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Book ReviewsBirds ofthe Cottage Country. 1985. By William C. Mansell. McBainPublications, Kitcheuer. 208 pp., $7.95 (paper).

As the author points out, thecottage country of central Ontariobe(;omes the destination for tens ofthousands of people every summer.Many of these people have acasual interest in birds but need asource of regional bird informationto answer their questions. Theauthor hopes that this book will bea reference for local birds that will"be a last recourse to thosearguments around the dinnertable", as well as an addendum tothe four major field guides. Thearea encompassed by this bookincludes the Districts of Muskoka,Parry Sound and Haliburton, plusAlgonquin Provincial Park.

. Unfortunately, the Birds oftheCottage Country does not meeteither of these aims very well.

The book is made up of threesections. It begins with a brief fivepage introduction. Here, thepurpose of the book is outlined,and an overview of the book'slayout is given. Sadly missing fromthis introduction is any kind ofmap of the area in question. Thefinal section is a useful chart of the310 species known to occur in theregion. Listed beside each speciesare spring arrival and departuredates and fall arrival anddeparture dates. The bulk of thebook, nearly 200 pages, iscomprised of the accounts of all310 species and their respectivefamilies. The order of thesefamilies by and large follows the6th edition of the ADU checklist

(1983). However, on someoccasions, birds are placed in oddcombinations (for example, theplacing of Homed Lark in thechapter with mimids, pipits,waxwings and starlings). Mtereach family name, there is a brieflist of that family's member speciesarranged by abundance. Adrawback with this system is that Ilooked in vain for definitions ofthe abundance ratings. Forinstance, what is the differencebetween "rather uncommon" and"uncommon''? This lack ofdefinition causes some confusion,or perhaps I disagree with theratings; I am not sure which. Forinstance, according to my records,Red-breasted Nuthatch is not"uncommon", nor is NorthernOriole "rather rare" in the cottagecountry. Following this attempt atabundance ratings, the family ofbirds covered in that chapter isbriefly described. Then follows aspecies by species account. Thespecies name is bold-faced andnumbered; the number cor-

"responds to the arrival/de"parturechart at the back of the book.

The most recurrent flaw in thisbook is the repeated use ofmisleading language which, to anovice birdwatcher, will give amost incorrect impression ofcertain birds. The description ofthe Ruby-crowned Kinglet callsounding "as if the bird waspulling nails from wood" will notaid a budding birdwatcher in

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identifying this bird. In the general The narrowness of such a personaldiscussion of swallows, Mansell approach could have been avoideddeclares that "all swallows are through the better use of existingcolonial in nesting habits". This is literature and records. A look atdefinitely not the case for the Tree the Ontario Nest Records SchemeSwallow, and rarely for the Bam or or the results of the OntarioRough-winged Swallow. Some- Breeding Bird Atlas would havetimes, important facts about birds revealed that contrary to whatare left out entirely. I can think of Mansell believes, Brown-headedfew other birds that so readily Cowbirds have indeed parasitizedremind me of a spruce bog as the many nests in cottage country.Olive-sided Flycatcher. However, Clearly, the most interestingMansell makes no mention of sections of the book are thethem around bogs. And I have yet numerous anecdotes the authorto see a Brown Creeper on a cow recounts. There are some delightfultail! descriptions of approaching

A major problem with Mansell's herons in canoes, watching youngperspective on the birds of this loons learning to fish and findingregion stems from the personal a Scarlet Tanager in October. If theapproach that the author takes. Birds ofthe Cottage Country hadMost of his sense of the species' stuck to such a personal note itregional status appears to come would have been a much morefrom the birds he has seen at his interesting read.cottages on Rebecca and Pen This book attempts to straddleLakes. I am not convinced that the line between personalthese observations apply across the recollections on the one hand andregion. Mansell's descriptions of an annotated checklist on theNorthern Pintail and Gadwall other. The result is that it doesimply that they are rare visitors neither very well. Therefore, thisfrom the prairies. However, both book cannot be recommended as aspecies have nested in Parry Sound guide to the birds of cottage .and Muskoka Districts as part of a country, either for the seasonedmajor eastward range expansion. bird enthusiast or the beginner.

Chris Harris, 4-4175 Carnarvon St., Vancouver, B.c. V6L 2S3

Watching Birds: An Introduction to Ornithology. 1977. By Roger F. Pasquier.Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston (published in Canada by ThomasAllen & Son Limited), 301 pp.; $13.95 Paperback.

Introductory texts on field another birdwatching "how-to"ornithology that are both worth- book! Therefore, it was withwhile and at the same time not pleasant surprise that I discoveredoverly technical are hard to find. a useful, informative and mostlyAccordingly, it was with some accurate book.apprehension that I approached Pasquier wrote this book withRoger F. Pasquier's Watching Birds: two audiences in mind. As aAn Introduction to Ornithology. Not teacher of ecology, he wanted to

ONTARIO BIRDS APRIL 1987

place abstract ecological principlesin the observable, real world. Andthe world of birds provides ampleopportunity for the illustration ofecological concepts. The otherpeople for whom this book isaimed are birdwatchers. Manybirdwatchers are keen to movebeyond merely identifying birds tounderstanding their roles in theecosystem. In brief, this book isboth a primer on birdwatchingand a primer on ecology.

