Synopses & Reviews
This book provides a fresh synthesis of out knowledge of species formation in birds and of the factors that influence their geographical distributions. It draws on information from the earth sciences and palaeo-climatology, as well as from studies on the evolution, ecology, distribution and migration patterns of birds. Full account is taken of the recent findings in molecular (DNA) biology, as they bear upon questions of avian evolution and distributional history. No other book currently available covers this range of subject matter or attempts to combine it into a coherent whole.
It is intended primarily for students and young researchers in avian evolution, biogeography and ecology. However, it is written in simple language throughout, in the hope that it will be easily understood by newcomers to these fields and by interested bird-watchers and other lay readers.
The text describes how bird species are formed, and how they are defined and classified by taxonomists. It describes how the numbers and types of bird species vary from region to region across the world, and how their current patterns of distribution have been influenced by earth history: by the movements of the continents and by the formation and loss of oceanic islands, by glacial and other climatic cycles, and by the influence of human activities. It also describes the role of contemporary ecological factors, such as climate, habitat and food-supplies, in influencing the current geographical ranges and migration patterns of birds worldwide.
The author is well known for his research in various aspects of avian ecology and migration. He has written more than 250 research papers and five books (including Population ecology of raptors (1979) and Population limitation in birds (1998)). He has served as President of the British Ecological Society, and of the British Ornithologists' Union, and is an Honorary Member of the American Ornithologists' Union.
Review
"...the work that Newton has done in compiling the basic information will make comparative studies easier."
-The Auk, Robert M. Zink and Andrew W. Jones, Bell Museum and Department of Ecology, Evolution and Behavior, University of Minnesota, U.S.A.
"...a masterful achievement. The information content is phenomenal and the easy reading style and logical layout make it a pleasure to work through..."
-Rauri CK Bowie, Center of Excellence at the Percy FitzPatrick Institute, Department of Botany and Zoology, Stellenbosch University, Matieland, South Africa
"...provides the best available overview of the origin, distribution, and extinction of bird species on a global scale."
-A. Townsend Peterson, SCIENCE
"This is an impressive work... a monumental achievement, unlikely to be superseded for a long time."
-BRITISH ORNITHOLOGIST'S UNION
"...a readable, balanced and comprehensive review that will become a standard textbook for courses in avian biogeography."
-TRENDS IN ECOLOGY & EVOLUTION
"... integrates the latest information from the fields making up biogeography and incorporates advances in molecular biology that influence our understanding of speciation."
-SOUTHEASTERN NATURALIST
Review
to work through..."
-Rauri CK Bowie, Center of Excellence at the Percy FitzPatrick Institute, Department of Botany and Zoology, Stellenbosch University, Matieland, South Africa
"...provides the best available overview of the origin, distribution, and extinction of bird species on a global scale."
-A. Townsend Peterson, SCIENCE
"This is an impressive work... a monumental achievement, unlikely to be superseded for a long time."
-BRITISH ORNITHOLOGIST'S UNION
"...a readable, balanced and comprehensive review that will become a standard textbook for courses in avian biogeography."
-TRENDS IN ECOLOGY & EVOLUTION
"... integrates the latest information from the fields making up biogeography and incorporates advances in molecular biology that influence our understanding of speciation."
-SOUTHEASTERN NATURALIST
Review
ECOLOGY & EVOLUTION
"... integrates the latest information from the fields making up biogeography and incorporates advances in molecular biology that influence our understanding of speciation."
-SOUTHEASTERN NATURALIST
Review
tanding of speciation."
-SOUTHEASTERN NATURALIST
Review
o be superseded for a long time."
-BRITISH ORNITHOLOGIST'S UNION (2004)
"...a readable, balanced and comprehensive review that will become a standard textbook for courses in avian biogeography."
-TRENDS IN ECOLOGY & EVOLUTION (May 2003)
Synopsis
This book should be of value to anyone interested in bird evolution and taxonomy, biogeography, distributional history, dispersal and migration patterns. It provides an up-to-date synthesis of current knowledge on species formation, and the factors influencing current distribution patterns. It draws heavily on new information on Earth history, including past glacial and other climatic changes, on new developments in molecular biology and palaeontology, and on recent studies of bird distribution and migration patterns, to produce a coherent account of the factors that have influenced bird species diversity and distribution patterns worldwide.
Received the Best Bird Book of the Year award for 2004 from British Birds magazine.
* Winner of the British Birds/British Trust for Ornithology, Bird Book of the Year 2004!
* The first book to deal comprehensively with bird speciation and biogeography
* Up-to-date synthesis of new information
* Clearly written
* No previous book covers the same ground
* Many maps and diagrams
* Makes difficult and widely scattered information accessible and easily understood
* A sound base for future research
* Takes full account of recent developments in molecular biology
Synopsis
and is an Honorary Member of the American Ornithologists' Union.
Synopsis
He has served as President of the British Ecological Society, and of the British Ornithologists' Union, and is an Honorary Member of the American Ornithologists' Union.
Synopsis
This book should be of value to anyone interested in bird evolution and taxonomy, biogeography, distributional history, dispersal and migration patterns. It provides an up-to-date synthesis of current knowledge on species formation, and the factors influencing current distribution patterns. It draws heavily on new information on Earth history, including past glacial and other climatic changes, on new developments in molecular biology and palaeontology, and on recent studies of bird distribution and migration patterns, to produce a coherent account of the factors that have influenced bird species diversity and distribution patterns worldwide.
Received the Best Bird Book of the Year award for 2004 from British Birds magazine.
* Winner of the British Birds/British Trust for Ornithology, Bird Book of the Year 2004!
* The first book to deal comprehensively with bird speciation and biogeography
* Up-to-date synthesis of new information
* Clearly written
* No previous book covers the same ground
* Many maps and diagrams
* Makes difficult and widely scattered information accessible and easily understood
* A sound base for future research
* Takes full account of recent developments in molecular biology
Synopsis
e has written more than 250 research papers and five books (including Population ecology of raptors (1979) and Population limitation in birds (1998)). He has served as President of the British Ecological Society, and of the British Ornithologists' Union, and is an Honorary Member of the American Ornithologists' Union.
About the Author
Dr. Ian Newton is respected world-wide both as a biologist with a special interest and expertise in this subject and as a communicator. He is a seasoned and popular key note speaker at National and International meetings, and his talks are often the high point of conferences.Ian Newton was born and raised in north Derbyshire. He attended Chesterfield Boys Grammar School, followed by the universities of Bristol and Oxford. He has been interested in birds since boyhood, and as a teenager developed a particular fascination with finches, which later led to doctoral and post-doctoral studies on these birds. Later in life he became known fore his penetrating field studies of bird populations, notably on raptors. He is now a senior ecologist with the Natural Environment Research Council, and visiting professor of ornithology at the University of Oxford. Most of his research has been in Scotland, but he has also spent a sabbatical year with the Canadian Wildlife Service, studying waterfowl, and is a frequent visitor to research groups in the United States and elsewhere. He has published more than 200 scientific papers on birds, and several books, including
Finches (1972),
Population Ecology of Raptors (1979),
The Sparrowhawk (1986), and
Lifetime Reproduction in Birds (edited, 1989). He has served as President of the British Ecological Society, Vice-president of the British Ornithologists' Union, and is honorary member of the American Ornithologists' Union. He has received several prestigious awards for research and conservation, and was elected Fellow of the Royal Society in 1993. He is married, and has two sons and a daughter.
Monks Wood Research Station, Abbots Ripton,Cambs, U.K.