SHORE BIRDS of RELAND

SHORE BIRDS of RELAND
Originally uploaded by Mike Maunsell

I just got a new book, I usually buy a few to read over Christmas, and had planned to keep this one for the holidays, at least that was the plan until I got home and flicked through it, I couldn’t put it down.
The Shorebirds of Ireland by Jim Wilson and Mark Carmody is a welcome and excellent addition to guide books on Ireland's Avifauna.
Sandpipers and plovers are among the many shorebirds that live between the tides in Ireland, on mudflats and shingle, in estuaries and lagoons, on beaches and bays. Jim Wilson and Mark Carmody introduce this world and its birds, which we have all seen but may know little about. Description of how they adapted to this often harsh environment, and how they evolved ways of exploiting the food supply, is followed by an account of their amazing annual migrations between Ireland and places such as arctic Canada and Siberia.

One chapter describes the special role of Iceland in the lives of many shorebirds. The accounts of species most likely to be seen in Ireland are enhanced with outstanding images paying homage to the beauty and variety of these birds. Mark Carmody spent hundreds of hours in search of these photographs to capture the essence and beauty of our shorebirds and their environment. Jim Wilson’s text is again informative and engaging, sure to increase appreciation and understanding of these birds and where they live.
This is one of those books which will end up in my car most of the time, which is the sign of a good bird book! I also plan to add it to the recommended reading list for my undergraduate students studying ornithology as part of a B.Sc. (Hons) in Environmental & Natural Resource Management. I know it will assist them with their shore bird fieldwork. A great Christmas present to yourself, or for the birder in your life.
You can see some of Marks skills as a photographer on his Flickr page, just Click Here