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Index of Subjects
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Hi All,
Those who are interested in learning bird songs and calls, may be =
interested
in my review of the following.
John
=20
Nathan Pieplow. Peterson Field Guide to Bird Sounds of Eastern North
America. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt: Boston and New York, 2017. ISBN:
978-0-547-90558-7 ($26.91 new on Amazon.ca).
=20
Nathan Pieplow=92s Field Guide to Bird Sounds of Eastern North America =
is
probably the most complete guide produced so far for those wishing to =
deepen
their understanding of all the sounds produced by birds in Nova Scotia. =
I
would dare say that this is the first edition of a guide that will make
Nathan Pieplow to bird sounds what Peter Pyle is to bird identification.
However, if you have used Pyle=92s identification guides, then you will
understand why I=92m not convinced this is a beginner=92s guide to bird =
sounds.
For this reason, I will include at the end of this review some other
resources for the novice listener.
The guide is divided into four parts. The first part is an introduction =
to
bird sounds and focuses on how to visualize sounds. This is important =
for
learning to understand a spectrogram which is a plot of the changing
frequency level of a sound in kilohertz and the duration of the sound in
seconds. Just like reading the notes on the staff of a sheet of music =
can
help us to play music, so a spectrogram helps us to see the pattern of
sounds that are produced by a bird. To carry the music analogy further,
learning to read music is not always an easy task and reading =
spectrograms
can also involve a considerable learning curve.
The second part of the book is the species accounts. They account for =
about
75% of the pages in the book. For each species, the account provides a
description of the all the songs, calls, mechanical noises, and flight =
calls
of the species of eastern North America. These include spectrograms and =
in
the case of calls, a word or phrase that captures the essence of the =
sound.
Further information is provided on the sounds produced by different =
sexes
and ages of birds at different times of the day or of the year. There is
also a geographical range map for each species.=20
The species accounts provide the most complete reference of the sounds =
of
birds in Nova Scotia to be found anywhere, with the possible exception =
of
the Birds of North America Online. The advantage of Pieplow=92s accounts =
is
his development of a standardized approach to identifying the calls of =
birds
and not just describing the sounds of each species.
This approach to identification becomes clearer in the third part of the
book. In these pages, all possible bird sounds are grouped into a =
generic
type of song, call, or non-vocal sound with a generic spectrogram and
generic word/phrase description. This part of the book is entitled a =
=93visual
index.=94 For each of these generic sounds, a list of all the birds that
produce that sound is given. Thus, if I hear a =93nasal yank=94, the =
index will
give me a list of seven species that produce this sound along with their
page numbers in the species account. Among these seven, of course, is =
the
Red-breasted Nuthatch but also American Avocet, Upland Sandpiper, Least
Grebe, Wild Turkey, Red-masked Parakeet, and Mitred Parakeet.
So now, after going back to the species accounts, you have decided that =
you
heard a Red-breasted Nuthatch, can you really be sure of the =
identification
based on a spectrogram and the description =93yank=94? Here is where the =
fourth
part of the book comes in. An internet link to petersonbirdsounds.com
<http://www.petersonbirdsounds.com> will enable you to play the sound =
of
the exact spectrogram you are looking at in the field guide. By going to
this website which contains a subset of recordings in the Macauley =
Library
at Cornell Lab of Ornithology, and searching for a particular species, =
you
will find all the sounds described in the species account section of the
book. It is this systematic integration of word descriptions, =
spectrograms,
and actual recorded sounds that makes this book such a valuable learning
tool.
How effective is this book in helping you to identify bird sounds? If =
you
hear a sound and you think it may belong to one or two particular =
species,
this book will very likely give you a definitive answer, yes or no, in =
the
species account. If you hear a sound for which you have no idea what =
bird
may have produced it, then you will have to embark on a more serious
learning of spectrograms. This involves going to the last section of the
book, the visual index, and picking out a generic call or song based on =
a
descriptive phrase and spectrogram. However, there is a classification =
key
on the inside back cover of the book that gives you hints as to where to
start in the visual index. For example, if you hear a =93single burry or
buzzy=94 note, it directs you to go to pages 509 to 513 in the visual =
index to
find the best match. As noted before, when you find the best match, you =
will
be directed to a number of choices in the species accounts.
