A Field Guide to the Birds of Hawaii and the Tropical Pacific

by H. Douglas Pratt, Phillip L. Bruner, Delwyn G. Berrett

This is the first field guide to the identification of the birds of the islands of the tropical Pacific, including the Hawaiian Islands, Fiji, Samoa, Tonga, southeastern Polynesia, and Micronesia. It is intended both as a reference for the expert and as an introduction to birding in the region for the novice. Small enough to be carried afield, it contains much previously unpublished information about behavior, vocalizations, ecology, and distribution. The forty-five color plates depict all plumages of all bird species that breed in the islands, as well as of those that regularly visit them and the surrounding oceans, and of most species believed to be extinct on the islands. Black-and-white figures show many of the rarer visitors.



Introductory sections discuss the tropical Pacific as an environment for birds, problems of birding on islands, and bird conservation. Appendixes include maps of the island groups and a thorough bibliography.

Genres: Birds, Field Guides, Nonfiction, Reference

520 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1986

Reviews

[Scott Cox · Rating 5 out of 5]

“The Birds of Hawaii and the Tropical Pacific” by Douglas Pratt, Philip Bruner, and Delwyn Berrett ?????
This birding field guide contains a wealth of natural history information. Besides the standard “Peterson” field guide species identification accounts, the authors describe endemic plants that play a key role in the ecological well-being of tropical Pacific avifauna. The area covered by this guide is the Hawaiian Islands, Micronesia, central Polynesia, and Fiji – a region roughly located between the Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn. The introduction gives an excellent geographical description of the area, noting differences between continental and oceanic islands, plus a brief overview of plate tectonics and volcanism. The guide further delineates four island types: atolls, Makatea (uplifted corals), old volcanic islands, and recent volcanic islands – of which the large island of Hawaii is still active. The Hawaiian Islands are famous for being the world’s most isolated archipelago – separated from any significant land masses by approximately 2,500 miles. As a first time visitor to Hawaii, I found the key to pronunciation of Polynesian languages to be extremely helpful. For example, the letter “w” is pronounced as “v,” and the glottal stop (Hawai’i) is a stoppage, not unlike the English pronunciation of “uh-oh.” Lastly, I thoroughly enjoyed using this field guide in the field! I was able to identify 28 bird species on the big island of Hawaii – 19 of which I have never seen before (lifers), and 10 of which were either rare or endemic, or both. This field guide (and trip) helped me to further appreciate the need for better stewardship of our endangered natural resources.

[Suzanne Vegter · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not the most user friendly field guide out there.