Ornithology in Laboratory and Field is intended as an aid to ornithological study at the college or university level. Students who lack the background knowledge usually acquired during a course in general zoology or biology should keep it handy for ready reference a standard elementary text on the subject. This book contains extensive material for purely informational reading, possibly enough to supplant the need of an additional textbook. Its principal purpose still complies with the title of its predecessors for it is essentially a manual to guide and assist the student in direct observations. All twenty sections, except the last (""The Origin, Evolution, and Decrease of Birds""), suggest methods and provide instructions for studies; and all conclude with an extensive list of references, frequently annotated, for further information. The twenty sections of the book can be taken up in almost any order and some may be omitted without affecting the instructional value of the others. A feature of this new edition is an introduction to birds and ornithology, intended for reading at the beginning of a course. The purpose is twofold: to show the significance of birds for study and to give an overall preview of ornithology, the subject, with emphasis on its wide scope, how it is studied, and some of the continuing and exciting opportunities that it offers for investigation.

This is the first book created primarily for the field identification of parrots, one of the most familiar and colorful groups of birds. From the mighty. macaws to the diminutive pygmy parrots, the 350 species of parrots include cockatoos, parakeets, lovebirds, and Budgerigar. Most are brightly colored or even gaudy, but a few are drab, and some are nocturnal and flightess. Parrots, found throughout most of the warmer regions of the world, occur in greatest numbers in Australasian and South America. This book includes 88 superb color illustrations of every species and most identifiable subspecies of parrot, as well as range maps of their locations. It offers many firsthand insights into the ecology of each species, vocalizations, life cycle characteristics, and geographical variation. It also provides up-to-date information on the conservation status of those species of parrots that are threatened or endangered.

"All the species are illustrated in 23 colour plates painted by Martin Woodcock. He has also contributed text drawings that illustrate behaviour and other features."--BOOK JACKET.

A comprehensive dictionary listing all the people whose names are commemorated in the English and scientific names of birds. Birdwatchers often come across bird names that include a person's name, either in the vernacular (English) name or latinised in the scientific nomenclature. Such names are properly called eponyms, and few people will not have been curious as to who some of these people were (or are). Names such as Darwin, Wallace, Audubon, Gould and (Gilbert) White are well known to most people. Keener birders will have yearned to see Pallas's Warbler, Hume's Owl, Swainson's Thrush, Steller's Eider or Brünnich's Guillemot. But few people today will have even heard of Albertina's Myna, Barraband's Parrot, Guerin's Helmetcrest or Savigny's Eagle Owl. This extraordinary work lists more than 4,000 eponymous names covering 10,000 genera, species and subspecies of birds. Every taxon with an eponymous vernacular or scientific name (whether in current usage or not) is listed, followed by a concise biography of the person concerned. These entries vary in length from a few lines to several paragraphs, depending on the availability of information or the importance of the individual's legacy. The text is punctuated with intriguing or little-known facts, unearthed in the course of the authors' extensive research. Ornithologists will find this an invaluable reference, especially to sort out birds named after people with identical surnames or in situations where only a person's forenames are used. But all birders will find much of interest in this fascinating volume, a book to dip into time and time again whenever their curiosity is aroused.

Honoring the deceased members and foreign associates of the National Academy of Engineering, this volume is an enduring record of the many contributions of engineering to humankind. This second volume of Memorial Tributes covers the period from January 1979 to April 1984.

This is a guide to rails, a relatively homogeneous family of birds spread throughout the world. Barry Taylor and Ber van Perlo have described and illustrated 145 species of rails, including two that are newly described, and also ten that are recently extinct and two that are almost certainly extinct. The book, based on up-to-date references and on new observations, is the first to give comprehensive information on field identification (including voice), covering all species and races for which details are known. It is also the first to provide descriptions of the immature and juvenile plumages of many species. The authors provide a detailed summary of current knowledge of all aspects of rail biology and their often complex behaviour, social structure, and family life. They explain how such apparently poorly flying birds can undertake intercontinental migrations and are such widespread and successful colonists of remote oceanic islands. They also discuss the remarkable ease and speed with which species on such islands have evolved into flightless forms in the absence of predators, a fact that has led to the rapid extinction of numerous island taxa following the arrival of man. Rail habitats are fast disappearing, say the authors, and many rails become endangered before enough is known about them to plan effective conservation measures. The book provides information on distribution, status, habitat requirements, and current threats, and it gives conservation priorities for threatened species.