Hawks at a Distance: Identification of Migrant Raptors - Paperback

by Jerry Liguori (Author), Pete Dunne (Foreword by)

The ultimate field manual for identifying distant raptors

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.

• The first guide to focus on distant raptors as they are viewed in the field
• 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

Back Jacket

"Jerry Liguori's book takes the hawk identification guide to a whole new level. It is hard to imagine the amount of time that went into this book--countless hours on mountaintops and other hawk-watching sites taking the photographs, then selecting and arranging them. The result is simply the best collection of hawk ID photos ever assembled, combined with Liguori's clear and concise identification tips. This book is a gold mine of information for anyone interested in hawk identification."--David Sibley, author of The Sibley Guide to Birds

"Liguori has done it again. Fresh on the heels of his highly acclaimed Hawks from Every Angle, we now have the new Hawks at a Distance. He never missed a beat. Not only did he pick up where he left off, he has taken it to a higher plane. This twenty-first-century offering does for raptors what the seminal Ducks at a Distance did for waterfowl in the mid-twentieth century. It makes a quantum leap in the complex art and science of hawk identification, taming these shape-shifters like never before."--Clay Sutton, coauthor of Hawks in Flight

"Jerry Liguori presents an innovative concept tackling the age-old problem of identifying flying raptors when seen under field-viewing conditions. Optimal grasp of each species and age class is obtained with a multitude of photographs depicting various flight modes and lighting conditions of dorsal, ventral, and head-on views. The concise text is easy to read and very informative. Liguori's field identification prowess is impeccable and is articulated throughout this guide."--Brian K. Wheeler, author of Raptors of Western North America and Raptors of Eastern North America

"Finally a raptor identification guide that depicts hawks the way you are likely to see them--at a distance! Liguori's unique approach to raptor identification will help birders quickly focus on the field marks that matter, to understand broad plumage patterns, and ultimately extend their reach and abilities as hawk-watchers. This guide is an absolute must for anyone interested in raptors, and will become an instant classic among hawk-watching enthusiasts."--Brian Sullivan, eBird project leader, Cornell Lab of Ornithology

"This book is a winner. The spectacular, cutting-edge photos effectively highlight important aspects of raptors in flight and are simply mind-boggling. This is the one guide that almost everyone will take to the field."--Keith Bildstein, Sarkis Acopian Director of Conservation Science, Hawk Mountain Sanctuary

"Clear and concise, I found all the information presented in this book to be accurate and accessible for both neophyte and more experienced hawk-watchers. I congratulate the author for coming up with such wonderfully illustrative photographs."--Tony Leukering, senior ornithologist, Geo-Marine Inc.

"An intriguing concept--take a few hundred of the most distant, silhouetted, weird angle photos and combine them into a field guide. . . . Very useful to raptor enthusiasts and hawk counters!"--Christian Artuso

Author Biography

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).