> I really need a good shorebird book
>- it's frustrating to see them and not ID them.
>
>Happy birding!
>
>Peggi
>

In our opinion, the two best shorebird books are Dennis Paulson's
"Shorebirds of the Pacific Northwest" and book by Hayman etc. "Shorebirds An
Identification Guide" Both of these books provide excellent information and
insights with respect to identification. Also the books complement each
other very well. The book by Hayman provides excellent drawings of the
complete range of plumages while Paulson has excellent photographs. (We
like having both sketches and photos). Paulson's book also provides
insightful discussions of shorebird behavior (a key part of picking out
differences) and the status and distribution of these birds in the
Northwest. If you can only afford one of these books, we would pick
Paulson's book.

If you have purchased the above two books and you have extra money to spend,
you could pickup the book by Rosair and Cottridge, "Photographic Guide to
the Shorebirds of the World". We like this book because it provides
additional shorebird photos.

As for field guides, the National Geographic Field guide is our favorite
(the golden-plovers are not very accurate though- at least in our opinion;-
but they are not very accurate in the other field guides either)

With respect to the ever troubling Dowitchers, Al Jaramillo's web site
(www.quake.net/~alvaro/index.html) has some plates that provide insight with
respect to identifying these birds.

One of the most helpful things you can do to learn shorebirds is to bird
with a mentor who knows shorebirds well. With a mentor, you get the chance
to see the birds in the field and get immediate feed back on their
identification. Also, when you first get started with shorebirds, there is
a tendency to pass-over some of the less common birds that look similar to
other more common birds. An example is Stilt Sandpiper. Without
experience, these birds could easily be passed over for yellowlegs
(especially when seen at the large distances at which shorebirds are usually
seen). A mentor will help locate these birds and point out differences.

In the TriCities, we've been fortunate to shorebird with Bob Woodley who
really loves shorebirds and knows them well.



Bill and Nancy LaFramboise
Richland, WA
wlafra at oneworld.owt.com