A Peterson Field Guide to Feeder Birds: Eastern and Central North America

Ordered this after reading all the online reviews...turned out to be perfect to place by our kitchen window as a ready reference guide to the multitude of winter guests just outside. Pictures are easy to follow, the book adds to the fun of winter feeding. No, not a professional or in-depth resource, but great fun for those of us who want a handy, easy to read guide.

I purchased this book for my grandmother, who constantly watches the birds at her feeders. She would constantly mis-identify them with the typical bird ID book, there were just too many birds to choose from. This book lists only those birds that are found at feeders, which makes it easier for her to narrow them down. It also tells what type of food each species prefers, which helps to answer her questions on how to attract certain birds to her feeders. Overall, a good book to keep near the window. It's also a good reference on how to properly maintain a healthy birdfeeder.

BIRD BOOK IS AS I EXPECTED. HAVE NOT HAD OPPORTUNITY TO USE IT MUCH AS YET.

I like this book. It is inexpensive and easy to read. It is not an extensive resource for every single bird one might see, but that's not why I got it. There are lots of big heavy field guides. This one has birds by family or type on each page, with notes about what they like to eat. In the front it has short sections about types of feeders, food, plants, predators, etc., and they are nice and short with lots of white space, so they are easy to read and there is room for notes in the margins. Then there is a short section about how to look at birds for identification... with black and white drawings to illustrate what is meant by how they fly and what are wing bars, crowns, etc. Then there is a handy quick reference list of common species and their preferred foods, and finally it gets into the color photo section of birds by family, with short descriptions and range maps. There are apparently other books of this type, but this was the only one they had at Barnes & Noble the day I was shopping, and I am very pleased with it. After I read a bit of this book, and "All the Backyard Birds: East," a pocket type guide by the American Bird Conservancy, I quickly rigged a rudimentary platform feeder and plan to build or buy a better one. We have a few different kinds of feeders but it was educational to see how many additional species might be attracted to the platform type.

I bought this book as a gift for my elderly parents who like to use a guide for identifying birds at their backyard feeder. It has large, colorful pictures that are nice for that purpose. This book was recommended by a local newspaper writer who writes a "bird" column weekly. I am happy with my purchase and so are my parents.