Birds: A Complete Guide to Their Biology and Behaviour

by Jonathan Elphick

Birds

Genres: Birds, Science, Nonfiction, Animals, Nature, Natural History, Reference

224 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2016

About the author

Jonathan Elphick is a British natural history writer, editor, ornithologist, and zoologist known for his extensive work on birds, conservation, and the cultural history of ornithology. Raised in North Wales, he developed an early fascination with birdlife and later earned a zoology degree from University College, Swansea. After working as an in-house natural history editor for several publishers, including Dorling Kindersley, he became a freelance specialist focusing primarily on birds and wildlife. Elphick has written, edited, or contributed to numerous acclaimed titles including The Birdwatcher's Handbook, Birds: The Art of Ornithology, The Natural History Museum Atlas of Bird Migration, and Birds Britannica. His work combines scientific research, conservation, art history, travel, and field observation. A Fellow of both the Zoological Society of London and the Linnean Society of London, he has also collaborated on international conservation and publishing projects exploring humanity's relationship with birds across cultures worldwide.

Reviews

[Laura Flett]

Overall this book is phenomenol. There is more knowledge in it then the average person will ever need. The book has carefully considered photographs that are in themselves amazing. The author also does an excellent job of ensuring that common terms utilized for birds also found in Britain are correctly interchanged to North American common names where appropriate. I especially loved the information on the first bird (chapter 1).

What misses the mark for me are things that are small in significance but in themselves, add up to me not giving this book five stars. The first is that the author assumes that the reader knows human anatomy and physiology along with plane aerodynamics. If you do not, some areas of this book may be confusing at times. Furthermore, when the author lists names of birds with both their common and scientific names, the sentence(s) can become confusing to follow. The anatomy and physiology section, taking the bulk of the book should be split into more chapters. Again very minor details that could use some work.

If your a ornithology enthusiast looking for a well written thorough book that concentrates on adaptations, physiology and anatomy this book is for you.