Birding New England: A Field Guide to the Birds of Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont

by Randi Minetor, Nic Minetor

Overview

Birdwatching is for everyone. No other outdoor pursuit yields so much knowledge of nature’s ways with so little effort—if one knows what to look for. Birding New England opens the world of birding to the novice and expert in this complete guide to getting the most out of birding in New England. Birding New England includes sections on birding technology, equipment, identification techniques, birding “by ear,” where to view birds, field guides, optics, and other essentials to get birders of all skill levels into the field to identify birds throughout New England. Especially valuable are descriptions of habitat, feeding, nesting, and migration—informing the reader not only about what kind of bird is on the other end of the binoculars, but what it is up to as well.



Includes:

• GPS coordinates for each species of the top three to five locations where you’re likely to see the bird and what time of year is best for this
• Full-color photos
• Over 300 species

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781493033881
Publisher:	Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Publication date:	05/01/2019
Series:	Birding Series
Pages:	384
Sales rank:	220,282
Product dimensions:	5.90(w) x 8.90(h) x 0.80(d)

About the Author

Wife-and husband-team Randi and Nic Minetor have collaborated on more than twenty books about hiking, exploring historic cities, America’s national parks, and birds and nature. The team behind the popular book The New England Bird Lover’s Garden, they also worked together on eight Quick Reference Guides to the native birds, trees, and wildflowers of New York State, New York City, and the Mid-Atlantic States. Avid birders and seasoned road trippers, the Minetors collaborated on the best-selling Backyard Birding: A Guide to Attracting and Identifying Birds for Lyons Press.

When not in the car or on the trail, Randi is a journalist specializing in theater technology, medicine, and municipal utilities, and Nic is the resident lighting designer for several theatre and opera companies and museums in upstate New York. The Minetors live in Rochester, New York.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements vii

Introduction to Birding New England 1

How to Use This Guide 14

Parts of a Bird 16

A Final Word 16

Swimming Birds

Loans 17

Grebes 19

Waterfowl 22

Duck-like Birds 57

Gulls and Other Seabirds

Pelagic Birds: Fulmar, Shearwaters, and Storm-Petrels 59

Gannet and Jaegers 66

Alcids: Murres, Guillemots, and Auks 70

Pelican and Cormorants 76

Gulls and Terns 79

Tall Wading Birds

Bitterns, Herons, and Egrets 97

Ibis 108

Crane 110

Short Wading Birds

Rails 111

Shorebirds

Plovers 115

Oystercatcher 120

Stilt and Avocet 121

Sandpipers and Snipe 123

Phalaropes 150

Ground Birds

Quail 152

Pheasant 153

Grouses 154

Turkey 156

Birds of Prey

Vultures 157

Harrier, Buteos, and Eagle 159

Osprey and Accipiters 168

Owls 172

Non-Perching Birds (Nonpasserines)

Dove and Pigeon 181

Parakeet and Cuckoos 183

Nightjars 186

Hummingbirds 188

Kingfisher 190

Woodpeckers 191

Perching Birds (Passerines)

Flycatchers 200

Shrike 210

Vireos 211

Jays 217

Raven and Crows 219

Lark 222

Swallows and Swift 223

Titmouse and Chickadees 230

Nuthatches and Creeper 233

Wrens 236

Kinglets 241

Thrushes 244

Mimic Thrushes 252

Thrasher 254

Starling and Pipit 255

Waxwings 257

Warblers 259

Tanager and Allied Songbirds 292

Sparrows and Their Allies 297

Junco, Longspur, and Bunting 316

Meadowlark, Blackbirds, and Orioles 319

Finches 327

Old World (Weaver) Finch 336

Appendix A Species by State 337

Connecticut 337

Maine 339

Massachusetts 342

New Hampshire 345

Rhode Island 348

Vermont 351

Appendix B Species by Color 355

Appendix C A Realistic Checklist of the Birds of New England 359

Appendix D Resources 363

Index by Hot Spot 365

Index by Species 372

About the Author and Photographer 375