The popularity of birding in our region sparked the release of two new birding books with nearly identical titles by major regional publishers. This book was published in 2016 by the Seattle Audubon Society and the University of Washington Press. In 2017, Timber Press continued their Field Guide series with “Birds of the Pacific Northwest,” by John Shewey and Tim Blount.
Confusing? Yes, and as a minimal birder, I don’t feel qualified to make a recommendation between the two, especially as to my eye there are more similarities than differences. If you are serious about identifying the birds in your garden or on your local travels, you clearly need both books!
The photography is one of the outstanding features of both, and the photos capture a very wide range of species, often with multiple images to show variation in sexes, juveniles, breeding plumage, and other color forms. Throughout there is help with identification between near look-alikes, and the authors address behaviors, bird songs, specifics on where to find rarer birds, and conservation status.
The Audubon book includes an excellent essay on the climate, geology, and ecology of different sub-regions, especially as it pertains to the birds found there. It covers a bigger area, extending the region eastward to the continental divide. I like that each photograph includes both the location by county and the month taken.
Excerpted from the Fall 2017 Arboretum Bulletin.