One criticism that I have of the book is the fact that most of the
spectrograms are displayed using the same view scale of 2 seconds in
duration. Thus, a bird song lasting one or two seconds is on the same =
view
scale as a night flight call which may be only 40 milliseconds. This
compresses the spectrogram of most flight calls and call notes and makes
them look small and without much detail. When I identify flight calls of
warblers and sparrows, I use a view scale of 0.85 seconds. This expands =
the
call over a small fraction of a second and allows me to more easily =
discern
the distinct pattern of a call.
The birder or student of bird sound will get the most out of this book =
by
making their own recordings in the field and then viewing them on sound
analysis software. It is easy to start doing this with a smartphone and =
free
recording software such as R=D8DE Rec LE. For using your smartphone to =
make
recordings, see this site from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology
(https://www.allaboutbirds.org/how-to-record-bird-sounds-with-your-smartp=
hon
e-our-tips/). A good analysis software is the free Raven Lite 2.0 from =
the
Cornell Lab of Ornithology
(https://store.birds.cornell.edu/Raven_Lite_p/ravenlite.htm). The =
website
Xeno-Canto has a large collection of bird sounds that are downloadable =
and
provides a good source for making your own spectrograms.
Going back to my opening question, is this book suitable for the =
beginning
student of bird sound? Perhaps as a reference, but I believe there are =
more
productive ways to learn the basics. For bird song, I recommend =
Dendroica
(https://www.natureinstruct.org/dendroica/index.php). It is free, =
provides
many variations on the songs of each species, as well as other calls, =
and
allows you to test yourself. For bird calls, other than songs, a good
starting place is the website of Paul Driver =
(http://pjdeye.blogspot.ca/).
For learning the flight calls of land birds, the CD-ROM, Flight Calls of
Migratory Birds by William Evans and Michael O=92Brien is essential.
Unfortunately, this resource is currently out of print with a new =
edition
expected later this year. In the meantime, you can learn more about
identifying flight calls on the Paul Driver website or at the Old Bird
library (http://oldbird.org/Library.htm).
If you are serious in developing your expertise in bird sounds and =
enhancing
your field identification skills, Pieplow=92s guide is, in my opinion, =
the
best resource available. Let me conclude by saying that the book is =
about
the same size and construction as other Peterson field guides and is
suitable for use in the field. Plus, even without buying the book, you =
can
access the online portion anytime on your smartphone to get instant
comparisons with what you are hearing in the field.
=20
Review by John Kearney
25 September 2017
Also available for download at: http://johnfkearney.com/NFC_ID.html
=20
=20
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vlink=3Dpurple><div class=3DWordSection1><p class=3DMsoNormal><span =
style=3D'font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Garamond",serif'>Hi =
All,<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=3DMsoNormal><span =
style=3D'font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Garamond",serif'>Those who are =
interested in learning bird songs and calls, may be interested in my =
review of the following.<o:p></o:p></span></p><p class=3DMsoNormal><span =
style=3D'font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Garamond",serif'>John</span><span =
style=3D'font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif'><o:p></o:p></=
span></p><p class=3DMsoNormal><span =
style=3D'font-size:11.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif'><o:p> </=
o:p></span></p><p class=3DMsoNormal><span =
style=3D'font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Garamond",serif'>Nathan Pieplow. =
<b>Peterson Field Guide to Bird Sounds of Eastern North America</b>. =
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt: Boston and New York, 2017. ISBN: =
978-0-547-90558-7 ($26.91 new on Amazon.ca).</span><span =
style=3D'font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Garamond",serif'><o:p></o:p></span=
></p><p class=3DParagraph><o:p> </o:p></p><p =
class=3DParagraph>Nathan Pieplow’s Field Guide to Bird Sounds of =
Eastern North America is probably the most complete guide produced so =
far for those wishing to deepen their understanding of all the sounds =
