The Sibley Guide To Trees

David Allen Sibley, the preeminent, bestselling bird-guide author and illustrator, applies his formidable skills of identification and illustration to the trees of North America. The Sibley Guide to Trees is an astonishingly elegant guide to a complex subject. It condenses a huge amount of information about tree identification—more than has ever been collected in a single book—into a logical, accessible, easy-to-use format. With more than 4,100 meticulous, exquisitely detailed paintings, the Guide highlights the often subtle similarities and distinctions between more than 600 tree species—native trees as well as many introduced species. No other guide has ever made field identification so clear. Features highlighted include: • leaves (including multiple leaf shapes and fall leaf color) • bark • needles • cones • flowers • fruit • twigs • silhouettes More than 500 maps show the complete range, both natural and cultivated, for nearly all species. Trees are arranged taxonomically, with all related species grouped together. By focusing on the fundamental characteristics of, for example, oaks or chestnuts or hickories, the Guide helps the user recognize these basic species groups the same way birders recognize thrushes, warblers, or sparrows. In addition, there are essays on taxonomy, on the cultivation of trees, and on conservation issues, reflecting Sibley's deep concern with habitat preservation and environmental health. An important new contribution to our understanding of the natural world, The Sibley Guide to Trees will be a necessity for every tree lover, traveler, and naturalist. It is sure to become the new benchmark in field guides to trees.

Provides basic information about the biology, life cycles, and behavior of birds, along with brief profiles of each of the eighty bird families in North America.

A miniature volume of exquisite botanical prints—the perfect gift for tree lovers. This Tiny Folio™ presents, in modern taxonomic order, all 277 of the hand-colored plates from François-André Michaux’s classic North American Sylva, as well as the supplemental volumes by Thomas Nuttall. These masterworks of nineteenth-century botanical illustration—by such artists as Pierre-Joseph Redouté and Pancrace Bessa—represent the leaves, fruit, and flowers of American trees with wonderful grace and clarity. Published in cooperation with the New York Botanical Garden, The Trees of North America includes a preface and introduction describing how Michaux and Nuttall’s pioneering work came to be.

Gives accounts of 646 species of trees, shrubs, and woody vines.

The bird book for birders and nonbirders alike that will excite and inspire by providing a new and deeper understanding of what common, mostly backyard, birds are doing—and why: "Can birds smell?"; "Is this the same cardinal that was at my feeder last year?"; "Do robins 'hear' worms?" "The book's beauty mirrors the beauty of birds it describes so marvelously." —NPR In What It's Like to Be a Bird, David Sibley answers the most frequently asked questions about the birds we see most often. This special, large-format volume is geared as much to nonbirders as it is to the out-and-out obsessed, covering more than two hundred species and including more than 330 new illustrations by the author. While its focus is on familiar backyard birds—blue jays, nuthatches, chickadees—it also examines certain species that can be fairly easily observed, such as the seashore-dwelling Atlantic puffin. David Sibley's exacting artwork and wide-ranging expertise bring observed behaviors vividly to life. (For most species, the primary illustration is reproduced life-sized.) And while the text is aimed at adults—including fascinating new scientific research on the myriad ways birds have adapted to environmental changes—it is nontechnical, making it the perfect occasion for parents and grandparents to share their love of birds with young children, who will delight in the big, full-color illustrations of birds in action. Unlike any other book he has written, What It's Like to Be a Bird is poised to bring a whole new audience to David Sibley's world of birds.

From the renowned author of the New York Times best seller The Sibley Guide to Birds, a comprehensive, beautifully illustrated guide to identifying birds in the field. Sibley's Birding Basics is an essential companion for birders of all skill and experience levels. With Sibley as your guide, learn how to interpret what the feathers, the anatomical structure, the sounds of a bird tell you. When you know the clues that show you why there’s no such thing as, for example, “just a duck” birding will be more fun, and more meaningful. An essential addition to the Sibley shelf! The Sibley Guide to Birds and The Sibley Guide to Bird Life and Behavior are both universally acclaimed as the new standard source of species information. And now David Sibley, America’s premier birder and best-known bird artist, turns his attention to the general characteristics that influence the appearance of all birds, unlocking the clues to their identity. In 200 beautifully rendered illustrations and 16 essays, this scientifically precise volume distills the essence of Sibley’s own experience and skills, providing a solid introduction to “naming” the birds. Birding Basics reviews how one can get started as a birder—the equipment necessary, where and when to go birding, and perhaps most important, the essential things to look for when birds appear in the field—as well as the basic concepts of bird identification and the variations that can change the appearance of a bird over time or in different settings. Sibley also provides critical information on the aspects of avian life that differ from species to species: feathers (color, arrangement, shape, molt), behavior and habitat, and sounds.

Authoritative, accessible guide features easy-to-use keys covering leaves, twigs, bark, buds, fruit, more. Over 300 pen-and-ink drawings by Maud H. Purdy, noted botanical illustrator. Bibliography.

In this beautiful collection of poems and paintings, Billy Collins, former U.S. poet laureate, joins with David Allen Sibley, America's foremost bird illustrator, to celebrate the winged creatures that have inspired so many poets to sing for centuries. From Catullus and Chaucer to Robert Browning and James Wright, poets have long treated birds as powerful metaphors for beauty, escape, transcendence, and divine expression. Here, in this substantial anthology, more than one hundred contemporary and classic poems are paired with close to sixty original, ornithologically precise illustrations. Part poetry collection, part field guide, part art book, Bright Wings presents verbal and visual interpretations of the natural world and reminds us of our intimate connection to the "bright wings" around us. Each in their own way, these poems and pictures honor the enchanting creatures that have been, and continue to be, longtime collaborators with the poet's and painter's art. Poet and bird pairings include: Wallace Stevens and the Blackbird; Emily Dickinson and the Robin; Marianne Moore and the Frigate Pelican; Thomas Hardy and the Goldfinch; Sylvia Plath and the Pheasant; John Updike and the Seagull; Walt Whitman and the Eagle; Billy Collins and the Sparrow.