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A Field Guide to the Birds of Eastern and Central North America
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Music Books > Baby Bird > Item 2
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A Field Guide to the Birds of Eastern and Central North America
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by Roger Tory Peterson and Virginia Marie Peterson
Sales Rank: 3381
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List Price: $19.95
$13.57
At Amazon
on 12-29-2007.
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Features
Turtleback: 450 pages
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin; 5th edition April 4, 2002
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0395740460
ISBN-13: 978-0395740460
Product Dimensions:
8.1 x 5.1 x 0.9 inches
Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
Book Description
Roger Tory Peterson had already made his mark with his innovative field guide when he conducted DDT research during World War II. His friend and fellow naturalist Rachel Carson built on these efforts and eventually wrote Silent Spring, a landmark text that, along with Peterson's field guide, jump-started the modern environmental movement. By combining the tireless observation of a scientist with the imaginative skills of an artist and writer, Peterson created a field guide that Robert Bateman, in his foreword to the fifth edition, says was the doorway for millions of people into the wonderland of natural history. The Peterson Identification System has been used in the more than fifty books that make up the Peterson Field Guide series. Peterson's magnum opus, now in its fifth edition, created the trail for countless field guides to follow. They are still following year by year, but his is the standard by which all other field guides are judged. On the morning of July 28, 1996, Roger Peterson was painting his final bird plate. He died peacefully in his sleep later that day. It is fitting that his final worka culmination of more than sixty years of observing, painting, and writingshould be this one, a revision of the guide that started his legacy.
About The Author
Virginia Marie Peterson worked with her husband, Roger Tory Peterson, to research and create three-color range maps for several books in The Peterson Field Guide Series(R). Roger Tory Peterson, one of the world"'s greatest naturalists, received every major award for ornithology, natural science, and conservation, as well as numerous honorary degrees, medals, and citations, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom. The Peterson Identification System has been called the greatest invention since binoculars, and the Peterson Field Guides® are credited with helping to set the stage for the environmental movement.
Owner Reviews, Ratings, Comments and Criticism
I may have finally found a relacement for my old Peterson Field Guide to Eastern Birds. My new Peterson guide -- BIRDS OF EASTERN AND CENTRAL NORTH AMERICA -- arrived today and is it beautiful. Best of all, it has a flexible cover and is light enough to carry into the field. I have dozens of bird books, but this little guide is by far the best for field work. In addition to it's apparently waterproof and flexible cover, and being just the right size for a backpack (you can even carry it in your hand comfortably--no small feat for my arthritic hands), the new guide includes those nifty little arrows Peterson has used forever. The arrows, size specifications, and placement of maps on the same page as the species, allow the bird watcher to immediately locate and identify distingishing characteristics. The Peterson guide does not contain as much detail as the SIBLEY GUIDE, or the NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC BIRDS OF NORTH AMERICA, or the SMITHSONIAN HANDBOOK - BIRDS OF NORTH AMERICA, but the Peterson guide is detailed enough for field work and much lighter. If you are a serious bird watcher you will want to buy all four books, but if you can only afford one or don't want to invest in all four, the PETERSON GUIDE is still the best bet. And, I still think the Peterson guide is the best one to use with kids. The National Geographic guide includes some wonderfully modeled bird specimens with incredible detail that could only be produced digitally. The Peterson illustrations are hand painted and thus not as detailed. Although other books may show more detail, the question is -- will you really need all the detail in the field? Generally, you have only a few seconds to identify a bird. Peterson's arrow markers and the alternating sections of white and light bluish-grey backgrounds make it easier for me to flip around the book quickly. The SMITHSONIAN GUIDE is fully loaded and very heavy. Each bird occupies a single page, and the guide provides a nice "rule-of-thumb" feature that allows you to gauge the bird's size by the book size. I use my Smithsonian guide for follow-up work after a trek in the field -- and in my own back yard. Apparently, the Peterson folks have considered the effects of global warming as the winter and summer ranges of the birds have been extended. I now have five kinds of wrens visiting my small back yard in Arlington VA. And, when I travel to Wisconsin in a week or so, I can use the Peterson guide because it extends west to Minnesota.
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A Field Guide to the Birds of Eastern and Central North America
Updated on 12-29-2007.
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Last Modified : 12-29-2007
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