Mark Cocker points out in his foreword to this thought-provoking anthology the significance of biodiversity loss for our cultural heritage. Birds in particular have long been embodied in the arts; Vaughan Williams, Shakespeare and Yeats have all drawn on avian inspiration. Curlew Calling brings together poetry, prose and artwork to highlight not only the plight of these waders but also to remind us of their contribution to our lives. This iconic bird is etched into our personal histories, for many its arrival heralds the seasons, and is an indication of the health of the countryside. Given the decline of these instantly recognisable birds, many of the pieces in the anthology are quite sobering, lamenting their loss. In particular, the poems ‘Real’ and ‘Shropshire Curlew’ are almost chilling in charting the disappearance of the birds, and the very real prospect of the once familiar call being unknown to future generations. The prose extracts often describe people’s own Curlew experiences, lending a personal touch to the anthology, and highlight the bird’s evocative capacity perfectly summed up in the piece ‘The Power of Curlews’. The artworks by members of the Society of Wildlife Artists are charming additions to the anthology, complementing the writings well, showcasing an array of compositions and media. The common theme throughout the work is the threat to these birds; even if not explicit in a particular excerpt, one cannot help but read each against this backdrop. This lends quite a haunting feel to the whole collection, which seems appropriate for work pertaining to a bird itself often described as ghostly. However, an underlying message percolating through the anthology is that of hope; although these and other birds emblematic of our countryside are in peril, it is not too late. Vital research into the causes and prevention of further declines is being carried out, to which sales of this book directly contribute. This anthology would be a wonderful addition to the shelves of not only birders, but anyone with an interest in conservation or natural history. By dipping into this collection of work, the reader can conjure up an image or revisit a memory of this icon of our landscape; an icon which we must ensure is not consigned to the history books.

I was fortunate recently to visit Australia with my family. When a Brisbane-based friend heard we were coming over he advised me to wait before buying a new field guide, as this one was due to be published. This was excellent advice as the new ABG – nine years in the making - is a first-rate field guide, one of the best I’ve seen. The ABG includes all extant species from Australia, including the offshore political dependencies (but not the Australian Antarctic Territory), totalling about 930 species and containing many recent taxonomic changes (following the IOC checklist). About 160 vagrants are covered in great detail which, although perhaps less valuable for a visiting Brit, will be welcomed by keen Australian birders. Inevitably, a substantial chunk of the book is dedicated to pelagic seabirds, crucial given the importance of this group in Australian waters. There is an extensive introduction with some good notes on ‘Birding in Australia’, including tips on ‘ethical birding’; a well-balanced discussion on fieldcraft techniques such as playback in the modern era. There is also an interesting essay on the evolution and classification of Australian birds. The text is well-written and extensive and the artwork ranges from good to excellent. To be honest, I seldom referred to the identification notes in the text as the paintings were clear, realistic and helpfully annotated. The most useful text element for a visitor is actually the short section under ‘notes’ mentioning habitat and behaviour; indeed a little more along these lines would have been welcome. Distribution maps are also important when visiting a county. To the extent I could assess it, these seemed mostly very good, a nice feature being differential shading to show subspecies. One minor issue that could be fixed is where, occasionally, two species are shown per map where they have small and non-overlapping ranges; these can be confusing when the map legend lists an eastern species before a western counterpart rather than vice versa (e.g. White-lined / Kimberley Honeyeater). The maps are clearly up to the minute (showing some recent discoveries of Night Parrot). The only time I found them wanting was when I found a Dusky Moorhen in Kakadu where it is not mapped as occurring, although online resources suggest this wasn’t an especially unusual find there. Should you buy this book if you’ve already got an Australian field guide? Yes, I’d suggest it would be a shame not to. The only (inevitable) downside is its size; it’s a big beast of a book so if you’re planning to do long hikes then maybe go for a smaller guide (or maybe an app version might follow?) Otherwise, it’s worth the extra sweating! Highly recommended.

