In the past, tree identification guides have emphasized the presence of opposite leaves as one of the most important field marks. In the Sibley Guide to Trees I used a more holistic approach, like modern bird identification, giving equal weight to all parts of the tree. A tree might catch your attention because of its […]
Trees with opposite leaves Read More »
One of my regular birding spots is a small farm field near my house in Concord, Massachusetts. I can walk around the entire place in about 20 minutes, but I usually take about two hours and get in some good sparrow-study. The clump of taller vegetation shown here is always a good spot to study
Probability in bird identification Read More »
Reader Sherman Dunnam sent me a note about an error in the introduction to maples on page 332. The third paragraph begins “All maples have palmately compound leaves…” This should instead say “Nearly all maples have palmately lobed leaves…” And could go on to elaborate that a few species have the leaves so deeply lobed
Correction to maples, page 332 Read More »
I have spent the last seven years working intensively on my new Guide to Trees, but of course a few misstatements and errors somehow managed to creep in. I’m always interested in learning more, correcting my mistakes, and passing along to you – the reader – newer, better, more accurate information. So if you notice
Updates to the Tree Guide Read More »
Two events related to The Sibley Guide to Trees: It is the featured product today on the Daily Grommet website. I’ll be checking in periodically, responding to comments and answering questions through noon tomorrow (Wednesday Sep 23rd). And “The Art of Identification” – a show of my artwork and field sketches at the Massachusetts Audubon
After seven years of work, my new Guide to Trees goes on sale officially on September 15th (but those who live near Philadelphia can get it as early as Saturday the 12th when I’m there for book-signings). I’ll be traveling quite a bit this fall to book-signings across the US and Canada, doing a variety
After listening carefully to Pine Siskins this year to pick out the calls of other species (see my earlier post) I have run across several other mimics. In early June in Arlington, Massachusetts I heard a remarkable American Goldfinch song that incorporated several phrases of a Song Sparrow song along with Northern Flicker and I
More vocal copying by American Goldfinch, Purple Finch, and Ovenbird Read More »
The most recent research by Dr. Daniel Klem, who has been studying the problem of bird/window collisions since the 1990s, has just been published in the June 2009 Wilson Bulletin. It is available, along with lots of other bird/window resources, at his website here. Klem tested the effectiveness of various window treatments confirming, for example,
Promising new window film may prevent bird collisions Read More »
In early March 2009 it was my pleasure to spend a few days in California at the San Diego Bird Festival. On my first morning in San Diego I headed straight out to the Tijuana River National Estuarine Research Reserve hoping to spend a few hours studying Savannah Sparrows (who wouldn’t, right?). I had seen
Identification of Belding’s Savannah Sparrow Read More »
[10 July 2009 – update added at end] In July 1990 I spent several weeks birding in west-central British Columbia, where Pine Siskins were one of the most conspicuous birds, and I became convinced that Pine Siskins were copying the sounds of other species of birds and incorporating these sounds into their songs. I was
Vocal copying by Pine Siskins Read More »