Birds of Aruba, Curacao and Bonaire – Bart De Boer, Eric Newton and Robin Restall | 176 pages | 70 colour plates | 5 colour photos | 4 colour maps | Softcover | A & C Black | 2012 | ISBN 9781408137277
Published in North America by Princeton University Press | ISBN: 9780691153360
Publisher (A&C Black) View: The Netherlands Antilles comprises three main islands off the coast of northern Venezuela. These are Aruba, Curacao and Bonaire. They are major tourist destinations, especially popular with divers, and also attract many visitors from Holland and elsewhere. The colour plates are based on the bestselling “Birds of Northern South America”, but many new images have been painted specially for this book. The authoritative text highlights the key features needed to identify each species in the field, and the plates illustrate every distinct plumage and race. This will be the first ever comprehensive field guide dedicated to the birds of the region.Publisher (Princeton University Press) View: Located in the southern Caribbean off the coast of Venezuela, the islands of Aruba, Curaçao, and Bonaire are home to a colorful diversity of bird species. Birds of Aruba, Curaçao, and Bonaire is the first comprehensive field guide to the birds of the region and the ideal companion for identifying the islands’ remarkable avian population. This compact and portable book contains close to 1,000 superb color illustrations on 71 color plates and detailed descriptions of every species. Concise text on facing pages highlights key identification features, including voice, habitat, behavior, and status. This field guide is essential for all birdwatchers and wildlife enthusiasts interested in this part of the world.
* First-ever comprehensive field guide to the birds of the Lesser Antilles
* Complete coverage of the islands’ bird species, including residents, migrants, and vagrants
* Close to 1,000 illustrations on 71 color plates depicting every species and all major plumages and races
* Concise text on facing pages highlights key identification features, including voice, habitat, behavior, and statusAuthors: Bart de Boer is a Dutch ornithologist who has previously authored a simple photographic guide to the commoner birds of the region.
Eric Newton is an amateur ornithologist resident on Curacao.
Robin Restall is the principal author and sole illustrator of “Birds of Northern South America”.
Fatbirder View: Why doesn’t the publisher take a leaf out of its own book? The book covers the species with adequate portraits (in my copy some seem rather washed out as if one tone is missing). Check out the mallard, I’ve never seen one looking so pale as if in an orangey light. So, they vary from excellent to OK, and the intro is fine too. But compare this to the Sri Lanka guide and what’s missing? There is no ‘family account’ section pointing out the bird families, nor are there distribution maps next to the plates just codes for occurrence in the different islands. Overall the book disappoints.
Fatbirder