If any Tweeters out there like historical fiction, there's a wonderful series
by Patrick O'Brian that is full of avian references. It's usually called "The
Aubrey/Maturin series", and there are at least 18 books in the series. The
main focus of the stories is following the antics of the two main characters
(Jack Aubrey, Captain, and Stephen Maturin, surgeon and naturalist) as they
sail all over the world during the 1800's, as part of the British Royal Navy.
It's chock full of naval references, but there is always mention of the birds
that Maturin is observing and collecting (and boy, did they collect back then).
I'm not sure how exact the names/descriptions of the birds are, but the author
is very exact in his naval information and his place descriptions. Someone
with more birding knowledge could tell if he's spot on or not.

I started reading them for their historical aspect, but it was soon clear that
every book was full of birds!

Susan
camel at serv.net
Seattle, WA