How to Know the Birds: The Art and Adventure of Birding [Hardcover]

Become a better birder with brief portraits of 200 top North American birds. This friendly, relatable book is a celebration of the art, science, and delights of bird-watching.

How to Know the Birds introduces a new, holistic approach to bird-watching, by noting how behaviors, settings, and seasonal cycles connect with shape, song, color, gender, age distinctions, and other features traditionally used to identify species. With short essays on 200 observable species, expert author Ted Floyd guides us through a year of becoming a better birder, each species representing another useful lesson: from explaining scientific nomenclature to noting how plumage changes with age, from chronicling migration patterns to noting hatchling habits. Dozens of endearing pencil sketches accompany Floyd's charming prose, making this book a unique blend of narrative and field guide. A pleasure for birders of all ages, this witty book promises solid lessons for the beginner and smiles of recognition for the seasoned nature lover.“Whether you have only just experienced your spark bird, have had a decades-long burning passion for birds, or are somewhere in between, How to Know the Birds is sure to fan the flames and leave you feeling stoked about, to quote the author, the ability of birds “to delight and surprise and amaze us.” –Birding Magazine

“Those of us who might feel intimidated by the competitiveness of many bird watchers couldn’t ask for a warmer, kinder, more helpful companion out in the field — carrying binoculars and a mobile phone. Floyd is an avid Wi-Fi birder, with a helpful “urge to eBird”; his is “a manifesto for the modern bird lover.”—The New York Times
 
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