Get this book!
We’ve got a great new book at Birders’ Garden: BAY AREA BIRDS (from Sonoma County to
Monterey Bay) by David Lukas, $21.95
It’s a natural history guide, not a field guide. The author describes its purpose as an “…easy
resource that could help answer…questions about the lives of these (Bay Area) birds.” Each species gets life history and range
discussion, although these are not equally detailed for each species. Still, the life history information is the
most detailed that I’m aware of in the backyard bird literature (i.e., not
scientific literature). There are no
references to specific literature but every Bay Area bird authority is
acknowledged. The book is especially
interesting when describing breeding behavior or territorial displays. I challenge you to read about your favorite
backyard birds and not find a new revelation about their tail flicking or food
choices or flight patterns. As I
mentioned above, there isn’t the same level of detail for all species and that
can be frustrating. It’s interesting to
contemplate though that, after many years of observing, for example, black-throated
gray warblers which are relatively tame and easily observed, almost nothing is
known of their breeding biology except that females make deep cup nests. Someday soon a backyard birder will observe
their mating ritual and provide a significant contribution to our knowledge of
these familiar residents.
So get this book to keep alongside your favorite field
guide. And since the publishers made it
field guide-sized, take it with you when you go into the
field to provide another level of information about your spottings.
