Thoroughly good read, 22 Aug 2007
I enjoyed this book immensely. It is well written, it is interesting, touching and genuinely funny. I have never been to Australia and haven't even heard of most of the birds mentioned in this book, however, this did not detract in any way from the pleasure I got from reading it.
The book is written both for birders and non-birders. Dooley discusses the beauty and character of the birds he sees without going into the minutae of their identification. As such birders will identify with the thrill of the chase of the birds and non-birders will enjoy the descriptions of the birds and their environments.
I guess most people buying this book will be birders and they will no doubt be amused at how similar the twitching scene is on the other side of the planet to here in Britain. I recommend this book whole-heartedly to both birders and non-birders alike.
birding down under, 12 Sep 2006
A witty readable account of one man in a race to 700 birds in one year in Oz and also to find himself and give his life a little meaning. The best birding book I have read.
Like the Hand Guide but more informative, 29 Oct 2007
Considering that you don't really get much for your money with the 'Hand Guide' version of this book compared to other field guides - I would definately recommend that you choose this book instead if you are a serious or semi-serious birder/naturalist as it is an informative read in its own right as well as an adequate ID guide.
It only gets 4 stars as the quality of illustrations and style of the ID guide section is good but doesn't compare to some of the best guides on the International market and as I explained in the 'Hand Guide' review, is perhaps not even required given the nature of birds seen in NZ.
See my review of the Hand Guide for some recommended places to visit.
The best NZ field guide - with room to improve, 07 Mar 2005
The Field Guide to the Birds of New Zealand is the best field guide to NZ birds available! It covers all birds normally found on the North and South Island as well as on Chatham and Auckland Islands and others. It describes the birds, their appearance "jizz" and moulting in words that everyone will understand and find interesting and provides decent maps of migration, habitat, breeding etc. Compared to other books on the market this IS the benchmark!
However, I find the colours a bit off - they appear to be a little bright compared to studies in the field - and the texts suffer from lack of proof reading from time to time.
A more in-depth description of jizz would also have been appreciated as many of the native and/or sea birds in NZ only show themselves briefly and, especially if you're just visiting the country on a holiday, many birds can be difficult to establish 100% in the field without prior exposure - or good field guide descriptions.
All in all, I do recommend this book over any other book on New Zealand birds available! It comes close to the best of the European field guides!
Not a bad book - just maybe uneccessary?, 29 Oct 2007
The first thing I noticed upon ordering this book for my first trip to New Zealand last year is that this book isn't really very big. Especially for the money you pay for it in the UK. Secondly the majority of the book is taken up by pelagic seabirds and waders, many of which are rare vagrants. Thirdly the quality of the book is not terrible by any means but the illustrations are not the finest in the world. The text is adequate for ID purposes but presents little information.
Upon arriving in New Zealand I found that there really aren't that many species of non-marine birds there and many of those are introductions and will be familiar to UK birders. Of course when you do finally get to grips with NZ specialities like the Tui and the Kea and so on - they are all fantastic and unique birds. But heres the crux of it - you really don't need this guide in order to id them as they are all so distinctive and there is a lot of information to help you at any of the National Park or Dept of Conservation Offices. There are no complex warbler groups, only one pipit, only one lark etc. Really one of the small photographic guides (which I always think are aimed at the casual wildlife enthusiasts rather than serious birders) will probably suffice unless you want the most comprehensive and complete guide on the market. And if that is the case I would recommend the 'Field Guide' version of this publication which has all the contents of this book plus plenty more information to make it an informative read in addition to an ID guide - and its only a few pounds more. Therefore it kind of makes this book, good as it is, quite redundant.
Plus if you are really into pelagic bird spotting you can get a seperate and probably better book for them (though I haven't read it myself) plus you can get guided boat-trips with knowledgeable guides from places such as Auckland or Kaikoura.
New Zealand is the most beautifu place I have been to and I recommend it highly - not many species for hardened birders but the ones they have are gems and the scenery is spectacular to match. For birds I recommend taking a whale-watching trip from either Auckland or Kaikoura, the Otago Pensinsula at Dunedin (very good guided tours there), Tiritiri Matangi Island Sanctuary, Fjordland (go tramping along the Dart/Rees), and the mecca of NZ birding - Stewart Island, your best chance of spotting a wild kiwi (though sadly I didn't!).
But as I say you are better off investing in the 'Field Guide' version of this book if you are a serious birder/naturalist.
