Bird

This is the TOP OF THE LINE Bird Book! It's the perfect 'coffee table', always at your fingertips (but make sure your fingers are strong...being that the book is oversized and very HEAVY) & FULL of the most gorgeous photographs~Lovely to view, to appreciate & to become enthralled with birds, their habits, migration, etc. Even if you are NOT a bird lover, the book has such incredible layouts, that turning each page, seeing the next full page layout is just as breathtaking as the last! A 'museum' type of show. I'd recommend this to ANYONE that loves nature, photography, and appreciates how incredible nature can be.

My husband spotted this book prior to Christmas and I bought it for him as a gift. I had an ulterior motive in buying it...I wanted to look at this gorgeous book myself. As I've looked at work done by Audobon in conjunction with other authors and photographers, I knew they did excellent work not only in photography, artwork, but also in writing about birds. My husband is a nature photographer, on the local search and rescue team, a Scoutmaster, and an avid hiker. All of this makes him very interested in birds. He always had a few of the books used by birders to spot birds, but they were hardly very useful (I looked through a few myself occasionally trying to spot a species that I had seen). This book covers so much more than those other books, and the visuals are breathtaking. I currently have a hard time getting a chance to look at the book as my husband is poring over it, and reading the whole thing which is unusual for him. He isn't a reader like I am. So this is a good thing. Not having a coffee table, I was never interested in the big books for putting in our living room, but I think we will be getting a small table now. This book will most definitely be residing there from now on! A great book for so many reasons, for so many people. Highly recommended. Karen Sadler

I received this book for Christmas, and it is without a doubt, my favorite present. The scope of information presented is absolutely amazing. Birds from the entire world are summarized, along with details on migration habits, habitats, and mating. Information about each bird featured is rather brief, but this is really a visual guide (hence the title), so if you are looking for very detailed information on certain birds, your best bet would be to find a book specializing in that family of bird. The pictures are the real draw here; they are brilliant, vivid, and inspiring. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in birds, nature, and fantastic photography.

Produced in collaboration with Audubon, "Bird: The Definitive Visual Guide" (2007 by DK Publishing) deserves the highest praise for its superb presentation of birds worldwide. Containing a wide variety of representative species, excellent photographs, and a CD featuring some 60 bird songs from around the globe, this is perhaps the best general survey book available on the Class Aves. The book consists of three chapters and the bird song CD. Whereas chapters two (nonpasserines) and three (passerines) provide basic and interesting information on the biology and geographic occurrence of selected birds representing specific bird orders and/or families, the first chapter touches on more general topics such as form, function, behavior, conservation, extinction, habitats, and ecology. The Foreword consists of a brief, one page philosophical reflection on the significance of birds in our lives and is followed by 14 full-page images of such species as the African jacana, the European bee-eater, and the great grey owl. As is the case throughout the book, all of these images are in full color and of very high quality. The Introduction begins with an examination of bird anatomy and physiology. Those individuals less familiar with these topics will find the explanations to be very clear and accessible. At the same time, the specialist will likely appreciate being reminded of how these topics can be distilled to a rather simplified yet informative presentation. For example, in its brief description of respiration, the text states, "When a mammal breathes, air flows into its lungs and back out again. Bird lungs work differently: air flows straight through the lungs, via a system of air sacs, before being exhaled. This one-way flow allows air and blood to move in opposite directions, known as countercurrent." The accompanying diagrams very effectively explain how a bird's lungs function in this manner. The reader will continue to encounter similar, high quality explanations throughout the text. A representative bird skeleton enables us to understand how this structure keeps a bird's weight to a minimum while simultaneously standing up to the rigors imposed by powerful flight muscles. In addition, the explanation of flight forces, speeds, and patterns (pages 32 and 33) is also informative yet concise. The introduction goes on to clearly describe general avian characteristics such as feather structure, wing structure, gliding and soaring, legs and feet, bills, mechanisms of feeding, communication, defense, breeding, nests and eggs, parental care, living together, migration, threats, conservation, and extinction. Again, one has to admire the manner in which these topics are effectively explained (excellent text and diagrams/photographs) such that the amateur bird enthusiast, perhaps lacking much in the way of formal biological training, can rapidly be brought "up to speed" on the essentials. But, again, professional biologists should also find t

...And this book is no exception. The thematic organization, the fabulous photographs, and the fascinating factoids come together to create one of the series' stronger books. It is coherently organized and presents information in an interesting and meaningful way. If you like the Eyewitness format, this is definitely one to add to your library! (For those who are new to the Eyewitness format, it consists of thematically arranged two-page spreads of brilliant photographs on a white background. There is an intro paragraph in the upper left-hand corner, but most of the text is in the captions that go with the photographs. Generally, the biological sciences titles are the strongest in this series, since other topics often need a more organized progression of topics. You'll get a lot of information out of these books, but you won't get a systematic anaylsis.)