I'm sure most of you have seen the Handbook of Birds of the World, now up to 15 volumes with one more to come. In my opinion (and that of many reviewers), these are among the very best bird books ever written. Too bad they are prohibitively expensive for many - I have them only because I subscribed from the beginning, and they have been affordable in that way.

I'm writing to point out a little-touted aspect of these books, the Foreword that since Vol. 4 is alway a review of some ornithological topic. Here is a list of those topics, by volume.

4 - species concepts and species limits in ornithology
5 - risk indicators and status assessment in birds
6 - avian bioacoustics
7 - extinct birds
8 - a brief history of classifying birds
9 - ornithological nomenclature
10 - the ecology and impact of non-indigenous birds
11 - ecological significance of bird populations
12 - fossil birds
13 - bird migration
14 - birding (a history thereof)
15 - bird conservation

I don't know if these books are available at libraries or not, but anyone with an interest in any of the subjects listed should know that these references are available. Vol. 1 was published in 1992, so the earlier reviews are getting somewhat out of date, but they are still worth reading.

Dennis
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Dennis Paulson
1724 NE 98 St.
Seattle, WA 98115
206-528-1382
dennispaulson at comcast.net