RSPB British Birds of Prey

This book offers an enhanced amount of information about the 20 birds of prey regularly encountered around the UK compared to normal bird identification books. There is a concluding section that offers information and illustrative photography of ‘Rare Visitors and Vagrants.’ The book’s great strength lies in the pages of interesting and detailed information of all of these birds plus supportive photography that far outclasses that to be found in more normal spotter guides. There is still plenty of room for more normal, quick reference and evenly weighted spotter guides where this book could well be considered as an invaluable supplementary source of reference for the enthusiast as well as the more general observer. As such it makes an ideal companion to the RSPB ‘Seasbirds’ hardback survey which offers a similar quality throughout. The RSPB ‘Handbook of Scottish Birds’ makes an ideal general reference as an example of how different books offering different perspectives can support each other without being competitive. The quality of the presentation is a great advantage and many purchasers may well find this book rising to the status of a 'coffee table' publication.

My 9 year old nephew and his dad tell me the book is superb. The photographs are consistently excellent and the book layout is easy to follow and draws the reader in to the text. Go buy!

Great photos!! But that isn't the best part, each bird has a lengthy section of the book to itself, with really useful information. I was expecting brief points about each, covering 2 pages at the most, and the rest of the book "bulked out" by pictures, but that isn't the case at all! The pictures compliment the information, and there is so much to be learnt in the book, I've flicked through it when I have 10 minutes to spare quite happily and found something of interest, but it could also be something you can get really stuck into and read it properly for hours (something I am hoping to have the time to do myself soon!!). Really helps with being able to identify birds when you're out and about - but not the type of book you can carry around with you as a field guide!

Stunning photos are a highlight of this "coffee table" style book written in a user-friendly style without too much jargon. Starting from their infamous nineteenth century persecution and then post second world war poisoning via agrochemicals the progress of raptors in the past half century is reviewed. There are chapters on each species breeding in Britain including owls plus notes on rare visitors (to which category snowy owls are now reduced) and vagrants. The diet, favoured habitat, mating, current population and U.K. distribution of each is outlined without becoming bogged down in the biological detail of, say, Leslie Brown's 1976 classic. Marianne Taylor is sufficiently up to date to both discuss the recent collapse of kestrel numbers and comment on the eagle owl controversy. Unfortunately no sooner had the book gone to press than Manchester's city centre peregrines decided that the skyscraper Co-op building was a more "des res" than that named in the book! This volume would be a brilliant birthday, anniversary or Christmas present for anyone, and especially at the Amazon price.

I love this book of UKs predatory birds , fully enjoyable, and good references to theses wiuderfull birds.