<< 1 >>
Rating: 
Summary: Birds of Chile: a long time needed book
Review: Backcover statement for Jaramillo's "Birds of Chile" as the first bird fieldguide for the country is false: back to 1986 Araya and colleagues published "GuÃÂa de Campo de las Aves de Chile". But it was a quite simple work, all black & white drawings, succint descriptions, and almost nil encroachment with ID problems. So for practical purposes Jaramillo's guide is really the first reliable one for Chilean birders... and visiting foreigners as well.
Introductory chapters are excellent. Plate-facing descriptions are very good and don't fear tackle with the toughest ID puzzles. Distributional maps are the first critical for a lot of species (Thinocoridae, Oreopholus, Chilia, Phleocryopes,etc.). Plates include some masterpieces, e.g. Sheldgeese (plate #24), Treerunner (68), Hummingbirds II (62). A few (#11,#54) rank below average, and would deserve reassesment. Also some inevitable mishaps affect the book: the missing initial text for Juan Fernández Firecrown (page 150), wrong-written words ("Azúl", p.152) .... minor defects easy to amend in future editions.
No doubt Jaramillo's book inaugurates a new era in Chilean ornithology. That's why I give it five stars level.
Rating:
Summary: Birds of Chile: a long time needed book
Review: Backcover statement for Jaramillo's "Birds of Chile" as the first bird fieldguide for the country is false: back to 1986 Araya and colleagues published "Gu??a de Campo de las Aves de Chile". But it was a quite simple work, all black & white drawings, succint descriptions, and almost nil encroachment with ID problems. So for practical purposes Jaramillo's guide is really the first reliable one for Chilean birders... and visiting foreigners as well.
Introductory chapters are excellent. Plate-facing descriptions are very good and don't fear tackle with the toughest ID puzzles. Distributional maps are the first critical for a lot of species (Thinocoridae, Oreopholus, Chilia, Phleocryopes,etc.). Plates include some masterpieces, e.g. Sheldgeese (plate #24), Treerunner (68), Hummingbirds II (62). A few (#11,#54) rank below average, and would deserve reassesment. Also some inevitable mishaps affect the book: the missing initial text for Juan Fern??ndez Firecrown (page 150), wrong-written words ("Az??l", p.152) .... minor defects easy to amend in future editions.
No doubt Jaramillo's book inaugurates a new era in Chilean ornithology. That's why I give it five stars level.
Rating: 
Summary: Must Have to Bird Chile
Review: I bought, shared and very actively used the Jaramillo field guide in Chile during December 2003. I birded the Santiago region, Chiloe and Patagonia. Chilean guides accompanied me on all occasions and all wanted to purchase the book. There has never been anything better for Chile, and that probably applies to Antarctica too.I did not give the book a five because I did not think the paintings are arranged in a way that clearly separates similar species. Nonetheless, the book is a four plus and I recommend it strongly to anyone birding Chile.
Rating:
Summary: Great and compact
Review: The great void of high-quality field guides for South America is gradually shrinking. This book is undoubtedly most useful way beyond the boundaries of Chile. I wish I had had this book for my trip to southern Peru in 2000. The attempt to identify yellow-finches with the only field guide I had for that area (de la Peña and Rumboll) was an exercise in sheer frustration. The new book shows clear differences between the species. I can't judge the accuracy for most species, but this is a book that gives you confidence that the author and the illustrators got the vast majority right. As had been mentioned in earlier reviews, the quality of the plates is a bit variable, but they all seem at least usable, and the majority is downright excellent. The many flight pictures are particularly welcome. Sexual differences and even some geographical variations are clearly depicted as well. What a fine and compact guide book! And it is so affordable (at least here at Amazon!)that any traveller could really take a second copy along for local birders, as had been suggested.
Rating:
Summary: A Mandatory Field Guide for Chile
Review: This is a fantastic field guide. The plates are excellent and the descriptions detailed. I'm no expert birder, but with this guide I've been able to clearly ID far more birds than what was possible using Sharon Chester's guide (which is a great quick-start for spotting, but otherwise not detailed enough), or the Collins book "Birds of Southern South America" (which is good, but too expansive for focus solely on Chile). It is obvious that a lot of work has gone into "Birds of Chile", yet it is an infinitely user-friendly guide. Thanks to this book, I find I try to get out more to see what's around. My only gripe with the book concerns its durability under wet conditions. Chile is a rainy country, and my copy suffered on a typical hike in the rain. That's a minor gripe, however, and I probably could have taken extra measures to protect it. One side note: If you are planning a birding trip in Chile, it would be nice to bring an extra copy to leave behind for someone you meet here. Field guides are usually imported, very expensive, and hard to find. I haven't seen this one in the stores here yet, and I'm sure that many folks would be glad to receive a copy.
Rating:
Summary: A Mandatory Field Guide for Chile
Review: This is a fantastic field guide. The plates are excellent and the descriptions detailed. I'm no expert birder, but with this guide I've been able to clearly ID far more birds than what was possible using Sharon Chester's guide (which is a great quick-start for spotting, but otherwise not detailed enough), or the Collins book "Birds of Southern South America" (which is good, but too expansive for focus solely on Chile). It is obvious that a lot of work has gone into "Birds of Chile", yet it is an infinitely user-friendly guide. Thanks to this book, I find I try to get out more to see what's around. My only gripe with the book concerns its durability under wet conditions. Chile is a rainy country, and my copy suffered on a typical hike in the rain. That's a minor gripe, however, and I probably could have taken extra measures to protect it. One side note: If you are planning a birding trip in Chile, it would be nice to bring an extra copy to leave behind for someone you meet here. Field guides are usually imported, very expensive, and hard to find. I haven't seen this one in the stores here yet, and I'm sure that many folks would be glad to receive a copy.
<< 1 >>
|
