Bird books

[Ron Smith]

Last night my wife and I were brainstorming what we want Austin to study for science the first half of his 6 grade year (We homeschool). We decided that since we spend so much of the fall in the Everglades that an in depth study of birds would be a good idea. We are looking for book ideas. Sutton ...I hope you jump in here. We want to incorporate bird watching, photography and since we will have specimens in hand ..dissection and anatomy. Thanks in advance for everyones input.

 

[tod osier]

Ron,

That is a great idea.

For the identification portion, I would get a copy of “The Sibley Guide to Birds” by David Allen Sibley.

I would highly recommend a second book by Sibley as a bird biology reference book, it is very well done and I have considered using it for a university level course for non science majors. I think it would be a great book for your purpose and be very useful for an interested 6th grader and his parents. The book is Sibley Guide to Bird Life and Behaviour (Ornithology) by David Sibley (Hardcover - Nov 30, 2001), assign him pages 1-120 as a guide to bird biology.

As far as doing dissections, the Sibley book does not have the anatomy section you need. I would recommend focusing on one particular system in the dissections. You could focus on the digestive system, which can eb broken into a reasonable number of parts with clear function. The circulatory system would work too. Several options exist to help through this part. One option is “Ornithology” by Gill, this is a college text, but not too dense. You can get used copies of the second edition for $25 (the 3rd edition is new and +$100). I would be happy to suggest portions to read to help get through the anatomy section without getting a 6th grader bogged down and over his head, this is especially true if you are focusing on just the digestive system or circulatory system. As an alternative, I could photocopy certain sections for you or send you my lectures on specific portions.

There are lots of ideas, something that would be neat would be to have him do dissections of mammal, reptile and bird to compare contrast features, like compare heart and lungs of the three.

Please don’t hesitate to contact me, I should be able to give you some more ideas once I know exactly what you are thinking.

Tod

 

[Jay Anglin]

That's some darn good info there Tod. One more reason to love this website.

I would add that if he's going to be in S. Florida, Sibley's has some decent vagrants listed and certainly a good parrot/parakeet section and is without a doubt the best bird book I've seen but I always carry my Peterson's Birds of Mexico when I'm down south as well. You never know when some bizarre Central American species is going to land in that shrub outside the Hilton. Like the time I saw the toucan on the Cumberland River in Kentucky. He wasn't banded and very skittish. Zoo escapee maybe...but I'd like to think not.

 

[Steve Sutton]

Go with the Sibley Guide to EASTERN BIRDS.....its "close" to the Sibley Guide to Birds but its in a smaller format and also only covers the Eastern U.S.....as your son starts out he doesn't need the Western Birds, many of which have an Eastern counterpart that can be very similar, in the smae Guide....for practical purposes the Eastern Guide is the same book, with a couple less illustrations per bird, in a smaller format. The text is updated, (2002 printing as compared to 2000 on the Guide to Birds), and is more "accurate" than the earlier version.....

Since you're in South Florida I'd also recommend a couple of STATE sepcific Guides.....Birds of Florida, (one of the Smithsonian Handbook series), by Alsop, (whose artwork rivals Sibley). Its specific to Florida and includes more "information" about the individual birds than the Sibley Guide....

I'd also get a copy of FLORIDA BIRDS by Maeher and Kale.....this one isn't as comprehensive as the Smithsonian Guide but it has good coverage of the many Exotics that you un into in South Florida, (something that Sibley all but ignores).

Round out his beginners library with a couple of other Sibley books: Birding Basics--well worth the read as it "encourages" the reader to be an OBSERVER and not just a "lister", (nothing wong with that but I've always thought that if you were watching birds you should be interested in knowing more about it than just that you saw it); and HAWKS IN FLIGHT....worthwhile for its "expanded" information on a group of birds that is highly attractive to beginners because they are large and more easily "observed" than the little stuff....

I'd encourage you to not concentrate on birds alone....get him into the "full meal deal" so that he is looking into not just birds but mammals, reptiles, amphibians, flowers, butterflies, etc.etc., which will encourage him to be more likely to be interested in "interactions", and "cuase and effect", than he will be if he just concentrates on birds...

Be careful....you get him into i.d.'ing those little "brown disappearing birds", and he'll start getting interrested in the Environment beyond the species that he hunts. Sure as shooting as soon as that happens people will start calling him "Bunny Hugger" and you don't want that cause we all know that ALL of those folks are not only ANTI-HUNTING but want our guns as well....

Steve

 

[Ron Smith]

Thanks for all the info...keep it coming! When we were homschooling our first 2 sons (Now grown up, out of the house and married) we used to camp 9 days every spring in the ENP at Flamingo. One spring we studied up on the Glades and and used our camping/fishing trip as a class room. Fighting black drum, redfish, trout and such on 8lb spinners made it a very fun classroom! Thinking back on that trip along with your comments Steve, I believe we will expand it to the entire ecosystem with an emphasis on the birdlife. It is a work in progress at this moment. Thanks again for all the info.