| The Sibley Guide to Birds | 
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| Authors: National Audubon Society, David Allen Sibley
Publisher: Knopf
Category: Book
List Price: CDN$ 53.00
Buy New: CDN$ 33.39
You Save: CDN$ 19.61 (37%)
New (11) Used (3) from CDN$ 23.70
Avg. Customer Rating:  84 reviews
Sales Rank: 9943
Media: Paperback
Edition: 1
Pages: 544
Shipping Weight (lbs): 2.6
Dimensions (in): 9.6 x 5.7 x 1.1
MPN: GCD-RH679451226
ISBN: 0679451226
Dewey Decimal Number: 598.097
EAN: 9780679451228
ASIN: 0679451226
Publication Date: October 3, 2000
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
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| Editorial Reviews:
From Amazon.com
More than 10 years in the making, David Sibley's Guide to Birds is a monumental achievement. The beautiful watercolor illustrations (6,600, covering 810 species in North America) and clear, descriptive text place Sibley and his work squarely in the tradition of John James Audubon and Roger Tory Peterson; more than a birdwatcher and evangelizer, he is one of the foremost bird painters and authorities in the U.S. Still, his field guide will no doubt spark debate. Unlike Kenn Kaufman's Focus Guide, Sibley's is unapologetically aimed at the converted. Beginning birders may want to keep a copy of Sibley at home as a reference, but the wealth of information will have the same effect on novices as trying to pick out a single sandpiper in a wheeling flock of thousands. The familiar yellow warbler, for instance, gets no less than nine individual illustrations documenting its geographic, seasonal, and sex variations--plus another eight smaller illustrations showing it in flight. Of course, more experienced birders will appreciate this sort of detail, along with Sibley's improvements on both Peterson and the National Geographic guide: - As in Peterson, Sibley employs a pointer system for key field markings--but additional text blurbs are included alongside the illustrations to facilitate identification.
- Descriptive passages on identification are more detailed than those in most other field guides. For example, Sibley includes extensive information on the famously hard-to-distinguish hawks in the genus Accipiter (sharp-shinned, Cooper's, and northern goshawk), noting differences in leg thickness and wing beat that will be of use to more advanced birders. A section on the identification of "peeps" (small sandpipers) includes tips about seasonal molting and bill length. Confusing fall warblers, Empidonax flycatchers, and Alcids receive similar treatment.
- As previously mentioned, ample space is given to illustrations that show plumage variations by age, sex, and geography within a single species. Thus, an entire page is devoted to the red-shouldered hawk and its differing appearances in the eastern U.S., Florida, and California; similarly, gulls are distinguished by age and warblers by sex.
- Range maps are detailed and accurate, with breeding, wintering, and migration routes clearly depicted; rare but regular geographic occurrences are denoted by green dots.
- The binding and paper stock are of exceptional quality. Despite its 544 pages, a reinforced paperback cover and sewn-in binding allow the book to be spread out flat without fear of breaking the binding.
Some birders will be put off by the book's size. Slightly larger than the National Geographic guide, it's less portable than most field guides and will likely spend more time in cars and desks than on a birder's person while in the field. For some it will be a strictly stay-at-home companion guide to consult after a field trip; others may want to have it handy in a fannypack or backpack. But regardless of how it is used, Sibley's Guide to Birds is a significant addition to any birding library. "Birds are beautiful," the author writes in the preface, "their colors, shapes, actions, and sounds are among the most aesthetically pleasing in nature." Pleasing, too, is this comprehensive guide to their identification. --Langdon Cook
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| Customer Reviews: Read 79 more reviews...
 Great but BIG May 16, 2008
This is an excellent book content-wise, but it is definitely not a field guide. I would recommend purchasing the two smaller eastern and western edition guides, since they contain the same information (just split between the 2 regions) and are portable.
A Great Identification Guide for Eastern North America July 22, 2004
A very, very good book of truly great assistance in identifying difficult birds such as Bicknell's Thrush and in distinguishing others such as Eastern and Western Meadowlarks. This said, it is a trifle heavy though I still carry it always in my shoulder bag. I would suggest that in the next edition the headers announcing the various regional plumages be more pronounced, that is they should stand out more. This would make the book even more useful.
Colors are a bit strange but I still really like this book March 15, 2004
For the first year I owned this book, I dragged it around in the field and decided that I did not like this book because the colors seemed garish. It really bothered me that many of the brown birds in the book looked rather orange, birds with red plumage were a tacky orange-red, and the blue colors seemed unrealistic to my eye. But after owning this book for a while now, I have decided that it is one of my favorites. The best things about it are the range maps on the pages with the birds and the multiple drawings for every bird. I prefer to carry the Peterson guide in the field because I like the arrows that point out distinguishing features in the Peterson guide and I need more realistic color when I am actually comparing a color plate to a live bird. But I bring the Sibley Guide to Birds in my car whenever I go birding. That way I can enjoy Sibley's cheery artwork as soon as I get back to the parking lot. In fact, I even prefer to look at birds in the Sibley Guide when I'm not in the field trying to identify a bird for the first time.
 A terrific identification guide! March 8, 2004
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I've been a birder for many years and began a life list around five years ago. I own many of the standard field guides. Only recently did I obtain the Sibley Guide, but it's become my favorite. I generally use Sibley and Stokes in tandem.Advantages:
1. Logical layout
2. "Species accounts" pages offer an excellent comparative view within the group, as well as a good all-up overview of the families/genus/species, and general behavior.
3. Individual species pages show comprehensive plumage reference art; more detailed than any I've seen. For this feature alone, the guide is worthwhile!
4. Species pages show variants (e.g., Great Blue/Great White Heron), fledgling and/or juvenile patterns. In some cases art of eclipse plumage is a very nice bonus.
5. Flight/wing patterns where relevant
6. Comparison of hummingbird mating display paths
7. Diurnal raptors section shows perched vs. in-flight underside plumage for each species. It also offers silhouette guides to help teach wing shape if plumage is light-obscured.
8. Good geographical reference map (though smaller than ideal*)
9. Good vocal descriptions
10. Nice (what they refer to as) "bird topography" section
11. Where applicable, good information on regional variations and species clines. Disadvantages:
1. This is not a pocket guide; it's cumbersome. I use Stokes in the field, and use Sibley at home for reference afterward.
2. The binding on my copy isn't sturdy, particularly for something that's supposedly a field guide. I feel like I must treat the glue binding gingerly or the pages might start to fall out.
3. Not enough text re: birding ethics & conservation (but that might just be my inner tree-hugger appearing) :)
4. *Geographical range map is small. I imagine it'd be difficult for some people to see clearly.
5. Migratory geographical information only covers North America. I'd like reference for migratory species (even just within text) of migration route start/finish and total annual distance. (Aside: the artic tern has the longest distance migration [Arctic to Antarctic] and can cover 22k - 30k mpy.) Overall, this a great reference, and I recommend it highly. However, to Knopf publishers/Chanticleer Press: Please ask Dai Nippon Printing Co to use better binding glue in the next edition!
A Sibley classic January 13, 2004
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
A truly magnificent book, which, coupled with its companion volume, the Sibley Guide to Bird Life and Behavior, provides the definitive text on American birdlife.
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