Chasing Neotropical Birds / Bob Thornton and Vera Thornton.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Thornton, Bob, 1940- author.

Thornton, Vera, author.

Series:

Corrie Herring Hooks series.

Corrie Herring Hooks Series

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Forest birds--Latin America.

Forest birds.

Zoology.

Forest birds--Latin America--Pictorial works.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (255 pages) : color illustrations, maps, photographs.

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

Austin, TX : University of Texas Press, [2005]

Summary:

From Belize to Brazil, the forests of the American neotropics are home to an astonishing array of birds—over 3,700 different species, or nearly 40 percent of all the birds on earth. Because of this overwhelming abundance, birders come from all over the world to try to catch glimpses of species that can be found nowhere else, such as toucans and antbirds, motmots and manakins, bellbirds and cocks-of-the-rock, and practically all of the planet's hummingbirds. Two such birding enthusiasts are Vera and Bob Thornton, who have spent fifteen years photographing these special and exotic birds in the rainforests of eleven different countries of Central and South America. In this book, you'll find more than a hundred spectacular color photographs they took during their travels, along with a highly entertaining account of their adventures—and misadventures—in chasing these exotic neotropicals. The birds pictured here are among the Thorntons' personal favorites—birds that, in their words, "either dazzled us with their beauty, or charmed us by their behavior, or, in a few cases, simply challenged us by the mystique of their rarity." This latter category includes such elusive and sought-after birds as the Black-crowned Antpitta, the Zigzag Heron, the Rufous-vented Ground-Cuckoo, the Bare-necked Umbrellabird, and the monkey-eating Harpy Eagle. In the accompanying text, Bob Thornton engagingly describes the challenges as well as the magic of negotiating the neotropical rainforests in search of colorful birds to photograph. For those who would like to follow in the Thorntons' footsteps, there are also helpful tips about photographic gear and techniques, preferred places to see the birds, lodging, and guides. For everyone who enjoys excellent nature photography, Chasing Neotropical Birds is a must-have volume on the coffee table or in the library.

Contents:

Frontmatter

Contents

Maps

Bird Log

Neotropicals

Costa Rica—a Beginning

La Selva/Corcovado

Hatchet Tongue

Singing "Pittas"

Rio Napo

Army Antswarms

Among the Maya

Venezuela Revisited

The Lipstick Bird

Canopy Queen

Bellbirds

The Blue Cotinga

Manu

The Happy Eagle

Hyacinth Macaws of the Pantanal

Tandayapa Valley, Ecuador

Suriname

Postscript

Family Album

Advice Lab

Resource Center

Bibliography

Index

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

9780292786905

0292786905

9780292759855

0292759851

OCLC:

1280943025