COBirders,Last week my review copy of The Crossley ID Guide, Eastern Birds did NOT arrive, although the mailing package did. Whimpy arm alert! The reason for receiving only the mailing package is this book is BIG and…it is heavy, weighing in at 3.5 lbs—heavier than the new Stokes guide—and with dimensions of 10”x7”, door stop size and bigger than the Big Sibley. This book isn’t going to fit in any Pajaro Bag and if you try to stuff it between your back and pants you better be wearing a titanium belt or nice underwear. Luckily my copy was eventually found along with my address on the floor of a Denver USPS receiving center.Those who heard Richard Crossley speak at the recent San Luis Valley CFO Convention will understand that this is no ordinary author/photographer and neither is his ID guide. What I like: jillions of photographs, seamlessly manipulated in Photoshop to fit the habitat and space and often one species per page. This is also what I don’t like. For America Robin there are 28 birds including a group in a distant bird bath and some tiny images of birds foraging on the ground. Possibly helpful, one image of Alder Flycatcher is shown bigger than life size. Like—some of the backgrounds are perfect—you see the large format habitat where you would expect to find a Henslow’s Sparrow and a White-eyed Vireo, especially their breeding habitat. A word of caution, on page 22 Richard says…I DON’T LIKE TEXT… so don’t expect to find any song descriptions, but if you like excellent photographs of birds in many plumages, including lots of birds in flight, this book might be for you.A large map inside the back cover defines the states and provinces included in the scope of the guide—Kansas, but not Colorado, Prince Albert Sound, but not Amundsen Gulf, and all of TX except West Texas. However, if a bird breeds in the defined area it will be included with a range map that may extend to California and may include much of Alaska or Baja California. Montezuma Quail is included in the book, Mexican Whip-poor-will and Gunnison Sage-Grouse are not. My current favorite pages are the photographic comparisons between Common and Chihuahuan ravens, a favorite topic recently on COBirds. The large photos of two difficult corvid species raise a lot of questions but for me they answer even more. Need correct 4-letter bird codes, you’ll find them for all of the accepted ABA-area species, BTNW forever. Princeton University Press and Richard claim that this book is for beginners and for experts and for everyone in between, just what you would expect to hear. I don’t see this as a book for beginners but for everyone else who really enjoys birds and wants to learn more through exquisite photographs and excellent text (text length somewhere between Big Sibley and NGS) including photographs of 22 psittacids found in FL, CA, and AZ neighborhoods but not currently on the ABA Checklist, you can find them in this book. Currently available by special order from Princeton, but you might want to view one first to see if you like it before crediting the U.S. $35 to your card. I am not associated with Princeton U Press in any way and I receive no money from Princeton Univerity Press or from Richard Crossley for my comments. I do like good bird books and Richard is a funny guy. ____________________________________________________________ Brooks Passion. Vision. Excellence. Brooks Institute can show you how. http://thirdpartyoffers.juno.com/TGL3141/4d5f23dca1413398b07st06duc
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