Southern African LBJs made simple

Southern African LBJs made simple

by Doug Newman & Gordon King.

(Struik Nature, R180)

The Sasol bird books are easy to use, the colour photos make it easy to identify the birds. In this book, unfortunately, all the photos are in different shades of brown which makes it difficult to identify the birds – because they are all brown. There are more than 150 LBJs – little brown jobs – in this book.

This book is different from other field guides and the authors say: “You have to read the introduction very carefully and follow the steps. The process is cumulative, building on information gleaned at each of the three stages; the reader will confront the characteristics first of the LBJ family, then of the relevant visual group within that family, and finally the key pointers that distinguish the species – which are only relevant within that blue visual group. The sum total of family, visual group and species pointers will result in a positive identification at species level.”

It is essential to work through the introduction – especially the “how to use this book” – and follow each step that will lead you to the correct identification. If you simply flick through hoping to find your mystery LBJ, you are unlikely to make a positive identi-fication and will probably become more confused.

The more you use the book, the easier it will become; and you will acquire both confidence and a better knowledge of families and visual groups and will have advanced towards conquering the challenges posed by these difficult LBJs.

The book comes in a handy size, so it will be a cinch to take wherever you go. There are clear glossy photos and information on each bird together with the location map. The “at a glance” box adds the extra information needed.

There is a CD at the back of the book that links each species by the track number of the call for each bird. When we were in a game reserve, I played the Bird Calls for Beginners CD and read up on each bird as the call played. I will gladly add this book to my collection of nature books that go with me when I travel and thus grow my own knowledge.