Christopher Hails

Basics: 1987, hardcover, 168 pages, 131 species in color, no range maps

Covering a little less than half of Singapore’s birds, this book is geared “for those people who have a new or casual interest in birds and…wish to satisfy a passing curiosity”, as noted by the authors. To aid with this goal, the book intentionally covers only the more common birds (131) seen in Singapore.

The artistry is good but not always true to accuracy with a few of the birds (e.g., Arctic Warbler is not recognizable). The artwork typically includes a natural background with the birds. The paintings are notably larger than a typical field guide and are the key features of the book, which are to capture the interest of the casual birder.

The text, ranging from 1-3 paragraphs, are made of general notations that are easy to read and are informative. This information consists of brief descriptions, habitat preferences, behavioral characteristics, and voice. The focus of the text is natural history and not identification, fitting in with the authors’ goal for the book.

If you are interested in learning about the birds of Singapore but don’t want or need to be overwhelmed with a guide that covers every species, you will enjoy this book. It’s attractive and informative.

I’ve listed several related books below…
1) A Field Guide to the Birds of West Malaysia and Singapore by Jeyarajasingam/Pearson
2) A Photographic Guide to Birds of Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore by Davison/Fook
3) Birds: A Photographic Guide to the Birds of Peninsular Malaysia and Singapore by Strange/Jeyarajasingam
4) Birds of Thailand by Robson
5) A Field Guide to the Birds of South-East Asia by King
6) A Guide to the Birds of Southeast Asia by Robson
7) A Photographic Guide to the Birds of Southeast Asia by Strange… (plus d'informations)