Book Review - Birds of Belize - Princeton Field Guides

      When I think back to the time when I first started birding and compare the sheer number of excellent field guides today with the paltry selection then, it is staggering. And guides are available for every corner of the world.

     Field guides have progressed to the point where substandard is the exception and excellence is the order of the day.

     Birds of Belize maintains this high standard, and it is a pleasure to hold the book in the hand, with its stunning front cover, before even perusing the pages. 

     Steve Howell is known for his dedication to, and exhaustive knowledge of, the birds of Central America and needs no further introduction. Dale Dyer has won his spurs as a first class illustrator. I was especially captivated by the way he has depicted the multi-faceted iridescence of the Ocellated Turkey - no mean feat.

     The book contains a section on the biogeography of the country, so essential to a complete understanding of bird distribution.

     I would encourage anyone planning a birding adventure in Belize to study this section well. Not only will it help you to refine your searches, it will provide you with a clear undertanding of the topography and climate of the country.

     Howell addresses the minefield that is called taxonomy with words of comfort for those baffled by the seemingly never-ending changes.

     The species are covered in generally accepted taxonomic sequence, and the pages are laid out in what has become an almost universal format for field guides.

     Pictures are shown on the right hand page with a range map and text on the left. 

     At the end of the book Appendix A discusses rare migrants and vagrants.

     Appendix B, for those like me mildly addicted to taxonomy, covers the myriad potential splits and lumps, a dizzying array of possible changes based on new evidence. Morphology, voice and DNA analysis are all implicated in these possibilities. Even nomenclature becomes a point of contention for some; Herring Gull for example is deemed a single species by many authorities, whereas others accept European Herring Gull (Larus argentatus) and American Herring Gull (Larus smithsonianus) as separate and distinct species. Howell acknowledges the split yet calls L. smithsonianus Smithsonian Gull. A rose by any other name, perhaps.

     In summary this is a first rate guide, user-friendly and very portable. If a trip to Belize is in your future, don't leave home without it!

Birds of Belize - Princeton Field Guides

Steve N. G. Howell and Dale Dyer

Softcover - US$35.00 - ISBN: 9780691220727

304 pages - 5.25 x 8 inches (13.125 x 20 cm) 

116 colour plates and 15 colour photographs - 600 colour maps

Publication Date: 25 April, 2023