Flight Identification of European Passerines and Select Landbirds: An Illustrated and Photographic Guide

Description

A richly illustrated, state-of-the-art field guide for identifying European passerines in flight-the first of its kind Opening up new frontiers in birdwatching, this is the first field guide for identifying European passerines in flight, featuring more than 1,850 stunning color illustrations from acclaimed bird artist Tomasz Cofta, who creates r

Tomasz Cofta is one of the most experienced field ornithologists in Europe, having ringed almost one hundred thousand birds of more than two hundred species (mainly passerines) in Europe, Asia and Africa. Based in Gdansk, Poland, he is a member of the Polish Avifaunistic Commission and an acclaimed bird illustrator and author. He has published more than a hundred papers on bird identification, featuring close to two thousand of his own artworks, and has prepared thousands of other meticulously detailed illustrations of birds and other wildlife that are featured in more than sixty books, including The World's Rarest Birds (Princeton WILDGuides).

"Third Place for the 2021 BB/BTO Best Bird Book of the Year, British Birds and the British Trust for Ornithology" "A truly sumptuous volume . . . . It is a remarkable achievement by Cofta to have assembled each bird as if a jigsaw from countless photographs. . . . It really is indispensable."---Stuart Winter, Sunday Express "Just when you think that WlLDGuides have covered pretty much every wildlife lD guide necessary, you suddenly find they've come out with yet another fabulous book that has to somehow be fitted into your bookcase. . . . You really haven't seen anything until you take a look at this!"---John Miles and Matt Merritt, Birdwatching Magazine "[An] impressive work. I think newcomers to visible migration in particular will gain the most benefit from it, but even experienced observers will surely learn something new."---Graham Sparshott, Scottish Birds "A novel idea. . . . The author's knowledge shines through, and there can be few birders - even the most seasoned migration watchers - who wouldn't stand to learn at least something from this book." * British Birds/British Trust for Ornithology * "Must-have . . . extraordinary single-handed labour of love. "---Stephen Moss, Stephen Moss's 2021 Round-up of Nature Books "Anyone with an interest in visible migration or identification generally will want to own a copy of this guide and it's a remarkable achievement by a single author."---Chris Kehoe, British Birds "I struggle to think of a birder I know or know of who will not wish to buy this book."---Phil Slade, Another Bird Blog "A real cutting-edge guide and should help with the difficult skill of identifying flying passerines. . . . I don't there is a single birder who could not learn something from this book. It is a terrific guide."---Mike King, Gloster Birder "A quite remarkable - and undoubtedly original - piece of work."---Josh Jones, Birdguides.com "This book is designed to be of greatest help when watching and counting migration where calls help in the identification and a short, but extremely useful chapter helps the reader to key into this difficult skill. The book will appeal to the experienced birders who wish to improve their skills with a new aspect of birding."---Steven Rutherford, British Naturalist's Association "[A] brilliantly conceived and executed book!"---Bo Beolens, Fat Birder "Tomasz Cofta's illustrations are the real draw - all 850 of them, showing the upperside, underside and side-on flight views. . . . A cutting-edge book, and it certainly is a first of its kind."---Keith Betton, Hampshire Ornithological Society newsletter "This is a really ground breaking book . . . . Written in a style that will appeal to all birders, it also contains new knowledge on flight identification, making it a must-have for professional ornithologists and scientists as well."---Alan Davies and Ruth Miller, Biggest Twitch "This pioneering guide is a formidable reference tool for identifying passerines in flight. It will deepen the understanding of anyone interested in the subject, particularly vismig and nocmig enthusiasts, but also the garden patch birder straining to determine the identity of the smaller birds that fly over the house. A strong recommendation for anyone wanting to push their personal frontiers of bird identification."---Chris Sharpe, Curious Naturalist "Each of the species is illustrated by the most beautiful, original artwork by the author and accompanied by several photographs showing the features that are most encountered in flight. The artwork is sublime and shows each species in great detail from above, below and in profile. . . . It is a book I wouldn't want to be without."---Paul Stancliffe, British Trust for Ornithology "This book represents an advance in developing a new and growing area of identification fieldcraft for birders."---Gehan De Silva Wijeyeratne, London Naturalist "An impressive piece of work, providing insights into an aspect of bird identification which has been relatively little explored in print."---Andy Stoddart, Rare Bird Alert