I visited Sumatra last year, armed with a fairly dated “A field guide to the birds of Borneo, Sumatra, Java and Bali” by MacKinnon and Phillipps, and although I did get by with this guide, I felt an improvement was urgently needed. I was therefore delighted to see this latest offering, Birds of the Indonesian Archipelago: Greater Sundas and Wallacea which is a landmark modern and easy to use publication, birds of this incredibly species rich region, covering all 1,417 species, including 601 endemics, known to occur across the Indonesian archipelago. This guide covers a region that spans an arc of more than 16,000 islands that stretch almost 5,000 km along the Equator, one of the most biodiverse regions on Earth. This field guide is remarkably compact considering the number of species covered, and whilst it may not easily fit in a pocket, it is certainly not too large or heavy to carry in a rucksack in the field - though I am not sure how water resistant it would be in the event of a downpour. However, the font is rather small which may be a problem for some. Anyone who has ever visited this, or indeed any rainforest region will understand the frustration in trying to identify birds from field guides; the plates full of side-on profiles of birds, whereas for the majority, all you see of them is their belly and undertail as you crane your neck to look up into the canopy, I felt a book just showing this angle would be more useful! Joking aside, the plates are superb throughout, with a list of 27 esteemed and highly talented artists to thank including such well-known names as Richard Allen, Hilary Burn, Alan Harris and Jan Wilczur to name but a few contributing. A major plus in this book is the inclusion of distribution maps which both MacKinnon & Phillipps and Craig Robson’s Birds of Southeast Asia lacked. Even better, these maps are placed by the species allowing quick reference to confirm their presence or absence when faced with similar-looking species rather than the species plates being separate from the descriptions and having to find the relevant page and read through the distribution range to see if the area you are in was included. Without going into specific detail, the taxonomy of the species may take some getting used to, especially when trying to enter any records against existing taxonomic lists in BirdTrack or Bubo.org with various species’ names or taxonomic groups being different. Overall though, Birds of the Indonesian Archipelago: Greater Sundas and Wallacea is a superb field guide, and will become the region’s standard field guide for many years to come.

There are numerous titles ending in ‘ist’ that could be used to describe Charles Darwin; as Clifford Frith notes, he was a ‘biologist, zoologist, entomologist, botanist, geologist, volcanologist, anthropologist, ethologist and more’. Whilst there have been many publications written about Charles Darwin that cover a good many of these topics and more besides, this book concentrates purely on Charles Darwin the ‘ornithologist’. The most obvious, and most famous, association between Darwin and birds are the Galapagos finches (now widely known as Darwin’s finches). Although ornithology was by no means Darwin’s primary interest, these little birds are merely the tip of the iceberg in terms of Darwin’s ornithological studies. In this meticulously researched book, Clifford Frith presents a ‘review, assessment and discussion of Darwin’s entire published ornithology…in respect to every bird species and ornithological topic or consideration published by Charles Darwin’. If this sounds like a daunting task, that’s because it is; in his publications, Darwin referred to over 600 bird species and over 100 ornithological topics. The book is written chronologically, according to the date in which the works being discussed were written or published. Following Darwin from being merely a bird watcher in his youth, through his almost five-year journey aboard HMS Beagle, to his life and studies back in England not only helps to chart Darwin’s thought processes about topics such as sexual selection but also tracks his progression as an ornithologist. The book also debunks some well-established myths about Darwin. For example, according to Frith, it is untrue that Darwin understood the significance of the restricted island distribution of the different Galapagos finches (which aren’t actually finches, but tanagers) whilst he was on the Galapagos (as is widely believed today); this realisation actually came much later when Darwin was back in England. An incredibly detailed, 150 page appendix lists every ornithological reference in Darwin’s publications. Appendix 2 lists all birds named after Darwin whilst appendix 3 lists the birds collected by Darwin on the Beagle, stating when and where they were collected as well as their current location, if known. All together these form an incredibly useful resource for anyone studying, or merely interested in, Darwin’s ornithological work. The book also discusses Darwin’s connection to other eminent ornithologists of the time, including John Gould, and the final appendix addresses recent claims that some of John Gould’s work was published as propaganda against Darwin’s theories on the origin of species. For anyone interested in Darwin, birds, or the history of ornithology, this book is not just a reference but a fascinating read. Although detailed, it is very readable, interesting and insightful about not only the work of Charles Darwin, but also the ‘modest’ ornithologist himself.

