ALL ABOUT BACKYARD BIRDS: EASTERN \u0026 CENT (tr)   Cornell Lab Publishing (Cornell Lab of Ornithology) by Cornell Lab of Ornithology

ALL ABOUT BACKYARD BIRDS: EASTERN \u0026 CENT (tr)   Cornell Lab Publishing (Cornell Lab of Ornithology) Reviews

• 
  Ginny

  So far, the hands down best field guide book I’ve ever read, and I’ve read, and used, four or five now. For all those who are new to birding and eager to learn more, I hope this review does this book justice. The beginning discusses birding basics - which I’ve read up on already, and just took an Audubon class on - birding 101. But this part provides basic knowledge. If you already know it, it doesn’t take up too much space, and you can skim over or bypass. I
  What you really want is the scoop on the birds. It begins with the inside flaps to the front and back covers, which are laden on both sides with handy identification pictures by family group (hawks, finches... and a beginning page number so you can do a quick basic identification and jump to that section where your field hunt begins in earnest.
  The premise of the book is about “birding by identification.” This is the same premise the Audubon class taught. Namely, there are over 1,300 species of birds, in the US alone, something upwards of 800, I think. You can’t memorize all of them by picture. Nor would it be productive to try.
  Instead, learn to spot by various identifiers - size, shape, flocking habit, habitat... learn what birds would be in season in your area. Combine all of that identifying information together, and you can get to certainty about what bird you are looking at.
  I’m a believer at this point. This book sure helps. It focuses on birds in my “east and central” part of the US. And contains 117 bird descriptions. Maybe one day I’ll eclipse this book, and will have stored in my brain all this information. If so this wonderful treasure of a book will have surged its purpose and I will move on to the next 700 or so birds.
  As for now, in this book, each of the 117 birds focused upon gets a page. That page contains a photo (which I’ve found to be spot on in the view your most likely to see the bird. For example, the hawks are soaring, the finches are perching. The pages also has a drawing or two of other views or different coloring of the sex, if applicable. There are descriptions that are helpful to doing the identification method I’ve mentioned earlier. For example, it explains how European Starlings tend to flock, and are mostly black in winter.
  Each page also refers you the Cornell Merlin website (it’s also an app) for ACH particular bird - there is a scanner code on each bird for its song/call and identification information. My one complaint is that for each bird on a left facing page the scanner code is on the right side near the inside margin. It is very hard to open the book flatly enough to get an easy scan. It takes a lot of fumbling with the phone in one hand and holding the book open and flat in the other. Frustrating on my sofa. More so outdoors on a cold windy day.
  A word on the book itself. It is durable. It is a sewn binding in paperback, not your romance novel kind though. The cover it thick backed cardboard stock with super glossy covering on the outside. The pages are very thick (can turn pages with light mittens on), and a little sheen to add water protection from drops of rain (not a downpour) from basic field use. The book is compact too. All in all a book mindful of its purpose- repeated use in outdoor conditions.
  For now, this is my go-to field guide. It isn’t surprising given how Cornell Lab of Ornithology (the author and publisher of the book) is the premiere birding educator in the US. You rock Cornell!
• 
  Cliff

  excellent resource
• 
  Mysteryfan

  Good resource
• 
  Colleen

  This is an absolutely excellent birding guide for backyard bird in eastern and central North America, for so many reasons. Please see GoodReads reviewer Ginny's review as she covers it perfectly.