Watching Birds is an intimidating301 pages; the text,however, is setin easy to read print and isliberally sprinkled with attractiveblack-and-white illustrations,capably done by MargaretLaFarge. The text is divided into 15bite-sized chapters, each dealingwith an important aspect of thestudy of birds. Topics coveredrange from why people study birdsand a basic introduction tobirding, through physiology andbehaviour, to the current state ofthe field. Also included is aforeword by the dean ofbirdwatching, Roger Tory Peterson,and appendices on further readingand some major ornithologicaland conservation organizations.

Each of the chapters can be readas a separate unit and provides awealth of information. Under­pinning each is a concern withecological principles and anemphasis on the adaptivesignificance of physiologicalfeatures and behaviour." Pasquiersupports these larger themes withnumerous specific, mostly NorthAmerican, examples. These are ofinterest to both amateurs andprofessionals. While some of theinformation verges on the trivial(how many feathers does a

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hummingbird have?), others striketo the heart of matters. Particularlyinteresting to this reviewer was theconservation dilemma posed by apair of Spotted Owls. The timbervalue represented by the averageterritory of these birds is estimatedat ten million dollars!

While mostly accurate, WatchingBirds is marred by the occasionalmistake, often caused by theauthor's tendency towards makingabsolute statements. Contrary towhat is stated in the book, HouseFinches in eastern North Americado compete with another species,albeit the much maligned HouseSparrow (p. 229), Kirtland'sWarbler does breed outside ofMichigan (p. 238) and Yellow­breasted Chats will raise youngBrown-headed Cowbirds (p. 187).Other inconsistencies are causedby the book's age; published in1977 it is already somewhat out ofdate. For example, the superiorNational Geographic Society FieldGuide to the Birds ofNorth Americais, obviously, not noted in the listof field guides. Furthermore, thetaxonomy used has been supersededby revisions made by the AOD.More sadly, Pasquier's reference to50 California Condors is no longeraccurate, as only a handful remain.While these minor shortcomingsare annoying, they do not effect theoverall value of the book.

Watching Birds is a worthwhileaddition to the bookshelves ofanyone interested in birds and/orecology. It is an ideal teaching tooLboth for schools (senior secondaryand junior college) and forindependent study. In addition toanswering many questions. Pasquierposes many many more; WatchingBirds provides the inquiring mind

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with dozens of questions yet to beanswered. For birders, this bookwill allow them to betterunderstand bird biology and theecological roles played by birds.

Pasquier makes a powerfulargument for conservation; hope­fully this book will help to furtherthis goal.

Mark Gawn, 1045 Alenmede Crescent, Ottawa, Ontario K2B 8H2

OFO Announcements

Field Trips23 May 1987, Saturday: TORONTO ISLAND. Spring migrants for beginner

birders. Leader: Glenn Coady (416) 5%-8109. Meet at 8:00 AM atToronto Island Ferry Docks.

5-7 June 1987, Friday to Sunday: OFO ANNUAL SPRING MEETING­LONG POINT. Organizer: Jon McCracken (519) 428-0019. Orientationmeeting on Friday, 5 June at 8:00 PM at the Group Campsite, TurkeyPoint Provincial Park (see last OFO Newsletter (No. 11) for more details).

4 July 1987, Saturday: BRUCE PENINSULA Nesting Eastern Bluebirds,Brewer's Blackbirds, Sandhill Cranes. Leaders: Dave Fidler (519) 371­2919 and Tom Murray. Meet at Dave Fidler's house at 8:00 AM. FromOwen Sound go west on Hwy. 21 to Jackson (8.0 km), north oneconcession (2.0 km), west 0.8 km, north 1.1 km (only house on left side ofthe road).

7-9 August 1987, Friday to Sunday: PEMBROKE SWALLOW ROOST.Details will appear in the next OFO Newsletter. For more informationcontact Chip Weseloh (416) 485-1464.

1 November 1987, Sunday: SARNIA JAEGERS. Leader: Dennis Rupert(519) 371-2919. Meet at 8:00 AM at the first stoplight at Point Edwardparking lot behind the waterworks. If it is a good day (i.e., bad weather)Dennis will stay there most of the day. If it is a bad day (i.e., goodweather) the trip will move on to Kettle Point and Ipperwash about 10:00AM. .

21 November 1987, Saturday: NIAGARA RIVER GULL OUTING. Leader:Glenn Coady (416) 596-8109. Meet at 8:00 AM at the parking lot at themouth of the river, Niagara-on-the-Lake.

For the latest details regarding any of these events contact Margaret Bain,OFO Field Events Coordinator (416) 668-6452.

ONTARIO BIRDS APRIL 19M7