Backyard Birds (Peterson Field Guides: Young Naturalists) - Softcover

Nolting, Karen Stray; Peterson, Roger Tory

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0395922763 ISBN 13: 9780395922767

Publisher: Mariner Books, 1999

Synopsis

Field guides for young naturalists backyard birds series is designed with the beginner in mind. Features the original art of celebrated naturalist roger tory Peterson; incorporates the Peterson identification system, the most effective method for bird identification; and uses a straightforward design. This series makes field guides accessible and appealing to children. Paperback; 48 pages trim. Age range: 8-12 years, grade range grades 4-6. Measures 5-inch width by 8.5-inch length.

About this title

About the Author:

Roger Tory Peterson, one of the world's greatest naturalists, received every major award for ornithology, natural science, and conservation as well as numerous honorary degrees, medals, and citations, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom. The Peterson Identification System has been called the greatest invention since binoculars. These editions include updated material by Michael O'Brien, Paul Lehman, Bill Thompson III, Michael DiGiorgio, Larry Rosche, and Jeffrey A. Gordon.

Specialists in the natural and physical sciences, Karen Stray Nolting and Jonathan Latimer have written more than twenty books together. They have written books for adults, as well as both novels and nonfiction for children.

From Scientific American:

From the new series "Peterson Field Guides for Young Naturalists," Backyard Birds is a wonderful handbook for the novice birder. Whether your young bird-watcher is a curious casual observer or a more systematic collector of sightings, he or she will find this guide informative and easy to follow. Featuring illustrations by the famous naturalist Roger Tory Peterson, the book gives a simple, nonthreatening introduction to the Peterson system of bird identification (essentially a set of drawings and questions that help birders look for particular identifying features). There is enough information here to help readers identify 20 backyard birds common to most parts of the U.S. and Canada. A short course on the Peterson method encourages readers to observe the size, shape, color and markings of each bird sighted, as well as its habitat, call and behavior. Armed with this information, the reader can then solve the puzzle of what is flying around in the backyard. Each chapter--as highlighted in the table of contents--shows birds of one predominant color, enabling the reader to turn to the right section and begin the identification process right away, regardless of previous bird knowledge. The chapters themselves each describe and picture one to four birds, including notes on each one's habitat, voice and food. Readers are advised to observe other identification clues such as the shape of the beak (curved or straight?), the length of the legs (long or short?), and the shape of the tail (rounded, pointed, flat or forked?). These can be difficult to note when the bird is far away or in motion, but it gets easier with practice. This book will have you paying more attention to and getting more pleasure from the birds you see every day, whether you are just out with the family or going on a walk specifically to look for birds. And there are bonus features that make the book even more useful: in the hardback version, the inside back cover of the dust jacket is printed with rulers (metric and English) that make it easier to judge a bird's size. And the index includes room for entries describing where and when the young birder has seen each species--perhaps the start of his or her life list of birds seen.

Joan Silberlicht Epstein

About this edition

• Publisher: Mariner Books
• Publication date: 1999
• ISBN 10: 0395922763
• ISBN 13: 9780395922767
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 48