The ultimate must-have guide for identifying migrant raptors, Hawks at a Distance is the first volume to focus on distant raptors as they are truly seen in the field. Jerry Liguori, a leading expert on North American raptors, factors in new information and approaches for identifying twenty-nine species of raptor in various lighting situations and settings. The field guide's nineteen full-color portraits, 558 color photos, and 896 black-and-white images portray shapes and plumages for each species from all angles. Useful flight identification criteria are provided and the accompanying text discusses all aspects of in-flight hawk identification, including flight style and behavior. Concentrating on features that are genuinely observable at a distance, this concise and practical field guide is ideal for any aspiring or experienced hawk enthusiast.
New information and approaches for identifying distant raptors
Illustrates twenty-nine species in various lighting situations and settings
558 color photos and 896 black-and-white images depicting plumage and shape characteristics
All aspects of in-flight hawk identification, including flight style and behavior
Jerry Liguori has been studying raptors throughout North America since 1984. He has conducted hawk migration counts at spring and fall migration sites, such as Cape May Point, Sandy Hook, Derby Hill, Braddock Bay, Whitefish Point, and Dinosaur Ridge, and the Goshute, Wasatch, and Sandia mountains. He is the author of Hawks from Every Angle (Princeton).
'If you love watching hawks, Liguori's Hawks at a Distance is an essential aid which will help build your identification skills.' - Wayne Mones, Audubon Magazine
'A must-have for raptor people!' - Ian Paulsen, Birdbooker Report
'Possibly the best-ever raptor identification guide in print. . . . If you are serious about identifying birds of prey, whether at a hawk-watch site, or during your everyday birding, the advances made by the author with this book can assist you in achieving that goal in ways few books have done previously. . . . Highly recommended.' - William P. Mueller, Bluebird's Laugh
'Hawks at a Distance is an advanced study written by an authority in raptors. Mr. Liguori's book is great to be read with attention and what you learn you will treasure greatly if you are an active birder.' - H.J. Ruiz, My Backyard Visitors
'This is an absolute 'must have' for anyone who has ever even briefly wondered, 'What kind of hawk was that?' . . . Practical and beautiful. . . . If you have even the slightest interest in birds, you should own this book.' - Alan Speakman, eBirdseed.com
'Jerry Liguori has found a way to communicate to birders of all ages and skill levels how he can identify hawks at a distance. He provides us with a study tool that is the next best thing to being with him atop a ridge near a hawk flyway. . . . By putting in the work to study these photos and internalizing the helpful text explaining what is shown in each photo, you would be ready to join a hawk-watch group and dazzle them with your advanced skills.' - Robert Mortensen, Birding is Fun
'This book has a lot to offer hawk watchers of all levels of experience.' - A Charm of Finches