The familiar call of the male Cuckoo echoing across reed beds and moorland is widely recognised throughout Europe as a harbinger of spring; yet few have witnessed the intimate details of the life of this most elusive bird except those who dedicate their lives to observing and studying the behaviour of one of nature's most devious cheats. The stunning photography of Oldřich Mikulica charting the lifecycle of the Cuckoo from furtive egg laying to foster parents feeding a monstrous chick is incredible testimony to a man who has devoted almost four decades to studying these fascinating brood parasites. Few will have had the opportunity and privilege to capture beautifully the moment that a female Cuckoo is attacked by a Great Reed Warbler pair; the leviathan challenge of ejecting host eggs and chicks facing every Cuckoo hatchling; or the moment a young Cuckoo launches itself from the nest box in which it was lovingly reared by its Common Redstart hosts. One feels virtually transported to the watery habitat in which most of the scenes were played out and insightfully captured by the photographer's experience, patience and skilfully positioned lens. Mikulica's captivating imagery however, only tells one half of the story in this book with the remainder being ably written by the small team of experienced Cuckoo researchers Tomáš Grim, Karl Schulze-Hagen and Bård Gunnar Stoke. Their highly informative narrative perfectly accompanies the photographic story; documenting all aspects of Cuckoo biology and ecology, as well as the evolutionary arms race being continually run by Cuckoos and their range of host species. There are chapters covering nest parasitism; egg mimicry; chick and fledgling behaviour, as well as theories and research into the complex co-evolution of brood parasitism. The most sobering, sadly covers the worrying steep decline of the species in Europe. With a forward by Nick Davies, behavioural ecologist and author of 'Cuckoo - Cheating by Nature', I cannot recommend this most recent addition to the body of literature exposing the secrets of the Cuckoo's deception highly enough. But it is surely the breathtaking camera work, sensitively illustrating every facet of the life of this fascinating species that will keep the reader coming back to this book.

The back cover pretty much says it all – over 270 pages of detailed and original text. Over 200 colour photographs. Over 180 stunning and accurate illustrations. Large format colour range maps based on latest geolocator and observational studies. Two DVDs with over 120 minutes of highly informative footage with narration. What more can you say? All of this is true but when you start to delve into the book it really comes to life. The illustrations are sublime, and there are so many of them, thirteen for Atlantic Fulmar alone, and accompanied by 30 high-quality photographs. The amount of information is incredible, and all presented in an easy to use way. There are 41 pages dedicated to topography and ‘workshops’ on how to begin to identify the eleven species described, six albatrosses, two giant petrels, two fulmars and Cape Petrel, before we even get to the species accounts in which they are all given a thorough grilling. To top this off there is a section after the species accounts that deals with confusion species and the features to concentrate on to sort them out. I love the way the albatrosses are approached in this section: so you’ve seen an albatross. ‘What species is it?’, ‘It’s an immature Black-browed’, ‘Are you sure?’, ‘Well it’s got dark underwings’, ‘So has Grey-headed’, ‘You don’t get Grey-headed in the North Atlantic’, ‘Seems so, but we’ll never know if we don’t check’. This is followed by four pages on how to separate the two should you be lucky enough to be called upon to do so. The book is rounded off with a thirty-eight page ID jogger, which is a great way to test how much attention you were paying whilst reading the various sections of the book. It doesn’t end here. Two DVDs accompany the guide and are in handy cases fixed to the inside front and back covers. Disc 1 covers the species accounts of all of the birds in the book, with videos and narration of the key features needed to tell them apart. This greatly helps to cement what is discussed in the accounts in the book but also gives the opportunity to test id features under ‘field’ conditions, and it works very well indeed. Disc two looks at the families more broadly but also includes an identification quiz, to really make sure you have been taking notice. Altogether a brilliant guide with a great approach to explaining how to make it a little easier to identify what can be very difficult birds indeed. If you are into seabirds you can’t live without this book.

