Nature Books Australia

Recommended books for naturalists

Birds

Book Review: Wildlife Of Australian Rainforests

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Wildlife of the Australian Rainforests isn’t the type of book I would typically read. I prefer guides dedicated to specific regions or species. However, I found myself really enjoying this guide.

This book focuses on significant wildlife-watching sites in rainforests across Australia. It gives readers an overview of entire ecosystems.

It is a comprehensive and inspiring read that will give naturalists many ideas for new places to visit.

The Book Is Organized According To Bioregions

The book is sections for each state. All states bar South Australia and the ACT are included.

The rainforests are then organized into 22 bioregions. According to the Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment, a bioregion is ‘a land area made up of a group of interacting ecosystems that are repeated in similar form across the landscape.’ Each bioregion is then broken up into sections featuring an introduction to the region, species profiles and significant wildlife sites.

The idea of bioregions is compelling. It groups smaller wildlife sites based on how similar ecosystems interact over a larger area. This allows you to think on a larger scale when planning trips. You can get ideas about multiple places to visit in a specific bioregion and get inspiration for further research. There were times when this didn’t quite mesh – such as The Otways inclusion in the Southern Eastern Highlands bioregion. Many animals featured in that section are found at just one wildlife site, such as the Otway black snail. This isn’t a criticism of the guide, which is a great foundation. It just shows that the book should be considered a starting point and that you should do additional research.

Bioregion information

Each bioregion is organized into:

  • An introduction
  • Species Profiles
  • Significant wildlife watching sites

Introduction

There are two pages at the start of each chapter giving an overview of that bioregion. This has a brief introduction to the region, a list of key wildlife watching sites, and key species. The key species are organized into: birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians and invertebrates.

The first page had a map that showed a visual overview of the specific sites. The rest of the overview had information on different habitat types.

Species profiles

The majority of each chapter is dedicated to profiles of the species found in that bioregion. There are two species profiles per page. Each profile includes a brief description and an image. The description provides identification tips, behaviour and tips for finding them.

The amount of species featured varies depending on the bioregion. Some of the larger areas had over 50 whereas, the smaller ones had just 8. A wide variety of species are featured: there is a healthy mixture of birds, mammals, amphibians, reptiles and invertebrates. The species vary from the common to the obscure; the common thread was that they highlighted something interesting about that bioregion. The invertebrates had a strong focus on butterflies and crayfish; however, they included other interesting species. I appreciated this, as invertebrates often fly under the radar for many naturalists.

Significant wildlife watching sites

The end of each chapter had smaller profiles dedicated to the significant wildlife watching site in that bioregion. These profiles cover two pages and give a brief overview of the site.

These pages include:

  • GPS coordinates
  • Key facilities
  • Services nearby
  • Tips for getting there
  • Relevant fees and permits
  • Tracks and trails

This is a pretty solid overview in a limited amount of pages. It isn’t enough for trip planning, but it will give you a lot of ideas. I especially appreciated the tips for tracks and trails to explore.

Do I recommend it?

I didn’t expect to enjoy this book as much as I did. The focus on a specific ecosystem allowed me to make connections I hadn’t noticed before and has renewed my interest in certain locations.

I recommend this book to any nature enthusiast. It is great for naturalists at all levels of experience and would make a great gift. It should be an essential guide for anyone interested in rainforests.

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Birding Australias Islands

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Australia is home thousands of islands. Not all of those islands are close to the mainland; some are actually closer to other countries. This is magic if you are a birdwatcher. These islands represent a diverse range of birdlife that can increase the hardcore twitchers checklist.

Birding Australia’s Islands is the first book dedicated to twitching the birds on Australias islands. Author and birdwatcher Sue Taylor recounts her adventures visiting 23 Australian islands. She shares her personal account visiting the islands and seeking out rarities.

Who is Sue Taylor?

Sue is a phenomenal birdwatcher, having seen 823 Australian birds. She is also one of Australias leading authors on bird watching. You can check out her writing at A Twitchers Tale. She has authored multiple books about birdwatching in Australia.

What Islands are visited?

