Birds of the Middle East Paperback – January 1, 2005

After an earlier edition of this guide was long out of print and increasingly hard to find and expensive even as a second hand copy, the publication of this new, paperback edition was most welcome!I found this book just about perfect: the size and weight are still convenient for field-use, and editing is very well done, with the range maps (which only show summer/bredding ranges though) and essential status and habitat info right opposite the color plates illustrating each species, though longer, detailed information on appearence and voice are to be found separately at the back.Most importantly, the illustrations are excellent and plentiful, usually with several pictures of each species showing various races, sexes, juveniles, summer and winter plumage, birds in flight, etc. as justified by variation.I kind of missed (more) information on the birds' ecology, habits and taxonomy, but I guess omitting these was the price that had to be paid for a not-too-bulky field guide.I can only wish I could have carried this book on my previous trips to the Middle East - it will certainly be with me on the next ones!

This is a beautiful and helpful field guide. Unfortunately I have not had much opportunity to use it. I like the illustrations, which are spaced far enough apart on the page that it's always clear which bird goes with which caption. There is a range map for each bird illustration which include status information. The descriptive information is located separately from the pictures, which might be off-putting to some. But since the range and picture information are together, that gives you the main things you need when you first see a bird. Personally, I like this arrangement better than the guides that have the range maps in the back, because too many times I've thought a bird matched an illustration, only to find out later that the bird would never be seen in the area in question. With this arrangement, it is easy to tell if the illustration is a possible match for what you are seeing in the field.

Good illustrations and descriptions of birds. I bit heavy for a field guide. Nice tool for those traveling to Middle East. Worked well for recent business trip to Kuwait.

A BIG THANKS for excellent service, good price, professional packing, and accurate description of product.

I purchased this product for a visit to Turkey. It was quite difficult to use as a field guide because the images on the plates (although very attractive) were in a section separate from the full descriptions of the birds. The index usually features two different page numbers for a bird (and there are additional plate numbers to add to the confusion). Important information, such as the size of the the bird, is on a different page than the image. The result is that a user must constantly flip back and forth between sections. Several birds that I saw were described poorly. Ultimately, I identified them using "Birds of Europe," which is much more user friendly.

The book arrived quickly, and was in great condition! It was also a very reasonable price.

The book has quite some positives but on an initial look it may not be as user friendly as other books I have encountered. One problem is you cannot tell the size of the bird based on the descriptions at the photo page. Again shuffling between the plates and the "story" of the birds has not beeen my forte.I stay in Bahrain so the dots are not so easy to trace. It would have been good if a caption was added summarising the countries where the birds are found. Normally if more than five countries are in the map it becomes quite a handful.

Having returned from several weeks in the Middle East, I can testify that this guide was essential. Even though it's a heavy book, nearly 750 grams, I cheerfully hauled it with me everywhere. It is actually two guides -- the first half of the book are the color plates and maps with short descriptions -- and the second provides substantial detail for each speces. It surely seems comprehensive, its maps are terrific, and the artwork exquisite. Because it includes every possible species, I did find that I had to mark the more likely ones for each area. Incidentally, the cover of the 2004 edition I have is quite different from the image shown in the Amazon description.