Birds of Aruba, Curaçao and Bonaire

A popular sun, sea and sub-aqua destination for those who can afford it, the islands of Aruba, Curaçao and Bonaire have no endemics, but are well placed off the northern coast of Venezuela to receive both North and South American visitors and vagrants. This guide should be all the casual birding tourist will need as it covers all the species recorded on the three islands in all plumages, but some of the illustrations could be termed a little naïve. Most are culled from the same publisher’s Birds of Northern South America, and you’d struggle to identify Catharus thrushes or Lesser Scaup from the paintings here.

• Birds of Aruba, Curaçao and Bonaire by Bart de Boer, Eric Newton and Robin Restall (Christopher Helm, London, 2012).
• 176 pages, 71 colour plates, four maps, five colour photographs, three diagrams.
• ISBN 9781408137277. Pbk, £24.99. Birdwatch Bookshop from £19.99.