BOOK REVIEWS

Australian Bird Guide (concise edition)

Jeff Davies, Peter Menkhorst, Danny Rogers, Rohan Clarke, Peter Marsack, Kim Franklin, 2022. Christopher Helm, London. ISBN: TPB 978-13994-0629-1. Flexibound, 252 pages, colour illustrations, colour distribution maps, £24.99.

In a crowded field, the best guide to the many birds of Australia is The Australian Bird Guide ( ABG ; Menkhorst , 2017) which covers every regularly occurring species in the country (over 900), including subspecies and rarities. The quality of the text and especially the illustrations far exceeds that of the other guides, but at 1.46 kg it is rather heavy for an international traveller heading to Australia.

So, I wondered how this 400 g concise edition could cover the huge variety of species and compete with the excellent ABG. Easy! It is based on the ABG and although it covers slightly fewer species (still over 700), maximises the use of space.

Each species has high quality, accurate illustrations of plumage variations, a distribution map and a symbol indicating how likely one is to see the species within its range. The concise species text contains the key identification features, and the voice is described. Introductory pages are as brief as they can be – just seven pages – and there is an alphabetical index to bird groups and an index of species.

Anyone interested in the birds of Australia should get the full guide, but if you are just visiting, leave that at home and buy this excellent complementary concise guide to take with you! I really can’t recommend it highly enough.

Mark Holling

Birds of South Africa

Helm Wildlife Guides. Adam Riley. 2022. Helm, London, ISBN: 978-1-4729-9080-8 224 pages, colour photos, one colour map, softback, £16.99.

The book reviews published in Scottish Birds reflect the views of the named reviewers and not those of the SOC. Guide and

My first impressions were certainly favourable. As an attractive photo-guide to c. 340 bird species commonly encountered in South Africa, this is suitably pocket-sized, weighing only 390 g. The images, all taken by the author, are generally excellent. Where differences exist, both male, female and often juvenile plumages are usually included. The very concise descriptive text accompanying each species includes information on resident or migratory status, identification, song/calls, behaviour, habitats and distribution. The first 17 pages contain sections on habitats and endemism, including a useful map, and a description of 19 of the best birding sites in the country. The rest of the book contains the species accounts with photos, a short final section on further reading, resources, and an index of species (English names only).

My main criticism is that there are no distribution maps - a major drawback in a country with such diverse habitats (there are details in the text, but these are not visually accessible). Further, that many species are omitted, especially seabirds, and only the birds of South Africa itself are covered; those of the six neighbouring and surrounded countries of Southern Africa are largely omitted.

Without doubt, this book will be compared with the SASOL Birds of Southern Africa which has been the standard field guide (first published in 1993) and is currently in its fifth edition (2020). It is heavier (my fourth edition weighs 865 g) but covers almost 1,000 birds likely to be encountered in the whole of the geographical