In this book, bursting with more information than any field guide could hold, the well-known author and birder Pete Dunne introduces readers to the “Cape May School of Birding.” It’s an approach to identification that gives equal or more weight to a bird’s structure and shape and the observer’s overall impression (often called GISS, for General Impression of Size and Shape) than to specific field marks.
After determining the most likely possibilities by considering such factors as habitat and season, the birder uses characteristics such as size, shape, color, behavior, flight pattern, and vocalizations to identify a bird. The book provides an arsenal of additional hints and helpful clues to guide a birder when, even after a review of a field guide, the identification still hangs in the balance.
This supplement to field guides shares the knowledge and skills that expert birders bring to identification challenges. Birding should be an enjoyable pursuit for beginners and experts alike, and Pete Dunne combines a unique playfulness with the work of identification. Readers will delight in his nicknames for birds, from the Grinning Loon and Clearly the Bathtub Duck to Bronx Petrel and Chicken Garnished with a Slice of Mango and a Dollop of Raspberry Sherbet.
Love it and Recommend it for Curious Birders I’ve been birding for about 2 years and was curious for more indepth understanding of bird behavior and other cool facts. After reading Pete Dunn’s book Identification of Birds, I wanted to read more from this author. The Essential Field Guide Campanion is a treat. It is loaded with practical information and a wealth of tips that would take many years to figure out yourself. I find myself using it a lot and I find it to be more informative that the Cornell website on birds but less detailed…
My favorite birding book of all time When I got my Kindle, I wrote Pete Dunne and begged him to put this on Kindle so that I could bring it with me into the field. (It’s a big book in paper.) He wrote me back to let me know he was working on it with his publisher. I was ecstatic to find it on Kindle at last.
Interesting Info to Flesh Out the Typical Birding Guide Text I bought the Kindle version of this book a week or two ago and am greatly enjoying learning more about the birds I see. It’s all text but that’s the point — more info on birds that you can see pictures of in your bird guides. It’s easy reading and interesting.