Synopses & Reviews
Containing over 8,500 entries,
A Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names is the first book to explain the derivation and meaning of all valid scientific bird names. This valuable reference defines each name part separately to avoid the confusion of future revisions--a name like
Passer domesticus will only be found as the separate entries
Passer (sparrow) and
domesticus (domestic). Other entries provide fascinating details and helpful information. We learn, for example, that
lewis is derived from explorer Meriwether Lewis, and
decussatus indicates that a bird is marked with X-shaped crosses. And an informative introduction discusses the ways in which birds have been named for their appearance, for a person or place, or some aspect of their habitat, food, or voice.
With a full bibliography and extensive cross-references, A Dictionary of Bird Names will find a permanent place on any bird-lover's shelf.
About the Author
About the Author:
James A. Jobling is a member of various ornithologists' unions and a fellow of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds.