Field Guides

These books are suitable for use out-in-the-field and can be carried in a coat pocket or rucksack, but are equally enjoyable to read in an armchair.

Bird Guide; K. Mullarney, L. Svensson, D. Zetterstrom, and P. Grant; Collins; ISBN 0002197286; 1999 This book has been praised by most birders ever since it was published for its excellent pictures and descriptions of over 700 species. I think it is outstanding and a worthy addition to any bookshelf, but a little too large (21cm x 14cm) for a coat pocket and beginners may be overwhelmed by the number of species covered. Now available in hardback (this edition), paperback (see below) and large format. Buy from Amazon

Bird Guide; K. Mullarney, L. Svensson, D. Zetterstrom, and P. Grant; Collins; ISBN 0007113323 ; 2001 Same as above but this is the paperback edition. Buy from Amazon

RSPB Handbook of British Birds; P. Holden and T. Cleeves; Helm; ISBN 0713657138; 2002 The blurb on the back cover states: "more than an excellent field guide. This is the ideal basic reference work for birdwatchers of all levels of interest and experience. Covering the 280 commonest birds in Britain and Ireland, the concise text offers a biography of each species in simple, non-technical language, including key information on identification, behaviour and conservation. It is enhanced throughout with superb colour illustrations by some of the world's leading bird artists." And, it does just that - there are better field guides, such as Collins' Bird Guide, but this adds information you would usually find in larger references, such as Birds of the Western Palaearctic. Buy from Amazon

Pocket Guide Birds of Britain and Ireland; J. Gooders; Larousse; ISBN 0752300164; 1995 A splendid pocket-sized book (15cm x 10cm) covering 250 species that are regularly seen in the British Isles. This is the book I take with me on field trips. Now published by Kingfisher Publishing (ISBN 0753407442). Buy from Amazon

Raptors of the World; J. Ferguson-Lees & D. Christie; Helm; ISBN 0713669578 ; 2005 Whether you are a raptor enthusiast or simply curious about the World's birds of prey then this book will wet your appetite. Superbly illustrated, each of the 340 species is accompanied by distribution maps and key identification details. Please note that this book does not include Owls. Buy from Amazon

Field Guide to the Birds of Britain and Europe; J. Oates; Automobile Association; AA Publishing; ISBN 0749517670; 1998 This is as large (19cm x 11cm) as I would want a field guide to be, but the 530 species are described concisely and accompanied by good illustrations of the birds, together with distribution maps and pages comparing similar birds. Buy from Amazon

Collins Gem Birds Photoguide; J. Flegg; Harper Collins; ISBN 0004705440; 1994 Guides do not come much smaller than this (12cm x 8cm), but despite its small size it is a great field guide especially for beginners. As with most smaller photographic guides, most of the photographs are of male birds. Buy from Amazon

Birds of Britain and Europe; J. Nicolai, D. Singer, and K. Wothe; Collins; ISBN 0002199955; 1994 A good book (18cm x 10cm) for beginners covering over 300 species, but most of the photographs are of male birds and so identification of females and juveniles can be difficult when relying on descriptions only. Buy from Amazon

The MacMillan Field Guide to Bird Identification; A. Harris, et. al; MacMillan Press; ISBN 0333592808; 1990 This sounds like another ordinary field guide - but how wrong you would be. This book (19cm x 13cm) dedicates itself to identifying the "confusion" species, so if you, like me, don't know your willow warblers from your chiffchaffs this is the book for you! Buy from Amazon

The Pocket Guide to Garden Birds; D. Couzens & M. Langman; Mitchell Beazley; ISBN 1840002700; 1999 Excellent! Not only are the illustrations life like but they capture the birds in typical situations, and the text, as well as describing the plumage, highlights key postures and behaviours that assist in identification. Buy from Amazon

Birds of Europe with North Africa and the Middle East; Lars Jonsson; Helm; ISBN 0713652381; 1999 This was arguably the best field guide before Collins Bird Guide and can still take second place. There are over 2500 illustrations, which are bigger than those in Collins Bird Guide, however, the general layout is not as straightforward. The early pages give an excellent introduction to anatomy, aging, behaviour, etc. Buy from Amazon

The Birdwatcher's Handbook; M. Elphick; BBC; ISBN 0563534168; 2001 This is an interesting, if different, book. There are much better field guides for identifying birds but few contain the detailed information that this one does, for example: weight, length, wingspan, populations, etc. A good book for learning more about the birds' lives. Buy from Amazon

Birdwatcher's Pocket Guide; P. Hayman; Mitchell Beazley; ISBN 0855331488; 1998 A superb pocket sized (20cm x 10cm) book with excellent illustrations, though one or two are rather vague, and reasonably detailed but succinct descriptions of most birds that will be seen in Britain.

The Shell Guide to the Birds of Britain and Ireland; J. Ferguson-Lees, I. Willis, and J.T.R. Sharrock; Michael Joseph; ISBN 0718122208; 1994 The illustrations are a little wishy-washy, but are paradoxically very accurate. The descriptions are excellent and the book covers some vagrants that Collins' Bird Guide misses. This book is no longer in print but some copies remain on bookshop shelves.