Life Histories of North American Marsh Birds (Dover Birds)

Arthur Cleveland Bent was one of America's greatest ornithologists. The all-inclusiveness of his volumes on North American birds has made them classics of our time. Published under the auspices of the Smithsonian Institution, this historic 20 volume series forms the most comprehensive, most complete, and most-used source of information in existence on the birds of our continent. No ornithologist, conservationist, amateur naturalist or birdwatcher should be without these books. In this volume the reader will find an encyclopedic collection of information about 54 different kinds of marsh bird (flamingo, ibis, bittern, heron, egret, crane, crake, rail, coot, etc.) Not a group of general descriptions but a collection of detailed, specific observations of individual flocks throughout the country, it describes in readable language and copious detail the nesting habits, plumage, egg form, distribution, food, behavior, field marks, voice, enemies, winter habits, range, courtship procedures, molting information, and migratory habits of every known North American marsh bird. Completely modern in its approach, this work was prepared with the full recognition of the difficulties inherent in the observation and interpretation of wild life behavior. The author utilized first-hand reports of contemporary observers and writings of America's great naturalists of the past--Audubon, Burroughs, William Brewster. The complete textual coverage is supplemented by 98 full-page black & white plates containing 179 photos of nesting sites, eggs, and the young of important species at various stages in their growth, etc. This is an unabridged republication of the first edition.