Pigeons and Doves in Australia - Hardcover

Joseph Forshaw; William T. Cooper

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0643096337 ISBN 13: 9780643096332

Publisher: CSIRO Publishing, 2015

Synopsis

Possibly the most successful urban birds, pigeons and doves in the Order Columbiformes are one of the most easily recognised groups. They are an ancient and very successful group with an almost worldwide distribution and are most strongly represented in tropical and subtropical regions, including Australia. In most species simple plumage patterns feature mainly grey and brown with black, white or dull reddish markings, but the highly colourful fruit-doves include some of the most beautiful of all birds.

From dense rainforests of north Queensland, where brilliantly plumaged Superb Fruit-Doves Ptilinopus superbusare heard more easily than seen, to cold, windswept heathlands of Tasmania, where Brush Bronzewings Phaps elegans are locally common, most regions of Australia are frequented by one or more species. For more than a century after arrival of the First Fleet, interest in these birds focused on the eating qualities of larger species. In addition to contributing to declines of local populations in some parts of Australia, excessive hunting brought about the extinction of two species on Lord Howe Island and another species on Norfolk Island.

In Pigeons and Doves of Australia, Joseph Forshaw and William Cooper have summarised our current knowledge of all species, including those occurring on Christmas, Norfolk and Lord Howe Islands, and with superb artwork have given readers a visual appreciation of the birds in their natural habitats. Historical accounts of extinct species are also included. Detailed information on management practices for all species is presented, ensuring that Pigeons and Doves in Australia will become the standard reference work on these birds for ornithologists and aviculturists.

About this title

Review:

BEST BIRD BOOK of 2015 by THE BIRDBOOKER REPORT

"RECOMMENDATION: A MUST have for anyone who's a fan of Cooper's artwork. Also for anyone that collects bird family monographs or has a serious interest in the birds of Australia."-- (11/01/2015)

"This volume deserves a place among the classic bird books of the world. It can sit proudly among the works of Caley, Gould and Audubon and adds greatly to our knowledge of the many and varied members the pigeon tribe. William Cooper's beautiful illustrations are a delight and for those who may not be all that interested in scientific description they alone would be reason enough to buy the book."-- (05/22/2015)

About the Author:

Joseph M Forshaw is one of Australia’s foremost ornithologists. Prior to his retirement, he held a senior position with the Australian National Parks and Wildlife Service. He is a Research Associate in the Department of Ornithology at the Australian Museum, Sydney, and is a Corresponding Fellow of the American Ornithologists Union. In 1977 he was awarded a Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal for his services to ornithology and conservation. It was in the early 1960s, while working as a biologist with the then CSIRO Division of Wildlife Research, that he turned a lifelong fascination with birds into a serious academic interest, and his efforts were rewarded in 1964 when he was granted a Frank M. Chapman Memorial Fellowship by the American Museum of Natural History to study specimens of Australian parrots in collections at that institution. In partnership with the eminent Australian bird artist William Cooper, he has produced a number of widely acclaimed books.

aWilliam T Cooper AO is Australia’s leading natural history artist. In collaboration with Joseph Forshaw, he has illustrated several ornithological books including Parrots of the World, The Birds of Paradise and Bower Birds,Australian Parrots, Kingfishers and Related Birds and Turacos. In 1990 he was awarded the Philadelphia Academy of Science (USA) Gold Medal, and in 1994 he was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia for his contribution to art and to ornithology. In 2014 he received an Honorary Doctorate from the Australian National University. A collection of Cooper’s original paintings is owned by the National Library of Australia, another two collections are owned by the State Library of NSW (Mitchell Library), and many others are in private collections around the world.

About this edition

• Publisher: CSIRO Publishing
• Publication date: 2015
• ISBN 10: 0643096337
• ISBN 13: 9780643096332
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 360