Kenn Kaufman's guide to North American birds has been published in Spanish. Below is an account of another bird book being translated to Spanish. Making these books available to Spanish-speaking people is important for two reasons: To serve U.S. citizens and residents who communicate best in Spanish and have an interest in birds, and, second, to aid researchers and environmentalists in Central and South America, who lack ID and bird-biology books in that language (it is more difficult for them to work to help preserve "our" birds when they lack these tools). You can help by contributing money to Birders' Exchange (the note following was written by Dick Payne, former president of ABA).
==== The American Birding Association's Birders' Exchange has taken on the enormous and important task of translating John Kricher's book, A Neotropical Companion, An Introduction to the Animals, Plants and Ecosystems of the New World Tropics, into a Spanish-language version. Thus far, A Neotropical Companion has been printed only in English and Japanese. We are pleased to report that the project is progressing very well. Alvaro Jaramillo, the project's editor, has created a special website in order for the twenty-nine volunteer translators to communicate and work with each other, and BEX volunteer, Susie Vancura, is coordinating all of the efforts of the translation team. The translators began their work in early May and already the entire 400+ page book has been translated! This is a huge undertaking for BEX, and it is hoped that the book will be available by the end of 2005. BEX will donate and distribute copies of the Spanish version to our colleagues working in conservation and education throughout the Neotropics." ==== To learn more about Birders' Exchange and/or to make a contribution, go to the web site www.americanbirding.org or call 800-850-2473. Birders' Exchange also will take your used binoculars and spotting scopes and see that they are put to valuable use in Central and South America. Again, it is difficult to do important research on "our" birds without the proper tools. Please help. Work in the wintering habitat of many of our nesting visitors is as important as the conservation work we support here. Jim Williams Wayzata
