Issue #0

Birds of Guatemala

Qty: 2

Plot

Guatemala, a country about the size of New York State, is home for more than 660 species of birds - nearly as many as are found in all of temperate North America. Although this rich and varied avifauna has long stimulated the interest of ornithologists, this is the first comprehensive single-volume guide and handbook for the area. The author spent much time in Guatemala collecting some 434 species, a number second only to that gathered by the great nineteenth century naturalist, Osbert Salvin. The results of his study, which included some species new to Guatemala, are here summarized and compiled with other available information on Guatemalan ornithology. Each individual species is described in a brief and lucid form, and most are accompanied in the text by a small distributional map. Treatment includes range, habitat, and description, in addition to data on subspecies, status, and useful field notes. both overall length and wing size are noted, as are various Spanish names applied to the birds. A majority of the breeding species are shown in handsome color paintings that illustrate the book, of which 22 plates are by the author and 22 are by H. Wayne Trimm. As species ranges outside of Guatemala are outlined, this book should prove useful elsewhere in Central America and in adjacent Mexico. Born in 1929, Dr. Land was professor at Concord College, then at Northwestern State College. He was a member of many impressive organizations including The American Ornithologists' Union. In 1968, he succumbed to Hodgkin's disease, leaving the completed manuscript for this book in the hands of the Pan American Section of the International Committee for Bird Preservation.