The Sibley Guide to Bird Life & Behavior (ISBN 0679451234)

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Amazon.com Review:
From the creator of the seminal field guide, The Sibley Guide to Birds, comes another indispensable book for bird watchers. This veritable bible to the world of birds is the collaborative effort of 48 expert birders and biologists, who combine scientific accuracy and detail with an easily readable and well-organized format. How does a tiny chickadee survive subzero temperatures? How do flocks of birds synchronize their flights? How can an albatross cross miles of ocean without flapping its wings? Which bird brains are actually intelligent? It's all here in essays giving an overview of avian evolution, biology, and the aerodynamics of flight and in chapters devoted to the 80 bird families of North America, each one detailing taxonomy, habitats, feeding, breeding, vocalizations, migrations, and more. Concerned about declining populations, Sibley also discusses the conservation status of each species and the factors that threaten them. This fascinating source of information is destined to be a well-thumbed companion. -- Lesley Reed

From the perspective of a non-birder...:
I'm not a birder, though it seems like an interesting hobby. But I just look at the birds at the feeders and birdbath in the back yard and think, "I wonder what that one is?" So, I bought "The Sibley Guide to Birds" (which is outstanding) on the recommendation of a birder friend, and that led me to this book. On the one hand, it's a long, dense, scientific work. The years of effort and study that went into it is astounding. On the other hand, it's an extremely entertaining set of answers to all of those "Why do they do that?" questions that come up when you're watching birds. For example, why do bird knees seem to bend backward? Well, they don't; the knee is close to the bird's body, and what seems to be a backward knee is actually the bird's ankle. The birds are in effect walking around on their tip toes. If hundreds of pages of information like that, coupled with beautiful illustrations and great maps, all wrapped in an easy-to-use organizational scheme sounds interesting and useful, then get this book. For a non-birder like me, it's probably more information than I really need, but I found it fascinating.

An informative book.:
This is a useful book about bird behavior written by a true expert. It's a bit like a textbook the way it approaches broad topics and discusses various aspects. Like any textbook, I suppose, if you go into this book with a specific question and hope for a specific answer, you may not find it. However, if you were trying to write a school report or something you would certainly find lots of useful tidbits of information in the general area of your topic. I'd say that rather than thinking of this as a reference book, you should think of it as background reading, to be taken in small doses, for the above-and-beyond birding enthusiast.

Sibley bird behavior:
Have not found this book to be interesting. It jumps around and covers many birds at once. You have to spend time looking to find a bird and then it is not comprehensive enough. Would not buy this book again. Disappointing as I do use his bird guide.

A Chilean opinion:
This book is very usefull even for forign bird watcher as my self, it contents almost every family that exist in south america with mthe exception of pinguins. Very nice writen.

Another Gem:
Like all the Sibley books, this is comprehensive and well-written. A necessary and welcomed addition to any birder's library.