Icelandic Bird Guide: Species, Behavior & Habitat | Birdwatching & Nature Exploration in Iceland

This book is done thoughtfully and is packed with information. The section on bird ID, including comparisons of beaks, crests, tails etc is not unique but is a bit of a convenient, different approach than most. In the body of the book, each species is given 2 pages. A wonderful inclusion is a bar indicating months when the species is in residence, when it nests, and when it's chicks are in the nest. Also helpful is a bar neatly summarizing the stats: length, wingspan, weight, clutch size, incubation period, fledglings in nest period, and # of breeding pairs in Iceland. The text for each species includes a species overview, then a quick coverage of bill/legs/eyes features, flight action and behavior, voice, diet, habitat and breeding areas and distribution and migration. The bird photos are beautiful, with 4 for each species, thoughtfully captioned. The book includes a section of egg photos for birds that nest on Iceland. The section on habitats is not unusual but nicely done, and is helping us prepare and look forward to our trip. The only complaint I could think of, a weak one, is that the book is printed on such quality stock that it makes the book heavier than I'd prefer! While I objected to the high price, I stopped grumbling once I started to look thru the book. I hope other bird book authors will use this as the new gold standard. Buy it - you won't regret it.