Sue has visited a wide variety of islands on her birdwatching adventures. Some of them are well known, such as Christmas and Lord Howe Island. Some islands were popular for general tourism, such as Kangaroo Island and Rottnest Island.

The popularity of the islands doesn’t mean that they are always practical to visit. Many islands are a considerable distance away or can only be visited as part of a dedicated birdwatching tour.

What Islands are visited?

Some of them are well known, such as Christmas and Lord Howe Island. Some islands were popular for general tourism, such as Kangaroo Island and Rottnest Island. Not all islands are practical to visit. Many islands are a considerable distance away or can only be visited as part of a dedicated birdwatching tour.

Sue Is A Brilliant Birdwatcher, But Not A Great Author

Birding Australia’s Islands focuses more on Sues experiences instead of giving tips for exploring these islands. This would have been fine if the chapters were consistent. The exception is the first page of each chapter which has a brief overview of the island. This has led to some chapters being less useful than others. Some of the accounts rely on her notes instead of her own recollections, which detracts from the tone and made the writing feel academic. This was especially noticeable on the chapter about Cabbage Tree Island, which took more of a historical perspective. A separate chapter about Raine Island was just two pages long, part of which featured Sue’s justifications about why her plane was late.

Some Chapters Had a Negative Tone

Sue’s complaints turned about to be a common theme in Birding Australias Islands. Some chapters felt like she was complaining for most of the trip. Some of it was relevant to the readers, such as difficult conditions. However, there were times where she could be quite condescending about those she deemed as lesser. Some chapters focused more on what annoyed her on a specific trip instead of focusing on the actual birds she saw. I’m a casual birdwatcher and this meant that I struggled to enjoy the book. I wanted to learn more about what to expect should I visit some of these places, not about what irritated one person.

Do I recommend it?

I do recommend it. At this point, there is no other comparable book. There are very few books about the twitching experience, let along one focused on the islands. The flaws are worth pushing through as the reader will pick up tips.

I’d recommend borrowing it from the library instead of buying it. It’s not worth re-reading.

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Book Review: Australasian Eagles and Eagle-like Birds

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There are multiple books on Australian birds of prey. I’ve reviewed many of them on this blog. Yet until recently, there hadn’t been a comprehensive overview of all raptor species.

Australasian Eagles and Eagle-like Birds solves part of this problem. The author, Stephen Debus, has been studying and observing Australia’s raptor species for over 40 years. He provides a comprehensive overview of the latest research on the Australiasian eagles and eagle-like birds.

The book is a much needed contribution to the literature about birds of prey and is one that I highly recommend.

How Is The Book Structured?

Australasian Eagles and Eagle-like Birds focuses on the species found in Australasia – which in this case, is restricted to the Melanesia region. This means that you get just 6 local species:

  • White bellied sea eagle
  • Wedge tailed eagle
  • Little eagle
  • Square tailed kite
  • Black breasted buzzard
  • Red goshawk

This may be a deterrent to those who are primarily interested in the local species. However, the chapters on Australian species contain significantly more information that those found in other regions.

The book is organized into four parts:

  • Sea Eagles
  • Harpy Eagles
  • Booted eagles
  • Australian Eagle-like Hawks Each species gets a dedicated chapter.

The chapters cover habitat, population, movements, food, social organization, social behaviour, breeding, measurements, weights and sexing. The chapters have minimal notes on identification; often around half a page. I would recommend Birds of Prey of Australia if you need more help with identifying eagles.

The Book Is Technical

Australasian Eagles and Eagle-like Birds is targeted towards the scientific community. It is assumed that you have existing knowledge about bird biology. The language can get quite technical and studies are frequently cited. This is necessary given the context of the book, but can overwhelm the casual reader.

A lot of the information is unnecessary for the amateur. There are sections that would be useful for the birdwatcher or photography, but you need to skim a lot to find them. I would recommend that beginners borrow this book from the library to decide if it meets their current needs.

It Is A Must-Read For Raptor Researchers

The book may not have been beginner friendly, but this beginner was still able to see just how brilliant this guide is.

