top end pair.

If you are planning on venturing out into the fields then save yourself some heartache and get a decent pair of walking boots (only if it's going to be regular, old trainers will probably do if it's just every now and then) the same goes for a rain coat.

As far as general advice goes it's all fairly common sense stuff.

  • Don't disturb nests

  • If you're going onto private land seek the landowners permission

  • If you're planning to go off into nature on your own just let someone know the general area you'll be and when you expect to be back. It's unlikely that anything will happen but it's not impossible.

  • Be patient.

  • You're going to get wet feet.

  • Bring a little notebook and take down the characteristics of what you saw. (Size, colour etc) It's easier than carrying the guide around all day, or if you have a camera try and get a picture of the bird.
u/6l17ch · 2 pointsr/birding

Here's my recommendations for a new birder starter kit:

  1. Binoculars: Nature DX 8x32 are solid and affordable.
    If you have the extra dough, the Vortex are a great step up from there.

  2. Field guide: People will have varying opinions but as a beginner, I found the Kaufman guide the easiest to learn with and use everyday. It doesn't provide as in-depth of detail as other guides but it is laid out in a way that makes it easy to approach an unknown ID as a novice, and highlights the most important distinguishing features to tell different birds apart.

  3. A good app: Merlin Bird ID is a fantastic app for quickly IDing birds on the go. It's free too! I use it everyday, along with eBird to log my sightings.

    Hope that helps and happy birding!!
u/derbygrrrl · 2 pointsr/booksuggestions

Try one of the bird field guides for your area. The guide usually has one or two pics or drawings of the bird, a map of where it is often found and when (summer, winter, migration etc.) and a description of the bird, it's habits and call. Here is an example


The Sibley Field Guide to Birds of Western North America

u/doviende · 1 pointr/birding

Shorebirds are quite a tough category. If you want to get into them seriously, I'd go for one of the in-depth books like The Shorebird Guide.

Other than studying textbooks though, what you probably want to do is research the "likely" ones, and then look them up with online resources.

It would be best to have someone with you when you go, who can say "well, in this group of 1000 Semipalmated Sandpipers I see 1 Baird's Sandpiper, and this is why I say that." This kind of experience is invaluable, because a lot of Sandpiper ID rests on very subtle queues. As you scan through the group, you see one that has a little bit different posture, has a more "graceful" neck, has longer primary extension beyond the tail, etc....and that makes you take a closer look and try to confirm other features to make the ID. There aren't many written resources that teach all of that very well, although that book I listed has some pretty good stuff in it.

Without a local guide, I think your best bet is to try and find out what to expect by searching eBird, and then research those particular common species using online resources.

u/falcoperegrinus82 · 1 pointr/birdwatching

Without dropping the big bucks on an SLR and telephoto lens, the "superzoom" point-and-shoot cameras by Nikon, Canon and Panasonic are now quite good. The Sibley guide to western birds will be your best bet.
Also ask over at /r/birding as this sub is not very active.

u/woodencabinets · 1 pointr/birding

Stan Tekiela is an incredible write of bird books. I have the vermont one and it is the best, here is the Colorado Bird field guide he wrote, I imagine it’s pretty good. Good luck!

u/tommytweeter · 1 pointr/birding

At that age I spent a lot of time going through Rodger Tory Peterson's field guides. I have a couple older versions from etsy/eBay/used book stores, illustrations and descriptions are great.

Backyard bird books can be good to get a feel, but they're limiting.

In Virginia, we have some small state specific field guides that are pretty good. That might be a good balance. Between too much info and too little. Organized by color, then by size for easy lookup.

Edit: Found this: Birds of Texas Field Guide (Bird Identification Guides) https://www.amazon.com/dp/1591930456/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_xJPnybP22CFX1

u/CanITendTheRabbits · 1 pointr/OKmarijuana

I think I know what you are referring to. Growing up I had one that was illustrated. This one has photos. It's a popular book. Birds of Oklahoma Field Guide https://www.amazon.com/dp/1885061331/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_ILlGDbEJE22VQ

u/Spectre_of_Mendinor · 1 pointr/birding

Hawks in Flight by David Sibley. It's not a bird identification guide, but it's fantastic at teaching you about how to identify hawks (without pictures!).

https://www.amazon.com/Hawks-Flight-Second-David-Sibley/dp/0395709598

u/AllanfromWales · 1 pointr/witchcraft

Suggested reading: Marzluff and Angell - In the Company of Crows and Ravens

u/tommyphammy · 1 pointr/biology

Is this the one?