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Book ReviewsA Field Guide to Advanced Birding. 1990. By Kenn Kaufman. Houghton MifflinCompany, Boston. xiv + 299 pp., illustrated. U.S. $22.95

Aptly subtitled "Birding Challengesand How to Approach Them", thisbook is the latest in the acclaimedPeterson Field Guide series,published by Houghton Mifflin ofBoston. The author, well known forhis identification pieces in journalssuch as American Birds and Birding,has compiled an assortment of themost perplexing field problems facingbirders in North America, presentingthem in a handy field guide format.

Chapter 1, "Challenges in Birdingand How to Approach Them", servesas the introduction. Kaufman outlinesthe purpose of the book, andsummarizes the basic rules of fieldidentification, stressing the cautiousapproach to birding. He concludesthe chapter with a richly diagrammed"Terminology and Bird Topography".This chapter is a good set up for whatis to follow and makes interestingreading for birders of any level ofexperience. Chapters 2 to 35 are theheart of the book, delving into, inphylogenetic order, difficult problemsnot covered in a comparative senseby any standard field guide. Theauthor presents the problem,discusses preliminary field characters,dissects the problem, and summarizesthe key points. Problems involve twospecies situations such as ' 'TheWestern Grebe Complex" and "TheDark Ibises", three or four as in "TheAccipiters" and "The Medium-sizedTerns", all the way up to multiplespecies, the dreaded "EmpidonaxFlycatchers". Several chapters take ageneralized "how to" approach,

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discussing basic fundamentals ofidentification of shorebirds, gulls, fallwarblers and sparrows. Kaufmanprovides all of the illustrations andthe text for every chapter except for"The Dowitchers" and "The Thayer'sGull Complex", handled by ClaudiaWilds and Kevin J. Zimmer,respectively. For further reading, anextensive bibliography completes thebook.

I will start out by saying that thisis an excellent book, one that the"keeners" have long anticipated, as itneatly brings together a significantnumber of concerns that have alwaystroubled birders on the continent.

What I found to be particularlydelightful is that essentially everychapter in the book is of at leastmoderate relevance to Ontariobirders. Most of the chapters are ofprime interest to us. Of course, manypeople can think of problems whichare not dealt with in the book, butthe author acknowledges this in theearly stages. Furthermore, all that isneeded to rectify this is either anenlarged second edition or a VolumeII. In the interests of constructivecriticism, however, I'll nominate fourquandaries not examined: femaleBarrow's vs. Common Goldeneye;immature Broad-winged Hawk vs.Red-shouldered Hawk; Rock vs.Willow Ptarmigan; and Eastern vs.Western Meadowlark.

Kaufman's writing style serveshim well throughout the book. Heshows himself to be a knowledgeableinstructor who meticulously coaches

his students in solving problems.Rather than assaulting the readerwith a barrage of confusing detail, heidentifies the problem, providespertinent comparative information,then gets to the point. He shies awayfrom making too many absolutestatements about identification,constantly reminding us of "pitfalls"and when to use a dose of caution.Quite simply, he comes straightacross to the reader, and does so inan informative yet easy to digestmanner.

I give top marks to Kaufman asan illustrator. While his artwork doesnot rival the breathtaking quality of aLars Jonsson or a Killian Mullarney,it is nonetheless quite functional. Heis able to stay away fromexaggerating the differences betweensimilar species in his drawings, to thepoint of distortion. His technique,particularly in the drawings of gullsand terns, reminds me somewhat ofthe work of the late P.]. Grant. Notethe novel approach taken in depictingthe progression of a Ring-billed Gull

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from juvenile to adulthood on pages104-105. I have only a few qualmsabout the drawings in the book. ForPacific Loon on page 24, he does notshow the "chinstrap" effect beingpossessed by a juvenile. This variablefeature was present on both of thefirst year birds that I have been luckyenough to see in Ontario. On page 44,I thought the peaked look to the headof the drake Lesser Scaup is not quiteright. The Philadelphia Vireosdepicted on pages 226 and 228 couldshow a more prominent pale crescentbelow the eye and a less prominenteyeline. I found the breast streakingon the female Purple Finch on page270 to be a bit too thin.

