Synopses & Reviews
Identify Yourself is a must-have for all bird watchers who are driven crazy trying to distinguish between similar species. Based on the Bird Watcher"s Digest column of the same name, the book examines groupings of bird species that are commonly encountered but difficult to identify. Black-billed cuckoo or yellow-billed cuckoo? Purple finch or house finch? Cooper"s hawk or sharp-shinned hawk? Greater scaup or lesser scaup? And entire chapters are devoted to identifying confusing sparrows, fall warblers, shorebirds, gulls, and other birds.
The text goes into far more detail than is possible in the traditional field guide format, giving beginning and intermediate bird watchers a helping hand with some of the most confounding identification challenges and refreshing the skills of avid birders. The book combines clear, easy-to-understand text with stunningly beautiful illustrations created by the renowned bird artist Julie Zickefoose. The paintings, done in field guide style, show key field marks and allow easy visual comparison.
Synopsis
Written by the experts at Bird Watcher's Digest, Identify Yourself gives beginning and intermediate bird watchers a helping hand with some of the most confounding identification challenges -- birds that are commonly encountered but difficult to tell apart. Combining clear, easy-to-understand text with beautiful illustrations that show key field marks, Identify Yourself is the solution to identifying many of North America's hard-to-distinguish birds..
Synopsis
Hummingbirds and butterflies are some of the most beautiful visitors to a backyard, but they can also be some of the most elusive. This second collaboration between the Peterson Field Guide series and Bird Watcherandrsquo;s Digest includes tips on how to attract hummingbirds and butterflies to backyardsandmdash;and how to identify them once theyandrsquo;ve arrived. Bill Thompson III and Connie Toops have decades of firsthand experience and have written the book in a fun, lighthearted style, providing both amateur and veteran nature watchers with need-to-know information, including where hummingbirds and butterflies live, what they eat, and the best garden plants to attract them. The species profiles of the 15 most common hummingbirds and 40 most common butterflies serve as a field guide, showing ranges, identifying marks, and preferred habitats. Full-color photographs and detailed drawings make attracting, identifying, and feeding these colorful creatures a snap.
Synopsis
Second in a three-bookand#160;series on watching birds in the backyard: backyard bird ID, bird feeding, hummingbirds, bluebirds, bird houses, gardening for birds, etc.
About the Author
Kenn Kaufman is a legend among birders. At sixteen he hitchhiked back and forth across North America, traveling eighty thousand miles in a year, simply to see as many birds as he could; he came back to tell the story in KINGBIRD HIGHWAY. A field editor for AUDUBON and a regular contributor to every major birding magazine, he is the youngest person ever to receive the Ludlow Griscom Award, the highest honor of the American Birding Association. His natural history pursuits have taken him to all seven continents, but he has made a special study of North American birds. His books include LIVES OF NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS, the PETERSON FIELD GUIDE TO ADVANCED BIRDING, and the FOCUS GUIDE TO BIRDS OF NORTH AMERICA. He resides in Tucson, Arizona.Bill Thompson III is the editor of Bird Watcher's Digest, a bimonthly magazine with 70,000 subscribers and the author of Identify Yourself: The 50 Most Common Birding Identification Challenges. Julie Zickefoose is a widely published natural history writer and bird artist. Bill and Julie live on an eighty-acre nature sanctuary with their two children.Julie Zickefoose began her career as a field biologist for the NatureConservancy. She became a magazine and book illustrator, thenbegan to illustrate her own stories, gleaned from experiences withwild birds and animals. Her monthly commentaries bring a glimpseof Appalachia to NPR's All Things Considered. Bird Watcher's Digesthas published more than forty of her articles and seventeen coverpaintings since 1986.
Table of Contents
Contents
Acknowledgments xi
Introduction xv
HUMMINGBIRDS
Chapter 1: What Is a Hummingbird?
Hummingbird Life History 5
Did You Know? 11
Myths Debunked 12
Chapter 2: Watching Hummingbirds
Finding Hummingbirds 17
Hummingbird Anatomy 19
Identifying Hummingbirds 19
Hummingbird Behavior 24
Chapter 3: Attracting and Feeding
Hummingbirds
Flowers versus Feeders 27
C hoosing a Feeder 31
Feeder Placement 33
General Feeding Rules 35
Ten Tips for Attracting Hummingbirds 36
Chapter 4: Plants for Hummingbirds
Planning Your Hummingbird Habitat 40
Bird-friendly Plants 50
Chapter 5: A Hummer Garden Plan
Regional Plant Lists 65
Plants for Container Gardens 86
Seasonal Progression of Blossoms 87
Chapter 6: Troubleshooting 88
Chapter 7: Hummingbird Species Profiles
Identifying Hummingbirds 98
Species Profiles 102
BUTTERFLIES
Chapter 8: What Is a Butterfly?
Butterfly Biology 120
Butterfly Life History 123
Did You Know? 132
Myths Debunked 133
Chapter 9: Watching Butterflies
Finding Butterflies 136
Identifying Butterflies 140
Butterfly Behavior 144
Chapter 10: Attracting and Feeding
Butterflies
Habitat Requirements 147
Chapter 11: Plants for Butterflies
Planning Your Butterfly Habitat 156
Butterfly-friendly Plants 160
Healthy Backyard Ecosystems 166
Container Gardens 167
Chapter 12: A Butterfly Garden Plan
Regional Plant Lists 170
Plants for Special Interest Gardens 206
Seasonal Progression of Blossoms 210
Chapter 13: Troubleshooting and FAQs
Predators 211
Hazards 214
Butterfly Conservation 218
Frequently Asked Questions 219
Chapter 14: Butterfly Species Profiles
Kindred Butterflies 223
Species Profiles 226
Appendix 1
Photographing Hummingbirds 268
Appendix 2
Photographing Butterflies 271
Resources 276
Photography and Illustration Credits 280
Index 281