eBirdseed.com Wild Bird Feeding Blog

Well, if you read the "Hawks at a Distance" review, the cover shot below should look a tad familiar...

But this is indeed a different book, so let's look at this one on its own merits...

• True to form, Liguori's approach to hawk identification is both novel and brilliant. (Bird maven David Sibley actually wrote the foreword.)

  Once again, the reader can study migratory and location patterns, flight positions, anatomy, etc., but this time the full-page closeup photographs are left out and only distance shots of all 20 species are included. In fairness, the thumbnails are larger than in the "Distance" work, though in both books the shutter work is superb. ("Hawks from Every Angle" is a 9.5" by 7.5" field guide consisting of130 acid-free pages, 339 color photos and 32 B&W illustrations.) As expected, the list of identification options feels just right.

• If I had a complaint here, it would be that I had to turn to the "How to use this guide" briefly to understand the taxonomical difference between the accipiters and the buteos... That done, like its literary cousin, this truly is a "crack it open and you have a clue within 60 seconds" reference.
• And once again, the author's use of bold text to accentuate key points is precisely what the doctor ordered. (Thank you Jerry Liguori!)

I hate to fawn all over a book, but "Hawks From Every Angle" deserves that kind of praise (as does "Hawks at a Distance"). Simply put, in my over-rated $.02, this work nudges perfection. I guess that begs the question, "So what book to buy... 'Angle' or 'Distance'?" Honestly... I don't know. I love the full shots in "Hawks at a Distance", but "Hawks from Every Angle" is an absolute ringer as well. If you have any interest in hawks (or just beautiful birds for that matter), I'd say buy both and give them heirloom care, because this kind of work deserves that kind of reverence.

Marveling by the feeders...

CapeCodAlan

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Posted by CapeCodAlan at 11:12 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Here at Casa CapeCodAlan, we have some new neighbors. A lovely couple has moved in somewhere close, and while we haven't yet seen the new home, we know they're here, because they've been roaming the area for several days, scoping things out.

In case you're uncertain (and if so, you should consult the book I reveiwed the other day, Hawks at a Distance), that is a red-tailed hawk, one of a pair who has been flying all around the yard, the woods, and the pond across the road. They're taking in all the sights with those keen hawk eyes...

Honestly, though, it's truly difficult to mistake a red-tail for any other hawk when you see a beautiful sight like this:

While the crows are almost desultory in their occasional forays against this pair--almost as if they know there's nothing they can do to discourage these two from moving in--the squirrels retain a native caution, freezing the instant the hawks appear. And with good reason!

Hiding by the feeders,

CapeCodAlan

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Cornell Ornithology Laboratory: Inside Birding

Cornell Ornithology Laboratory: All About Birding

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Posted by CapeCodAlan at 9:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)