With the art of field identificationhaving evolved to the level of today,this book is a natural result. Foranyone with a keen student's attitudetowards birding, indeed for thelegions who simply want to put theright name to any bird they see, Iheartily recommend this fine newguide.

Kevin McLaughlin, 30 Bingham Rd., Hamilton, Ontario L8H 1N4

The Bald Eagle: Haunts and Habits of a Wilderness Monarch. 1988. By Jon M.Gerrard and Gary R. Bortolotti. Western Producer Prairie Books, Saskatoon, Saskat­chewan. (paperback) 177 pp. + xiv. $18.95

Few North American birds haveevoked as much attention or emotionamongst birders or non-birders alikeas the Bald Eagle. They have beenhunted and poisoned. They havebeen revered, with their feathers andtalons being symbols in religiousrituals. They have been an inspirationto poets. The word "eagle" occurs inmore than sixty place names in

Ontario alone. They have been thesingular subject of scientificconferences. Indeed the Bald Eagle isone of the most widely andintensively studied bird species inNorth America. It has been declaredan endangered species and describedas an "ecological litmus paper". It isthe symbol of one of the mostpowerful nations this earth has ever

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known. And, of course, the sightingof a Bald Eagle is a highlight of theday on any birder's list.

In this book, the authors haveattempted to take an in-depth look atthe literature on the biology andecology of Bald Eagles and combinethat information with their ownextensive research to put together ahighly readable and informativeproduct. In this reviewer's opinion,they have done an admirable job.

Each chapter starts off with oneof the authors' personal anecdotesdealing with field experience of BaldEagle research. This provides aninside view of some of the highs andlows in the sometimes laborious workinvolving behavioural studies, andserves as an introduction to the maintheme of the chapter. Thiscombination gives the reader anexcellent sense of the passion andzeal these two "eagleologists" havedemonstrated over the years. It alsoties the writers' enthusiasm togetherwith the science they go on toelucidate.

The book is divided into twelvechapters, starting with, appropriately,a look at the history of the Bald Eaglein terms of its former numbers andrange. The authors then movequickly into a discussion of earlynaturalists' problems and perceptionsin sorting out this species, as therewas little awareness at that time ofthe various plumage changes thisspecies goes through before attainingits characteristic adult plumage ofwhite head and tail.

One of the primary theses inthese authors' research was how ageand sex might influence a BaldEagle's behaviour and ecology.Throughout most of the remaining

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chapters this is an integral theme.Successive chapters deal with

feathers and flight, diet andhuntinglfeeding techniques, nestingsurveys, breeding behaviour andterritoriality, nest sites and nestconstruction, courtship, nestlingbehaviour, banqing, dispersal offledged young, migration and winterdistribution. The final chapter dealswith the future of the Bald Eagle withrespect to contaminants, habitat lossand management and reintroductionprograms. The authors conclude in aguardedly optimistic way, that thereis no reason to suspect that the BaldEagle cannot adapt to the NorthAmerica of today, provided there arerelatively safe sources of food andplaces in which to rear their young.

Eleven appendices are included,ranging from measurements of malesand females at various ages, to meandaily temperatures at wintering areas,to specifications for buffer zonesaround nest sites. Following theappendices is a "Notes" section,providing a chapter by chapter listingof references. Then comes abibliography of more than 200references and lastly, a topical index.

A variety of illustrativephotographs and diagrams, all inblack and white, are scatteredthroughout the book. Most of thephotographs were taken in thevicinity of Besnard Lake,Saskatchewan, the location of muchof the authors' research.

This book is pleasantly free ofobvious errors. One of the diagramsillustrating types of flight used onmigration was somewhat confusing,but overall the quality of informationwas excellent. A minor complaintwas that, as one actively involved in

the management of Bald Eagles, Iwould have liked to have seen moreinformation presented by the authorsmore thoroughly referenced.

