The best-selling and authoritative reference book on waterfowl has been fully revised and updated by one of the world’s most respected waterfowl biologists. Honorable Mention for the PROSE Award for Excellence, Multivolume/Science of the Association of American Publishers Ducks, Geese, and Swans of North America has been hailed as a classic since the first edition was published in 1942. A must-have for professional biologists, birders, waterfowl hunters, decoy collectors, and wildlife managers, this fully revised and updated edition provides definitive information on the continent's forty-six species. Maps of both winter and breeding ranges are presented with stunning images by top waterfowl photographers and the acclaimed original artwork of Robert W. (Bob) Hines. Originally authored by F. H. Kortright and later revised by Frank Bellrose, this latest edition, which has been meticulously updated by renowned waterfowl biologist Guy Baldassarre, continues the legacy of esteemed authors. Each species account contains in-depth sections on: • identification • distribution • migration behavior • habitat • population status • breeding biology • rearing of young • recruitment and survival • food habits and feeding ecology • molts and plumages • conservation and management To facilitate identification, the species accounts also include detailed illustrations of wings. An appendix contains comparative illustrations of ducklings, goslings, and cygnets. This edition of Ducks, Geese, and Swans consists of two volumes, printed in full color, and packaged in a slipcase, along with a CD containing references and additional maps.

Provides detailed descriptions, drawings, color portraits, and diagnostic identification of live, day-old young of North American waterfowl.

Small, noisy and colourful, the Teal is a familiar duck throughout the wetlands and waterways Europe and Asia. Once hunted extensively for the pot, its numbers have recovered and it is now one of our commonest species of waterfowl. A flagship species for wetland conservation, the Teal is also an excellent model species for ecological research, and this forms the spine of this new Poyser monograph. The Teal looks at distribution and trends in numbers, foraging ecology, breeding behaviour), population dynamics, management and conservation of teal, looking at both the Eurasian Common Teal and its North American equivalent, the Green-winged Teal (which until relatively recently was considered to be the same species). The book provides a scientifically robust account on which wetland managers, research scientists and the ornithological community may rely, with wider implicatons for the conservation and management of other waterfowl, and for ecological research in general.

Provides detailed descriptions, drawings, color portraits, and diagnostic identification of live, day-old young of North American waterfowl.

The 21 species of sea ducks are one of the larger subgroups (Tribe Mergini) of the waterfowl family Anatidae, and the 16 species (one historically extinct) that are native to North America represent the largest number to be found on any continent, and also the largest number of endemic sea duck species native to any continent. Although generally not important as game birds, the sea ducks include some economically important birds such as the eiders, the basis for the Arctic eiderdown industry and a historically important food source for some Native American cultures. They also include what is probably the most northerly breeding species of all waterfowl and an icon of Arctic bird life, the long-tailed duck. The sea ducks also include species having some of the most complex and diverse pair-forming postural and acoustic displays of all waterfowl (goldeneyes and bufflehead), and some of the deepest diving species of all waterfowl (scoters and long-tailed duck). Sea ducks are highly prone to population disasters caused by oil spills and other water contaminants and, like other seabirds, are among the first bird groups that are being affected by current global warming trends in polar regions. This book is an effort to summarize succinctly our current knowledge of sea duck biology and to provide a convenient survey of the vast technical literature on the group, with over 900 literature references. It also includes 90,000 words of text (more than 40 percent of which is new), 15 updated range maps, 11 black & white and 20 color photographs, over 30 ink drawings, and nearly 150 sketches. Lastly, the North American sea ducks include the now extinct Labrador duck, the only northern hemisphere waterfowl species to have gone extinct in modern times. I have gratefully reprinted a Labrador duck watercolor by Sir Peter Scott. Considering recent population crashes in other sea ducks, such as the Steller's eider and spectacled eider, it should also offer a sobering reminder of the fragility of our natural world and its inhabitants, including us.