Birdbooker Report 96

tags: Birdbooker Report, bird books, animal books, natural history books, ecology books

The Birdbooker Report is a special weekly report of a wide variety of science, nature and behavior books that currently are, or soon will be available for purchase. This report is written by one of my Seattle birding pals and book collector, Ian "Birdbooker" Paulsen, and is edited by me and published here for your information and enjoyment. Below the fold is this week's issue of The Birdbooker Report which lists ecology, environment, natural history and bird books that are (or will soon be) available for purchase.

FEATURED TITLES:

1. Slack, Russell. Rare Birds Where and When: An Analysis of Status & Distribution in Britain and Ireland (Volume 1: sandgrouse to New World orioles). 2009. Russell Slack. Hardbound: 483 pages. Price: 29.99 GBP (about $48.84 U.S. plus shipping). SUMMARY: This title is the most detailed analysis and interpretation of rare bird records in Britain and Ireland ever undertaken. It is an essential reference about the status, distribution and vagrancy patterns of rare species within Britain and Ireland, coupled with a comprehensive overview of Western Palearctic records. The book is available here.
   RECOMMENDATION: Advanced birders in North America (especially those on the east coast) will find the species accounts discussions useful.
2. Tully, Thomas N, Jr., Gerry M. Dorrestein and Alan K. Jones (editors). Handbook of Avian Medicine (second edition). 2009. Saunders/Elsevier. Hardbound: 478 pages. Price: $134.00 U.S. [Amazon: $107.20]. SUMMARY: This book is a complete information source for the basics of avian medicine and surgery. The book is divided into two parts: introductory material (including avian evolution) and specific avian groups medicine. This title is very well illustrated!
   RECOMMENDATION: For those with a technical interest in avian medicine.

New and Recent Titles:

1. Barrow, John D. Cosmic Imagery: Key Images on the History of Science. 2009. W W Norton & Co. Paperback: 608 pages. Price: $19.95 U.S. [Amazon: $13.82]. SUMMARY: This book is divided into four parts: Stars in Your Eyes, Spatial Prejudice, Painting by Numbers and Mind Over Matter. The author explores iconic images from science. They range from the Constellations to the Sandpile.
   RECOMMENDATION: For those with an interest in the history of science.
2. Dourlot, Sonia. Insect Museum. 2009. Firefly Books. Hardbound: 256 pages. Price: $39.95 U.S. [Amazon: $26.37]. SUMMARY: This book features 114 close-up photographs of insects and other arthropods mainly from Europe. The text opposite the photographs explores the natural history of the species in the photograph. Other smaller photographs detail aspects of a given species natural history.
   RECOMMENDATION: Those interested in insect photography will like this book!

You can read all the Birdbooker Reports in the archives on this site, and Ian now has his own website, The Birdbooker's Bookcase, where you can read his synopses about newly published science, nature and animal books. But Ian assures me that he still loves us here, so he'll still share his weekly Birdbooker Reports with us!