Peterson Field Guide to Birds of Eastern and Central North America

Roger Tory Peterson was a painter and naturalist who wanted to make birdwatching easy. Before his first guide, people often identified birds by collecting them or studying technical descriptions. Peterson painted birds in similar side views, grouped look-alikes together and added small arrows pointing to the field marks that really matter, such as a wing bar, an eye ring or a patch of color. The method, now known as the Peterson Identification System, became the model for field guides of every kind.

The seventh edition covers the birds of eastern and central North America, from the Atlantic coast to the Great Plains. Birds are arranged by family, and on each spread Peterson's paintings face short descriptions of appearance, voice, habitat and similar species. Updated range maps show where each bird lives in summer, winter and migration. A team of experienced birders, artists and mapmakers revised the text and added new paintings to reflect current knowledge. Introductory pages explain how to use the guide, how to look at a bird and which features to notice first.

Compact, clear and built for the field. About 392 pages in a portable format.