18 Tel ESA UD 08B*O°N 9B US ae ia 
BOOK REVIEWS 
THE WORLD OF BIRDS, by James Fisher and Roger Tory Peterson. Pub- 
lished in England and America by Doubleday and Co., Inc., Garden City, 
New York. 288 pages, with 709 color paintings, numerous black-and-white 
drawings and halftones, and 195 color maps. October, 1964. $22.95; avail- 
able from the National Audubon Society, 1130 Fifth Ave., New York, at 
a “pre-Christmas sale” price of $17.95. 
A book entitled THE WORLD OF BIRDS invites comparison with the 
earlier BIRDS OF THE WORLD by Oliver L. Austin, Jr., and Arthur 
Singer, published exactly three years ago. Indeed, the two volumes are very 
much alike. Both are huge in size (the newer one is 9% x 12% and weighs 
4% wounds); both are magnificently — even lavishly — illustrated in full 
color; and both encompass all birds, living and otherwise. The artists in 
each case are masters in the field of bird portrayal — and I will not attempt 
to judge which one is the better. But when it comes to content and purpose, 
the similarity ends. 
THE WORLD OF BIRDS covers more than just all of the birds in the 
world; it starts with archeology and ends with the relationship between 
birds and man, embracing virtually every aspect of bird lore. BIRDS OF 
THE WORLD, on the other hand, simply depicted all of the 155 families 
of living birds, illustrating representative species. 
Prepared by two outstanding ornithologists, Dr. Peterson and Mr. 
Fisher, THE WORLD OF BIRDS presents a vast amount of information — 
authorative, accurate, and absorbing. If one wants a broad introduction to 
bird study, he can find it here. There are chapters and sections on bird 
biology, natural history, structure, physical adaptations, fossil origins, a 
bird “tree of life,” distribution, behavior, life histories, anatomy, migration. 
Many pages are devoted to bird watching — field trips, record keeping, 
censuses, optical equipment, photography, bird blinds, banding, bird 
societies — all wel] illustrated. 
A major portion of the book (over 95 pages) consists of an “atlas of 
bird life’ with 195 maps in two or more colors showing the distribution 
of all bird orders and suborders, past and present. Above each map are 
tabulations of the numbers of species, living and fossil, in each family, 
and a silhouette of the typical appearance. A tremendous amount of data 
is thus portrayed graphically, in a manner that is easy to grasp and re- 
member. 
The final chapters of the book discuss “birds and man” — domestication, 
hunting, egging, destruction of habitat, conservation, overabundance of 
some pest species. Much of this section must have been written by Mr. 
Fisher, for it has an intriguing continental flavor. A “black list” catalogues 
the species known to have become extinct since 1600, and a “red list” 
points to the endangered birds — species whose numbers now total less 
than 2,000 remaining individuals. 
THE WORLD OF BIRDS is scholarly and thorough, with a rich biblio- 
graphy, an adequate index, and a careful nomencluature based on the latest 
“A.0O.U. Check-List.” The only flaw of the book is that it tries to cover too 
much. Certain aspects of ornithology are worthy of whole volumes, rather 
than just a chapter or a portion thereof. But all in all, this is a magnificent 
book, one you would be delighted to give (or to receive) as a Christmas 
gift — a book you would be pleased to have on your shelf and to study 
over and over again. 
Paul H. Lobik, 22W681 Tamarack Drive, Glen Ellyn, Ill. 