I would highly recommend thisbook to anyone even remotelyinterested in this majestic species. Itis in paperback form, and reasonablypriced. It is written with the laymanin mind, as the authors have

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masterfully interpreted the science sothat it will open a whole newperspective on Bald Eagle biology andecology. At the same time they haveprovided a wealth of information,some of it from original research, foreven the most ardent student of BaldEagle behaviour. It is one of the mosteasily read "reference books" thisreviewer has come across.

P. Allen Woodliffe, 30 Argyle Cres., Chatham, Ontario N7L 4T8

Birds of the Canadian Rockies. 1990. By George W. Scatter, Tom]. Ulrich and EdgarT. Jones. Western Producer Prairie Books, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. (paperback)170 pp. $22.95

When I was a student in Hamilton along time ago and geography was •mostly about the red areas on themap of the world, I had the naiveidea that the Rocky Mountainsincluded everything west of theAlberta foothills. It was a long timebefore I learned otherwise, namelythat the Rockies are just the firstrange going west, separated fromnumerous other ranges such as theSelkirks and Monashees by the RockyMountain trench, the deep valleywhere the headwaters of theKootenay, Columbia and FraserRivers gather.

Birds of the Canadian Rockies is apocket-sized field guide describingover 200 species that occur in thoseRocky Mountains and their easternfoothills. Some of the speciesdescribed here do not occur to thewest and some that occur in thewestern mountains and valleys do notappear here.

The layout is that now found in

most guides, text on the left, pictureson the right. The text by GeorgeScotter, who wrote Wildflowers of theCanadian Rockies, includes a briefdescription of breeding plumages,notes on their habits and preferredhabitat, their abundance and whereand when they occur throughout theregion. The pictures are fromphotographs taken by Tom Ulrichand Edgar Jones plus a sizablecontribution from others. The qualityis very good, on a par with those inthe Audubon Society Master Guide.

The text descriptions and picturesare limited to breeding adultplumages even in cases where thespecies is only a spring and/or fallmigrant. In the latter case mostsightings may be of juvenile orwinter-plumaged birds. The textsometimes contains descriptions ofsimilar species which are only namedthere. It seemed to me that in thesecases it would have been moreappropriate to include both names in

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the heading, with the less commonspecies in second position. Scotter'scomments on problems of separatingsimilar species often reflect personalexperience, such as the statementthat, between Hammond's and DuskyFlycatchers, "only God can tell themapart in the field and even He mayhave difficulty!". He tries to sort outtheir very similar songs but notes thatsequences can be varied, anddifferent observers will interpretthem quite differently. A review ofthe interpretations of the two songsfound in various guides and Birds ofCanada will confirm that statement.

Also included is a checklist of the315 species that have been recordedin the various national and provincialparks of the region. Of these, about220 either breed in Ontario or areregular transients, and many of theremainder visit occasionally. There isan entry for each of seven parks orregions, ranging from Waterton LakesN. P and the Kananaskis foothills inthe south to Liard River Hotsprings inthe north (just west of the Rockies,but the only good checklist in thenorth). These are orderedalphabetically rather than bylongitude, the latter of which would

.have given a better idea of whethereach species was found in the northor south. Occurrence is limited tothree categories: known to breed,recorded, and hypothetical. Noindication of abundance is given sothat we have to accept the authors'assessment as to which speciesshould be included in the main textand which omitted. I suspect that insome cases the decision was based onthe availability of a good photograph.The checklist gives no indication as towhich species are described in themain text.

The publisher's blurb on the backcover says that "For nature lovers,backpackers, kitchen-window birdersand the generally curious-minded,this easy-to-pack reference is aninvaluable introduction ...", and Iwould agree. With current NorthAmerican guides describing over 800species, trying to decide which oneyou may be looking at in Jasper N.P.could be a discouraging task.However, if you regularly see 200 to300 species in a year, this book willbe of help mostly in suggesting whereto look for a particular species thatyou are hoping to add to your life list.

Bill Walker, 52 Laurier (Box 28), Deep River, Ontario KOJ 1KO

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