produced by birds in Nova Scotia. I would dare say that this is the =
first edition of a guide that will make Nathan Pieplow to bird sounds =
what Peter Pyle is to bird identification. However, if you have used =
Pyle’s identification guides, then you will understand why =
I’m not convinced this is a beginner’s guide to bird sounds. =
For this reason, I will include at the end of this review some other =
resources for the novice listener.<o:p></o:p></p><p =
class=3DParagraph>The guide is divided into four parts. The first part =
is an introduction to bird sounds and focuses on how to visualize =
sounds. This is important for learning to understand a spectrogram which =
is a plot of the changing frequency level of a sound in kilohertz and =
the duration of the sound in seconds. Just like reading the notes on the =
staff of a sheet of music can help us to play music, so a spectrogram =
helps us to see the pattern of sounds that are produced by a bird. To =
carry the music analogy further, learning to read music is not always an =
easy task and reading spectrograms can also involve a considerable =
learning curve.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=3DParagraph>The second part of =
the book is the species accounts. They account for about 75% of the =
pages in the book. For each species, the account provides a description =
of the all the songs, calls, mechanical noises, and flight calls of the =
species of eastern North America. These include spectrograms and in the =
case of calls, a word or phrase that captures the essence of the sound. =
Further information is provided on the sounds produced by different =
sexes and ages of birds at different times of the day or of the year. =
There is also a geographical range map for each species. =
<o:p></o:p></p><p class=3DParagraph>The species accounts provide the =
most complete reference of the sounds of birds in Nova Scotia to be =
found anywhere, with the possible exception of the Birds of North =
America Online. The advantage of Pieplow’s accounts is his =
development of a standardized approach to identifying the calls of birds =
and not just describing the sounds of each species.<o:p></o:p></p><p =
class=3DParagraph>This approach to identification becomes clearer in the =
third part of the book. In these pages, all possible bird sounds are =
grouped into a generic type of song, call, or non-vocal sound with a =
generic spectrogram and generic word/phrase description. This part of =
the book is entitled a “visual index.” For each of these =
generic sounds, a list of all the birds that produce that sound is =
given. Thus, if I hear a “nasal yank”, the index will give =
me a list of seven species that produce this sound along with their page =
numbers in the species account. Among these seven, of course, is the =
Red-breasted Nuthatch but also American Avocet, Upland Sandpiper, Least =
Grebe, Wild Turkey, Red-masked Parakeet, and Mitred =
Parakeet.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=3DParagraph>So now, after going back to =
the species accounts, you have decided that you heard a Red-breasted =
Nuthatch, can you really be sure of the identification based on a =
spectrogram and the description “yank”? Here is where the =
fourth part of the book comes in. An internet link to <a =
href=3D"http://www.petersonbirdsounds.com">petersonbirdsounds.com</a> =
will enable you to play the sound of the exact spectrogram you are =
looking at in the field guide. By going to this website which contains a =
subset of recordings in the Macauley Library at Cornell Lab of =
Ornithology, and searching for a particular species, you will find all =
the sounds described in the species account section of the book. It is =
this systematic integration of word descriptions, spectrograms, and =
actual recorded sounds that makes this book such a valuable learning =
tool.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=3DParagraph>How effective is this book in =
helping you to identify bird sounds? If you hear a sound and you think =
it may belong to one or two particular species, this book will very =
likely give you a definitive answer, yes or no, in the species account. =
If you hear a sound for which you have no idea what bird may have =
produced it, then you will have to embark on a more serious learning of =
spectrograms. This involves going to the last section of the book, the =
visual index, and picking out a generic call or song based on a =
