It is a rare bird watcher indeed who can step out onto a path or into a field and dedicate all the time spent there solely to observing birds; the natural world is simply too richly diverse and interwoven to allow such singularly focused attention to be maintained for long. Indeed, for one to improve in the craft of bird watching, an awareness and understanding of the wider web of life into which the lives of the birds themselves (as well as our own) are intricately woven is essential.
However as many bird watchers who have sought to expand their understanding of nature beyond the Class Aves have all too quickly discovered, crossing the boundary line that divides books devoted to bird study from books devoted to an amateur appreciation of other natural subjects frequently leads from lush green pastures to desolate arid plains. Few other fields of recreational nature study are even close to as well supplied with guidebooks suited to the curious beginner as bird study is.
Which is why the new Kaufman Field Guide to Nature of New England
This new Kaufman guide begins with easy-to-follow illustrated essay formatted chapters on the essentials of geology, astronomy, and ecology – all subjects too often overlooked these days or deemed inaccessible to casual enthusiasts. It then proceeds, shifting into what may by now reasonably be called the “classic Kaufman field guide format” employing digitally extracted photos of subjects displayed against neutral backgrounds accompanied by facing-page text and thumbnail distribution maps, through plants, mammals, and birds, into reptiles and amphibians, followed by fish, then finally concluding with insects and other invertebrates. A hybrid field guide / essay section on beach and tide pool life, and a concluding essay about the importance of conservation efforts for the above noted life forms round out the book.
Naturally, such a wide-angle overview of nature is only possible for a limited geographic area if the book in which it is contained is to be sufficiently compact to fit into a jacket pocket or field bag; which is why the Kaufmans limited the scope of this field guide to the nature of just New England (and even then they still managed to include in it over 2,000 different species). Needless to say, all those venturing forth into the field throughout New England should consider it both essential reading as well as mandatory field equipment.
“But what about those outside New England?” you may ask (as I certainly did). Fortunately, according to a representative of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, the book’s publisher, two future volumes are already planned for the regions of the Upper Midwest and Florida. It is indeed hoped that following the completion of these that the Kaufmans will continue to expand the series to cover regions all across the continent.
Author: Kenn Kaufman, Kimberley Kaufman
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Imprint: Kaufman Field Guides
Format: Vinyl bound paperback
ISBN: 9780618456970
Published: 16 October 2012
This review was originally published in the March / April 2013 edition of Bird Watcher’s Digest.
In accordance with Federal Trade Commission 16 CFR Part 255, it is disclosed that the copy of the book read in order to produce this review was provided gratis to the reviewer by the publisher.
