Birds of the Horn of Africa: Ethiopia, Eritrea, Djibouti, Somalia, and Socotra - Revised and Expanded Edition (Princeton Field Guides)

Basics: 2009, softcover, 496pp, field/identification guide, 213 color plates of all 1,000+ species in the region; range mapsThis is another top quality book produced by the authors for the eastern region of Africa. Upon opening this book, you'll recognize many of the plates from their earlier work, "Field Guide to the Birds of East Africa" (see #6 below). You'll also see many new plates along with modifications of prior ones.The artistry is very good, easily making this book equal to or better than any other field guide on African birds. The 213 color plates illustrate all 1,000+ species found in the four "Horn" countries of Eritrea, Ethiopia, Djibouti and Somalia (plus the island of Socotra, which belongs to Yemen). Nearly every bird is shown with multiple (2-5) drawings that display excellent detail. The Yellow Wagtail has 13 different illustrations that compare the wide variation of this species. The plates do a great job at showing variations between genders, ages, and subspecies. I especially appreciated the extra effort that went into separating out the many subspecies. Additional focus seems to have been given to in-flight poses for many of the non-passerines.A brief paragraph is given for each bird across from its illustration. Although the amount of text may seem light, the information is very informative, to the point, and precise. About 80% of the information is on identification. A couple more lines are dedicated to habitat, distribution notes, and voice. You may want to take note of the font size, which is small and thin; consequently, you might want to have your reading glasses handy.The range maps - one for each bird - shows the resident, breeding, and non-breeding ranges in three different colors. These maps reflect the bird's range within only the four countries and artificially stop at the political borders. The maps show very good detail; however, this is sometimes difficult to make out due to the shaded highland regions in the background and to the rather faint gray boundaries that separate the countries. Ranges of birds with a very restricted distribution (e.g., Sidamo Lark, Ash's Lark, Djibouti Francolin, Black-backed Cisticola) can be difficult to see with just a small dot representing the range. Inserting an arrow would have been helpful. Making a more prominent note of the 70+ endemics would also have been appreciated, versus simply burying the word "endemic" within the text.In case you're wondering if you would need this book over the authors' prior book for East Africa, the answer is "Yes, if you are visiting any of these four countries." Twenty percent of the birds found in the Horn are not in the other book. Also, when there is overlap of the species between the two regions, the authors' have modified the plates to reflect the plumages of the local subspecies.This is a superb guide that will be essential for birding in these countries. Being the only complete book for this region makes it even more indispensible.1)  Birds of Ethiopia and Eritrea  by Atkins/Ash2)  Ethiopia's Endemic Birds  by Urban3)  A Guide to Endemic Birds of Ethiopia and Eritrea  by Pol4)  Ethiopia: In Search of Endemic Birds  by Francis5)  Birds of Somalia  by Ash6)  Field Guide to the Birds of East Africa  by Stevenson7)  Birds of Africa South of the Sahara  by Sinclair/Ryan8)  Birds of Kenya and Northern Tanzania  by Zimmerman9)  A Checklist of the Birds of Ethiopia  by Urban(written by Soleglad at Avian Review or Avian Books, May 2009)

An excellent book we look forward to using when we visit these countries in January 2020Similar to one we used when we visited Uganda & Rwanda last October : color plates & descriptions & maps are outstanding

Being stationed in Djibouti I was amazed of all the birds that flew through the airfield. I tried to look them up but to no avail, I couldn't find a book that would help. Last week Mat Klope came by to perform a wildlife survey of the birds and animals in Djibouti and in his hand was this book. I was amazed that someone even took the time to log the regions where the birds live. I've worked in the Aviation industry since high school and repaired countless aircraft after a "bird strike." Learning more about the birds that live in the regions where I work

we used this book during our 27 day journey through Ethiopia. Its excellent and we would have been lost without it. The index is clear the images good and the descriptions of the birds very helpful - they highlight what you need to concentrate on.

I was really excited to order this book and the color plates are terrific. However, the range maps are so minute that they're a joke. They are pretty well impossible to read, even with a magnifying glass. I realize that the only alternative is to have the range maps on a separate page, but that would be preferable to not being able to read them

I've been using this book while working and traveling in the Horn of Africa. It has been very useful ... I really like the layout--the pictures are excellent representations of the species (and as one reviewer noted, subspecies). The flight profiles and range maps have been key to my identifying some birds--the hardest birds to identify I find are the plain ones and this book does a very good job of describing and showing the subtle variations required for positive identification. My copy is now dog-eared, coffee-stained, and marked up ... After 3 months, the binding is coming loose somewhat but the pages are still stitched in pretty well. It's been stuffed in backpacks, thrown on hot dashes, tossed around in a dive bag on the beach--so it's holding up very well all things considered!If you are coming this way and you like birds, it's the book for you! Highly recommend.

While heavy, it is comprehensive and easy to use. Excellent index and plates. Fellow birders carried smaller Birds of Eastern Africa and kept asking to see my Redman guide. Local guides also used Birds of the Horn...I recommend Redman's book strongly.

Big pictures in the book! I only miss the picture index in the beginning.

Extremely comprehensive, "Birds of Horn of Africa" is - for a field guide - pretty weighty, but its well-organized, clearly illustrated, and a useful resource for any birdwatcher travelling in the region.

A very useful book with good pictures and similar text. A must-buy when going birding in the area.

The usual high standard for a Helm guide.

Very nice informative field guide

This is the best field guide available for use in Ethiopia. All species are covered and the illustrations are very accurate.