BIRDERS WILL DELIGHT in this field guide parody which hovers over the forefront of ornithological discovery. Thirty-two fabulous new species are depicted in this volume, which features tongue-in-bill descriptions, observation hints, and range maps, as well as remarkable full-color illustrations. The reader will never look at our feathered friends in the same way after encountering these "freakquent" flyers.

A hilarious, feather-brained field guide parody—the perfect gift for your favorite birder! From the award-winning team of Cathryn, John, and Ben Sill. "The funniest field guide you'll ever buy." ―BirdWatching Daily "Aficionados will find themselves squawking with laughter at the ingenuity and mock-seriousness of this engaging volume by three avid birders." ―Publishers Weekly Birders and just about anyone who likes birds will delight in this satirical field guide from award-winning author and illustrator team Cathryn, John, and Ben Sill. Thirty-two fabulous fictitious species (Military Warbler? Great-toed Clapboard Pecker, anyone?) are depicted in this witty volume, which features tongue-in-cheek descriptions, observation hints, and range maps, as well as John Sill's remarkable full-color illustrations. A must-have for any bird watcher! Also available: Another Field Guide to Little-Known and Seldom-Seen Birds of North America

From the award-winning birder and author of Birds of Prey, an authoritative, information-packed guide to distinguishing North American birds. In this book, bursting with more information than any field guide could hold, the well-known author and birder Pete Dunne introduces readers to the “Cape May School of Birding.” It's an approach to identification that gives equal or more weight to a bird's structure and shape and the observer's overall impression (often called GISS, for General Impression of Size and Shape) than to specific field marks. After determining the most likely possibilities by considering such factors as habitat and season, the birder uses characteristics such as size, shape, color, behavior, flight pattern, and vocalizations to identify a bird. The book provides an arsenal of additional hints and helpful clues to guide a birder when, even after a review of a field guide, the identification still hangs in the balance. This supplement to field guides shares the knowledge and skills that expert birders bring to identification challenges. Birding should be an enjoyable pursuit for beginners and experts alike, and Pete Dunne combines a unique playfulness with the work of identification. Readers will delight in his nicknames for birds, from the Grinning Loon and Clearly the Bathtub Duck to Bronx Petrel and Chicken Garnished with a Slice of Mango and a Dollop of Raspberry Sherbet.

Provides basic information about the biology, life cycles, and behavior of birds, along with brief profiles of each of the eighty bird families in North America.

Presents a handbook for the identification of over five hundred species of trees by illustration and text.

In Black Chicago’s First Century, Christopher Robert Reed provides the first comprehensive study of an African American population in a nineteenth-century northern city beyond the eastern seaboard. Reed’s study covers the first one hundred years of African American settlement and achievements in the Windy City, encompassing a range of activities and events that span the antebellum, Civil War, Reconstruction, and post-Reconstruction periods. The author takes us from a time when black Chicago provided both workers and soldiers for the Union cause to the ensuing decades that saw the rise and development of a stratified class structure and growth in employment, politics, and culture. Just as the city was transformed in its first century of existence, so were its black inhabitants. Methodologically relying on the federal pension records of Civil War soldiers at the National Archives, as well as previously neglected photographic evidence, manuscripts, contemporary newspapers, and secondary sources, Reed captures the lives of Chicago’s vast army of ordinary black men and women. He places black Chicagoans within the context of northern urban history, providing a better understanding of the similarities and differences among them. We learn of the conditions African Americans faced before and after Emancipation. We learn how the black community changed and developed over time: we learn how these people endured—how they educated their children, how they worked, organized, and played. Black Chicago’s First Century is a balanced and coherent work. Anyone with an interest in urban history or African American studies will find much value in this book.

A pocket-size, brilliantly colorful, simple-to-use guide to shorebirds, containing dozens of full-color photographs that enable readers of all ages to identify the most common species; range maps; tips on the best times to view shorebirds, information on habitat needs, life cycle, food preferences; and much more.