Birds of Kenya and Northern Tanzania

Princeton Field Guides

by Dale A. Zimmerman, Donald A. Turner, David J. Pearson

Mount Kilimanjaro, the Serengeti Plains, tropical beaches, coral reefs, and such wildlife as elephants, lions, giraffes, zebras, and rhinos. With all this, Kenya and northern Tanzania are the ultimate destination for safaris, adventure travel, and ecotourism. They also form one of the world's most spectacular regions for birdwatching, with a variety of species unmatched almost anywhere else--from the tiny Amani Sunbird to the eight-foot-tall Somali Ostrich, from the elegant flamingos of the Rift Valley lakes to carcass-eating vultures and snake-hunting eagles. This book is the definitive field guide for the thousands of birdwatchers and travelers who visit this breathtaking area every year.


The guide features 124 color plates, depicting all 1,114 species in the area, including variations by subspecies, age, and sex. It contains over 800 range maps and succinct text that covers identification, voice, and distribution. Specially designed for use in the field, it is a compact version of the widely acclaimed Birds of Kenya and Northern Tanzania , hailed on its publication in 1996 as the most comprehensive, accurate, and beautiful guide ever produced for the region. With its modest price, small trim size and sturdy, weather-resistant binding, this field guide is the one volume that every adventurous traveler to Kenya and northern Tanzania must have.

Genres: Birds, Field Guides, Reference, Africa, Science, Nonfiction, Biology

576 pages, Paperback

First published July 8, 1996

Reviews

[Chris · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great field guide; it served me well on a trip to Kenya and Tanzania. Beautiful, accurate plates form 1,100 species. It worked well for practical use in a safari jeep; if I was on foot I still would have found it worth the weight. Even with luggage weight restrictions, it would have been unthinkable not to bring it. Okay, it was a bit large and had way more species than I was likely too encounter, but any serious birder knows that a comprehensive species guide is a must. Although with so many potential species I definitely recommend studying up before a trip.

The plates are all together in one section and text descriptions are in a different section. I actually prefer that layout. However, the main drawback is range maps are with the text and not the plates, which is not convenient when trying to decide between several similar-looking species. Because this complaint appeared in other reviews, I could prepare. In the months before my trip I marked up the plates pointing out species in range for and most likely to encounter in the field. Although time consuming, it was great practice to become familiar with the birds and the guide. There was still plenty of flipping to the text sections, but not so often to be frustrating. And the payoff in the field was amazing- what a thrill to see lilac-breasted rollers, jacanas, sunbirds, barbets, go-away-birds, wood-hoopoes, and more take flight from the pages into the real world!

[Sheri Fresonke Harper · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a wonderful resource and provides a good overview of what birds to expect in Kenya and Tanzania. We didn't use it in the field due to its size but the colorful plates, helpful information and maps help birders identify where to go when visiting.

[Thaths · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent reference book for birdwatchers casual and serious. The only reason I don't give it all 5 stars is that the Index only has scientific names, not common names. The book would have been much easier to use if I could lookup a bird by its common name.

[JC · Rating 5 out of 5]

THE reference to have if you're bird-watching in Kenya alone.