Debus provides an overview of recent research and where research is lacking. He discusses how the knowledge has changed over time – such as the comparison between the historical and current threats of the square tailed kite. He shares information that you normally wouldn’t find in any other guide, such as little eagle habitat varying according to location.

It is designed to compliment, but not replace, the Handbook of Australian, New Zealand and Antarctic Birds (HANZAB). Debus frequently refers to how his studies align with, or disproves,  the inferences in HANZAB, or when

Do I recommend it?

I wouldn’t recommend this guide for beginners. The technical language and sheer amount of information can be overwhelming. I would recommend Birds Of Prey Of Australia for new birdwatchers.

It is a must-read for anybody studying birds of prey – however it can be useful for other audiences.I would recommend it for those who have a strong interest in eagles. It would be useful to help figure out what observations may be of scientific interest.

It would also be very useful to those who spend a lot of time photographing eagles. The sections on agnostic behaviour, courtship and sexual behaviour can provide ideas about what to photograph. Often, these sections are accompanied by images. These behaviours aren’t featured in the field guides as they aren’t relevant to identification.

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Book Review: Birds Of Prey Of Australia

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I love birds of prey. But, even with my plethora of field guides, I struggle. I can be comparing images, sometimes from multiple guides, and still get confused. It got to the point where I needed a guide dedicated to just birds of prey.

Birds Of Prey Of Australia is a mixture of field guide and handbook.. It is separated into two parts: one focusing just on identification and one dedicated to exploring the behaviour and characteristics of a species in more detail.

It is one of the best guides I own and one that I would recommend to any bird enthusiast.

Part 1: The field guide

The first part is dedicated to helping readers identify the 26 different species of birds of prey. Most of this part is organized into species descriptions. There are smaller sections at the end dedicated to vagrants and difficult pairs.

Most species descriptions take up just two pages, except for white-bellied sea eagle which has four. These descriptions are split equally between text and graphics.

The images vary between 4 and 16 per page, depending on the amount of variations within a species. The images show:

  • how different morphs, gender and age can influence the birds physical appearance.
  • examples of worn plumage
  • what the bird looks like in moult.
  • what the birds look like from different perspectives including in flight, from above, from below and perched.

The images are accompanied by detailed physical descriptions. There is information on the adults, juveniles and chicks. The final paragraph is dedicated the explaining how to tell a species apart from similar ones.

I love this. There are so many subtleties when it comes variations in a birds appearance; much more than most field guides can cover. Previously, I’d learn this information in the field when with a more experienced birder. This guide lessons the learning curve.

Difficult species: pairs

This section is a highlight and something that I will be returning to often. The section features 38 pages of comparisons between different species.

The first 12 pages are illustrations showing the visual differences between species. These illustrations are split in the middle of the page and show how the underwings compare to similar species. In some cases, the illustrations show the differences between different morphs and adult/juvenile.

This section alone is worth the cost of the guide.

Part 2: Handbook

The handbook section is organized differently to Part 1. The content focuses on the behaviour and issues facing each species. Debus allocates two pages to each species and writes about the species distribution, food and hunting, breeding and threats and conservation.

I appreciated this content being kept separate from the part focused on identification. It helps me avoid being overwhelmed when trying to identify a species and allows me to learn more at my own pace.

Do I recommend it?

I highly recommend this book.

I used to sit with multiple guides in front of me and still have difficulty identifying a species. The difficult species pages are so useful that they are worth the entire cost of the book.

The guide also had just enough information. I’m able to dive in and learn more about the species that intrigue me without getting overwhelmed. Overwhelm has been a huge issue for me so this was very much appreciated.

I recommend it to people at all stages of their birdwatching journey.

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Book Review: Colac Otway Birds

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I’ve had close connections to the Colac/Otway region for most of my life. My aunt lives in Colac, and our family would often holiday in Apollo Bay. It is a tradition that I’ve continued as an adult. Now my visits are less about swimming and sandcastles, and more about discovering wildlife.

I was excited when I discovered this book. It focuses on a smaller geographic area than other guides about the region and goes into more detail. It isn’t as comprehensive as I would have liked; however, it’s a useful addition to your bookshelf if you frequently visit the area.

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