Birds of the West Indies
After years of being a rather neglected destination for British birders, the Caribbean has recently found a new popularity.
Although most Caribbean islands hold low numbers of species compared with other parts of the world, the long isolation of the avifauna there has resulted in an exceptionally high level of endemism. This density of unique species makes for a fascinating region that is increasingly appealing to the present generation of travelling birders.
Until recently, birders in the Caribbean were all dependent on the once groundbreaking, but now very dated, field guide by James Bond. However, the renewed interest in the region has seen a number of new books, including Helm’s The Birds of the West Indies and more specific guides to the largest islands of Cuba, Hispaniola and Jamaica. This, the latest addition to the literature, is the third to bear the title Birds of the West Indies, sharing it with both the Bond and Helm tomes.
The book is designed as a pocket-sized guide to all the birds recorded in the region. It is made up of 80 plates featuring all the species, with a short text for each on the facing page. There are also 63 pages of maps, with one for each species.
The plates are very much of the Peterson mould, with all the birds in identical poses. This is a very functional – albeit rather dated – way of packing so many species into such a small book. The quality of the illustrations is good, although with so many on one page there is not room to depict a very wide range of plumages. For example, most of the ducks are just shown as male and female, with only a couple illustrated in eclipse, and none at all in flight.
The short texts describe behaviour, habitat, song and distribution, but only occasionally contain plumage details. It is a shame that the maps are isolated at the back of the book and not incorporated with the text. The map section is too large with many unnecessary, such as the Jamaican Poorwill, which shows the whole of Jamaica as its range when it is widely believed to be extinct.
Unless you are going to one of the large islands with its dedicated guide, the choice is between this book or the Helm guide. Any criticisms aside, this is a very attractive portable guide and would do its job. However, whichever guide you take, I think a copy of a North American field guide would also need to find its way into your baggage when you head for this wonderful region.
Tech spec
• Birds of the West Indies by Norman Arlott (Collins, London, 2010).
• 240 pages, 80 colour plates, 550+ maps.
• ISBN 9780007277186. Hbk, £29.99.
Available from Birdwatch Bookshop
First published in Birdwatch 223:46 (January 2011).
