Recensies user-fri endl y th an most other handbooks. Th e onl y major probl em w ith the book is the secti on on geographi c va ri ati on w hich is a wastebas ket for several unrelated pi eces of inform ation , so me of w hich have little to do w ith geographi c va ri ation. In addition to the customary di scuss ion of subspecies limits, we read about relati onships above the level of spec ies, reports of interspec ific hybridi zati on, th e appea rance of hybrid s and va ri ation th at is not geographi c (eg, the appearance of morph s of Long-tailed Sku a Stercorarius longica udus). Inform ati on on geographi c va ri ati on itse lf is restri cted to ce rtain morph o log ica l characters (pIumages, biom etry) and omits inform ati on on voca li zation s and behaviour - a major error. M ost sections are we ll -researched and is based on extensive coverage of the literature. As ca n be expected from a mammoth project li ke HANZAB, it is not perfect. The account on O lrog's G ull Larus atlanticus omits newly di scovered breeding loca li ties and range extension s described in Co ll ar et al (Threa tened birds of the Americas, 1992) . Typos are few and are mainl y found in th e authorshi p and ori gin al c itati ons of specific and subspec ific names . Some errors, however, are irri tatin g. The specific name of W estern Sandpiper is Ca lidris mauri, not C semipalmatus (p 213) . Lesser Bl ack-backed Gull L fuscus is sa id to be monotypi c but the text cl ea rl y indicates th at thi s statement is an erro r rather th an a new taxo nomi c in sight. Lea st Tern Sterna antillaru m is co nsidered to be spec ifi ca ll y di stin ct from Li ttle Tern S alb ifrons but th e di stributi o n map of Littl e Tern st ill inclu des the breeding range of Least Tern . These matters as ide, thi s important and attracti ve vo lume is a go ld mine of informati on and deserves a place in th e libra ri es of globall y ori ented birders and profess ional orni tholog ists or anyo ne w ith an interest in shorebird s or A ustrali an ornitho logy. GEORGE SANGSTER
DEREK A Scon & PAUL M ROSE 1996 . Atlas of A natidae populations in A frica and Western Eurasia. Wetland s Intern ati o nal, Marij keweg 11 , 6700 CA W ageningen, Netherl and s. Di stributed in th e Netherl ands by Natuu r en Boek, Bankastraat 10, 2585 EN Den H aag. 336 pp. ISBN 1-900442-09-4, N LG 40 .00 (paperback); ISBN 1900442- 10-8, NLG 60 .00 (hardback) . Thi s attracti ve and we il produced atl as prov id es an ove rv iew of th e present knowledge of popul ati on data of 61 spec ies of swa ns, geese and ducks (excludin g vag rant and introduced species, cf table 2) occ urring in Africa and western Eurasia, in re lation to the netwo rk of wetl and s necessary for the su rv iva l of these mostly hi ghl y m igratory spec ies. Each spec ies text features the fo ll ow ing sections: subspec ies recogni zed, di stributi on, move ments, popul ati on limits, popul ati on size, habitat/eco logy, co nservati on status, netwo rk of key sites, and protecti on status of key sites. Informati on on population trend s is ava il abl e from table 1 in chapter 2. A nn ex 2, at the end of the book, presents all key sites fo r A natid ae in Afri ca and western Euras ia, li sted fo r each co un try in alph abetica l order. For anyo ne interest-
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ed or w orking in th e field of protection and conservat ion of swans, geese and ducks thi s book is an indi spensa bi e so urce of information . ANDRÉ J VAN LOON
JEAN-CHARLES TOMBAL (coö rdin ator) 1996 . Les oisea ux de la région N ord- Pas-de-Ca lais - Effectifs et distribution des espèces nicheuses : période 1985-1 995. Spec iaal nummer va n Le Héron (29: 1-336). G roupe Ornith olog ique Nord, 38 ru e de la Nati on, 59296 Avesnes-Ie-Sec, Frankrijk. 336 pp. ISBN 2-95 10339-07. FRF 25 0.00. Dit is een region ale broedvoge l atl as va n de regio Nord- Pas-de-Calais in Noord-Frankrij k. Dat in deze regio, die gebukt gaat onder een zwa re j achtdruk en w aar j agers grote in v loed hebben, blijkbaar toc h een be hoo rlijke groep mense n voge ls oo k buiten de dinertafel waa rderen en tijd steken in ve ld we rk en de gegevens vastl eggen in boe kvo rm , is ve rh eugend . In afw ij kin g va n w at meesta l gebruikelijk is wo rd en de soortteksten niet in avifa uni sti sc he vol gorde gepresentee rd , maa r wo rden de soorten ingedeeld naa r het habitattype en de nestpl aatskeuze en w ij ze va n nestbouw binn en die habita t. Dit is een ve rrassende ke uze en lijkt voo ral bedoe ld om het gelnte ressee rde maar minder goed ingevoerd e Franse lekenpu bliek te bereiken doo r erop te w ij ze n dat versc hillende habitats een versc hillende voge lbevolking herbergen, en daarm ee het belang aan te geven va n de beschermin g va n de versc hillende habitats. Het maakt het rechtstreeks opzoeken va n tekst en kaart va n een bepaa lde soort wa t lasti g, maa r een soo rte n index met Franse namen en wetensc happelijke namen (per familie in 'kl ass ieke' avifauni sti sc he vol gorde) onderva ngt dit bezwaa r. ANDRÉJ VAN LOON
PETER STEYN 1997. Breeding birds of southern Africa . Chri stopher Helm/A&C Black, 35 Bedford Row, London W Cl R 4JH , UK. 240 pp. IS BN 0-7136-4765-5 . GB P 40.00. Thi s book is not an atl as of breeding birds, as the ti tle may suggest, but a book on the breed ing habits of southern Afri ca n bird s. It was or igin all y pu bli shed in 1996 in South Afri ca by Fern wood Press under the ti tle Nesting birds - the breeding habits of southern Africa n birds, but for the Europea n market it was renamed as Breeding birds of southern Africa. For the va ri ous groups of b ird s (of co urse, not every si ngle species cou Id be treated) th at breed in southern Afri ca (a map of th e region invo lved is present), nests (s ite, shape, materi ais, etc), eggs, chicks and the behaviour of parents and youn g during th e breeding seaso n are presented and di scussed . It is ri chl y illu strated w ith hi gh-quali ty photog raph s. An extensive b ibli ography, w hich is sp li t up according to th e sa me d iv ision into th e main bird groups as the text, gives further access to th e li te rature on the subject. A spectacul ar book, very good va lue fo r money. ANDRÉ J VAN LOON