Publisher: Bird Conservation Society of Thailand, 1999
ISBN: 978-85895-5-2
Authors: Michael Webster & Chew Yen Fook
The
small size of this book suggests that it is a field guide,
however, do not fall into this trap as fewer than 300 species
are pictured within it which is a long way short of the 1000+
species that have been recorded in Thailand.
The way this book is set out with reference tabs in the page
corners would indeed be useful if this were a full identification
guide, but in the absence of more than 700 species it seems
a bit of a waste of a good idea. Despite this limitation the
book does have a number of good points. The original low price
of this publication means it is ideal if considering a trip
to Thailand in order to see which bird families are likely
to be encountered before deciding whether to book a trip and
purchase a more expensive field guide. In fact the information
in the first section, about bird finding, habitats and birding
sites, fills the void that is created by the lack of introduction
in Craig Robson's "A
Field Guide to the Birds of Thailand", so
would be an ideal purchase to familiarize oneself with the
country's ornithology before visiting.
Any faults
aside this book is a pleasant addition to any birder's library
for the nice collection of photographs it contains.
Score: 5/10
Other Relevant Books
Birds
of Thailand - Published in 2018 this field guide
was based on the taxonomy used in Handbook of the Birds
of the World with several new plates created on consultation
with the authors. Inclusion of all subspecies know to occur
in Thailand makes this book excellent as it makes it relevant
to all taxonomies while anticipating future splits.
Birds
of Southeast Asia - This field guide covers all
of the species found in all countries of mainland Southeast
Asia and this is the most up to date version of the book,
which was published in 2011. A great guide for those traveling
in several countries but a little tricky to use in the field
due to its layout. Still the best field guide for the whole
region though.
Bird
Guide of Thailand - This pioneering field guide,
first published in 1974, covers off the species known in
Thailand at that time, making it far from complete from
the avifauna currently known. However, this is still a nice
book and certainly one that Thailand birders will want to
add to their collection, containing useful species accounts.
Birds
of Thailand
Birds
of Southeast Asia
Bird
Guide of Thailand
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