| A Field Guide for Birders, Naturalists and Ecologists | Ken Behrens, Keith Barnes & Iain D Campbell | Princeton University Press | 2025 | Flexibound | 448 pages, colour photos, colour illustrations, colour distribution maps | ISBN: 9780691244761 |
The Publisher’s View:
With breathtaking wildlife and stunningly beautiful locales, Africa is a premier destination for birders, conservationists, ecotourists, and ecologists. This compact, easy-to-use guide provides an unparalleled treatment of the continent’s wonderfully diverse habitats. Incisive and up-to-date descriptions cover the unique features of each habitat, from geology and climate to soil and hydrology, and require no scientific background. Knowing the surrounding environment is essential to getting the most out of your travel experiences. Habitats of Africa offers quick and reliable information for anyone who wants a deeper understanding and appreciation of the habitats around them.
- Covers 85 major African habitats, including oceanic habitats
- Features hundreds of colour photos of habitats and their wildlife, a wealth of helpful diagrams and illustrations, and a detailed distribution map for each land habitat
- Concise text provides all the information you need to identify and understand habitats anywhere in Africa quickly and accurately
- Discusses iconic and indicator species of birds, mammals, and plants
- Includes an in-depth section on habitat classification-invaluable for ecologists
- Representative habitat accounts include a feature describing what you can expect to see and experience there
- Formatted like a field guide for easy reference
The Authors:
Ken Behrens is a professional nature guide whose books include (with Iain Campbell, Charley Hesse, and Phil Chaon) Habitats of the World (Princeton).
Keith Barnes is a bird tour leader for Tropical Birding whose books include (with Ken Behrens) Wildlife of Madagascar (Princeton WILDGuides).
Iain Campbell is a professional nature guide and habitat ecologist whose books include (with Phil Chaon and Ben Knoot) Habitats of North America (Princeton) and multiple bird guides.
Fatbirder View:
You are holidaying in South Africa and have snuck away for a bit of birding while your other half is sunning themselves by the hotel pool. You are half an hour away in case your presence is required to apply sun tan cream or fetch another Martini from the poolside bar. Sitting on the tailgate of your hire car you look across the valley, marvelling at the panoply of colourful flowering shrubs. A bird flits to the top of a flower head and sips nectar, almost buried from view bar the long green tail still poking out from behind the bright orange petals. Thinking you know what you just saw, having poured over the bird guide for the entire flight from home, you turn to the illustrated page and read the description finding that the bird you think you saw is generally confined to, and typical of Fynbos.
It’s just as well you had familiarised yourself with the special habitats of southern Africa, having consulted Habitats of Africa before leaving home. Proteas all over the heath-like land – check. Sedge-like Restio – check. Deep pink heathers underfoot – check.
Your phone alerts you to a message: Where are you? You hastily text back that you’re are just having a stroll and will see your partner in 30 minutes. On the drive back, you enjoy replaying the image of that Malachite Sunbird and the Cape Sugarbird you had a glimpse of as the phone chimed. You plan your next outing, confident that your companion will delight in the scenery and allow you the chance to tick off Rockjumpers and Canaries, Ground Woodpeckers and warblers, that specialise in the Fynbos.
Do you need any other reason to acquire your copy of the Habitats of Africa?
Fatbirder