descriptive phrase and spectrogram. However, there is a classification =
key on the inside back cover of the book that gives you hints as to =
where to start in the visual index. For example, if you hear a =
“single burry or buzzy” note, it directs you to go to pages =
509 to 513 in the visual index to find the best match. As noted before, =
when you find the best match, you will be directed to a number of =
choices in the species accounts.<o:p></o:p></p><p class=3DParagraph>One =
criticism that I have of the book is the fact that most of the =
spectrograms are displayed using the same view scale of 2 seconds in =
duration. Thus, a bird song lasting one or two seconds is on the same =
view scale as a night flight call which may be only 40 milliseconds. =
This compresses the spectrogram of most flight calls and call notes and =
makes them look small and without much detail. When I identify flight =
calls of warblers and sparrows, I use a view scale of 0.85 seconds. This =
expands the call over a small fraction of a second and allows me to more =
easily discern the distinct pattern of a call.<o:p></o:p></p><p =
class=3DParagraph>The birder or student of bird sound will get the most =
out of this book by making their own recordings in the field and then =
viewing them on sound analysis software. It is easy to start doing this =
with a smartphone and free recording software such as R=D8DE Rec LE. For =
using your smartphone to make recordings, see this site from the Cornell =
Lab of Ornithology (<a =
href=3D"https://www.allaboutbirds.org/how-to-record-bird-sounds-with-your=
-smartphone-our-tips/">https://www.allaboutbirds.org/how-to-record-bird-s=
ounds-with-your-smartphone-our-tips/</a><span =
class=3DMsoHyperlink>)</span>. A good analysis software is the free =
Raven Lite 2.0 from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology (<a =
href=3D"https://store.birds.cornell.edu/Raven_Lite_p/ravenlite.htm">https=
://store.birds.cornell.edu/Raven_Lite_p/ravenlite.htm</a><span =
class=3DMsoHyperlink>)</span>. The website Xeno-Canto has a large =
collection of bird sounds that are downloadable and provides a good =
source for making your own spectrograms.<o:p></o:p></p><p =
class=3DParagraph>Going back to my opening question, is this book =
suitable for the beginning student of bird sound? Perhaps as a =
reference, but I believe there are more productive ways to learn the =
basics. For bird song, I recommend Dendroica (<a =
href=3D"https://www.natureinstruct.org/dendroica/index.php">https://www.n=
atureinstruct.org/dendroica/index.php</a>). It is free, provides many =
variations on the songs of each species, as well as other calls, and =
allows you to test yourself. For bird calls, other than songs, a good =
starting place is the website of Paul Driver (<a =
href=3D"http://pjdeye.blogspot.ca/">http://pjdeye.blogspot.ca/</a>). For =
learning the flight calls of land birds, the CD-ROM, <i>Flight Calls of =
Migratory Birds</i> by William Evans and Michael O’Brien is =
essential. Unfortunately, this resource is currently out of print with a =
new edition expected later this year. In the meantime, you can learn =
more about identifying flight calls on the Paul Driver website or at the =
Old Bird library (<a =
href=3D"http://oldbird.org/Library.htm">http://oldbird.org/Library.htm</a=
>).<o:p></o:p></p><p class=3DParagraph>If you are serious in developing =
your expertise in bird sounds and enhancing your field identification =
skills, Pieplow’s guide is, in my opinion, the best resource =
available. Let me conclude by saying that the book is about the same =
size and construction as other Peterson field guides and is suitable for =
use in the field. Plus, even without buying the book, you can access the =
online portion anytime on your smartphone to get instant comparisons =
with what you are hearing in the field.<o:p></o:p></p><p =
class=3DParagraph><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=3DParagraph =
style=3D'text-indent:0cm'>Review by John Kearney<o:p></o:p></p><p =
class=3DParagraph style=3D'text-indent:0cm'>25 September =
2017<o:p></o:p></p><p class=3DParagraph style=3D'text-indent:0cm'>Also =
available for download at: <a =
href=3D"http://johnfkearney.com/NFC_ID.html">http://johnfkearney.com/NFC_=
ID.html</a><o:p></o:p></p><p class=3DParagraph =
style=3D'text-indent:0cm'><o:p> </o:p></p><p class=3DParagraph =
style=3D'text-indent:0cm'><o:p> </o:p></p></div></body></html>
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Index of Subjects