As I sit at home writing this review, the Spurn Migration Festival is in full flow. BTO’s Andy Clements is there and news has just emerged that he has just found a Kentish Plover! This coastal species of continental Europe has ended up at Spurn but was presumably on its way to southern Europe or Africa for the winter. A quick glance in The Birds of Spurn and I am soon able put the species into context: it is the 17th record for Spurn and the 3rd recorded in autumn; this is just one of the 388 bird species covered. Spurn is a well-known migration hotspot with its peninsula acting as a funnel for birds moving south along the east coast of Britain and often one of the first rest-stops for birds migrating over from the continent. This book covers everything of an ornithological nature about the Spurn recording area, including Easington: all species recorded up to and including 2014 along with ringing information, a history of the ornithology of Spurn, site introduction with maps and information on the activities of the Observatory – from bird ringing to monitoring migration - a mammoth undertaking by author, Andy Roadhouse, and a fantastic 700 page resource! Depending on what information is relevant for each species; the species accounts cover details such as Earliest and Latest date ranges, maximum counts, ‘bird-days’ and ringing details. One other really nice touch, and probably a personal favourite of the book, are the rarity finders’ accounts - painting a picture of the moment a rare bird is found and the events that surrounded it – something to inspire any birder! Chris Gaughans design work has somehow allowed such a large volume of information to be shared and displayed in an easy to read format. The book has a real air of quality about it and the stunning images, artwork and design make for a really beautiful book. This book is specifically about the Spurn area and no doubt already on the bookshelves of the Spurn regulars, but is a must have for anyone interested in bird migration, Bird Observatories, long-term bird monitoring or simply planning a visit to this very special place.

This book, like others by Tim Birkhead, is a journey through the history of a particular field of scientific exploration: in this case, the biology of eggs. Engagingly written and extensively researched, this book sets before us scenes from Yorkshire seabird colonies, Zambian tobacco farms and Soviet gulags, bringing to life the scientific process. This book attempts to follow two paths. Firstly, it describes, and as far as possible explains, the main aspects of egg biology, from their formation, shape, colour, development, and the functions of the different parts. This information often serves to give context to our day-to-day observations; I was fascinated to learn that a clutch of Blue Tit eggs contain more calcium than the mother’s whole skeleton, which explains why she needs to forage for additional sources of calcium, such as mortar, grit and snail shells, while laying. The explanations of the timing of fertilisation, and of how tiny birds such as Goldcrests maintain the temperature of their eggs, are sure to be of interest to observers of bird behaviour, and the section on how eggs are defended against bacterial infection made me think again about the eggs in my kitchen! Secondly, this is a story of the love of birds and eggs, particularly the author’s fascination with the breeding biology of Guillemots, a strand which runs through the book from beginning to end. The opening chapter describes the efforts of nineteenth century egg collectors to get their hands on the hugely diverse Guillemot eggs. I loved their descriptions of the different patterns – pepper pot, scrawl, green petal, black cap, shorthand – though I was disappointed not to find photographs of the beautiful patterns so well described in the text. On occasion these two themes do not quite fit together, but mostly they dovetail beautifully. I particularly liked learning how the author’s research informed the chapters on egg colouration and recognition, including the results of painting a variety of odd geometrical shapes to match the colour and pattern of a particular Guillemot egg, and offering them to the parent bird. This tour of scientific history does not shy away from the limits of knowledge, or attempt to tie up loose ends, instead emphasising where we have more to learn. I enjoyed the stories of wrong turns, such as the rather startling conclusion by Erasmus Darwin that some eggs are bright blue for camouflage against the sky when viewed through the ‘wickerwork’ of nest, which clearly shows that he had never seen the nest of a Song Thrush or Dunnock. The focus of this book is the process of discovery, ranging from tales of the author investigating the mechanisms of egg patterning by scrawling on an egg with a number of pencils tied together, to the value of long-term monitoring of breeding ecology. It is sure to be of interest to anyone with an appreciation of bird behaviour and biology, or the history of ornithology.

As with the previous title this book would be useful as a guide to learning woodland bird songs and calls, and covers an extensive range of species but, once again, it contains many species never found in Britain and Ireland (and not all of them are identified as such in the book). This could confuse more novice birdwatchers, who could well be attracted to the approach of this book. In that case, with the inclusion of such species as White-backed Woodpecker, Hazel Hen and Rustic Bunting, perhaps this could be a fantastic resource for more experienced woodland birders to brush up on their European bird songs and calls. The fact that certain key European woodland species are missing suggests otherwise, such as Short-toed Treecreeper which is, ironically, most easily separated from the very similar Treecreeper by song!