Table Of ContentAbout Audubon’s Birds of America
“A brilliant achievement.” —New York Times
Even before its completion in 1839, John James Audubon’s Birds of America was recognized as a
masterpiece of both art and natural science; a great scientist of the day called it the “most magnificent
monument which has ever been raised to ornithology.”
Roger Tory Peterson and Virginia Marie Peterson’s modern edition of the Birds of America, published with
the full endorsement and cooperation of the National Audubon Society, is itself an acknowledged classic.
Now, for the first time, it is available as an e-book.
All 435 of Audubon’s brilliant hand-colored engravings are presented in exquisite reproductions derived
from the Audubon Society’s own archival copy of the rare Double Elephant Folio. A generously illustrated
introduction surveys Audubon’s career, as well as the history of American bird art before and after him.
Descriptive captions, hyperlinks to authoritative species profiles, and a new, scientifically based
arrangement of the prints allow us to appreciate Audubon’s achievement in the light of modern ornithology.
This enhanced version of the e-book also features high-quality embedded recordings of birdcalls from the
Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s Macaulay Library.
Roger Tory Peterson established himself as America’s leading ornithologist with his Field Guide to the
Birds, first published in 1934. He received numerous honors, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom,
for his contributions to natural history.
Virginia Marie Peterson was an expert on the detection and environmental effects of oil spills, and a
contributor to the fourth and fifth editions of the Field Guide to the Birds.
This book is also available as a slipcased hardcover and a Tiny Folio™.
To view our complete selection of e-books, visit www.abbeville.com/digital.
John James Audubon, by John Syme, 1826
The Audubon mission is to conserve and restore natural ecosystems, focusing on birds, other wildlife, and
their habitats for the benefit of humanity and the earth’s biological diversity.
Through its education, science, and public policy initiatives, Audubon engages people throughout the
U.S. and Latin America in conservation. Audubon’s Centers and its sanctuaries and education programs are
developing the next generation of conservation leaders by providing opportunities for families, students,
teachers, and others to learn about and enjoy the natural world. The science program is focused on
connecting people with nature through projects like Audubon at Home and Great Backyard Bird Count.
Audubon’s volunteer Citizen Scientists participate in research and conservation action in a variety of ways,
from monitoring bird populations and restoring critical wildlife habitat to implementing healthy habitat
practices in their own backyards. Audubon’s public policy programs are supported by a strong foundation
of science, environmental education, and grassroots engagement. Working with a network of state offices,
chapters, and volunteers, Audubon works to protect and restore our natural heritage.
To learn how you can support Audubon, call 800-876-0994, visit www.audubon.org, or write to the
National Audubon Society, 225 Varick Street, 7th floor, New York, NY 10014.
The sounds in this book come from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s Macaulay Library
(www.macaulaylibrary.org), the world's largest collection of natural sounds and video. Visit the Cornell
Lab’s All About Birds website (www.allaboutbirds.org) to learn more about the life history of nearly six
hundred North American birds, listen to their sounds, and watch videos of their behavior. The Cornell Lab
of Ornithology is a nonprofit, member-supported organization dedicated to interpreting and conserving the
earth's biological diversity through research, education, and citizen science focused on birds.
CONTENTS
COVER
ABOUT AUDUBON’S BIRDS OF AMERICA
FRONTISPIECE
TITLE PAGE
HOW TO USE THIS BOOK
A NOTE ABOUT THIS EDITION
INTRODUCTION
I Divers of Lakes and Bays, Wanderers of Seas and Coasts (PLATES 1–
46)
Loons, Grebes, Albatrosses, Fulmars, Shearwaters, Storm Petrels,
Tropicbirds, Pelicans, Boobies, Gannets, Cormorants, Darters,
Frigatebirds, Herons, Bitterns, Storks, Ibises, Spoonbills, and Flamingos
II Waterfowl (PLATES 47–86)
Swans, Geese, and Ducks
III Scavengers and Birds of Prey (PLATES 87–117)
Vultures, Kites, Hawks, Eagles, Harriers, Osprey, Caracaras, and
Falcons
IV Upland Gamebirds and Marsh-dwellers (PLATES 118–143)
Grouse, Ptarmigan, Quails, Turkeys, Cranes, Limpkins, Rails, Gallinules,
and Coots
V Shorebirds (PLATES 144–185)
Oystercatchers, Stilts, Avocets, Plovers, Sandpipers, and Phalaropes
VI Seabirds (PLATES 186–221)
Jaegers, Gulls, Terns, Skimmers, and Auks
VII Showy Birds, Nocturnal Hunters, and Superb Aerial (PLATES 222–
252)
Pigeons, Parrots, Cuckoos, Owls, Nightjars, Swifts, and Hummingbirds
VIII Gleaners of Forest and Meadow (PLATES 253–297)
Kingfishers, Woodpeckers, Tyrant Flycatchers, Larks, Swallows, Jays,
Magpies, Crows, Titmice, and Nuthatches
IX Songsters and Mimics (PLATES 298–327)
Dippers, Wrens, Mockingbirds, Thrashers, Thrushes, Gnatcatchers,
Kinglets, Pipits, Waxwings, and Shrikes
X Woodland Sprites (PLATES 328–381)
Vireos and Warblers
XI Flockers and Songbirds (PLATES 382–435)
Meadowlarks, Blackbirds, Orioles, Tanagers, and Finches
CONCORDANCE Sequence of this edition related to original plate
numbers INDEX OF BIRD NAMES
PHOTO CREDITS
COPYRIGHT
How to Use This Book
The Petersons have divided Audubon’s 435 plates into 11 chapters, each of which begins with a section of
extended captions.
When viewing an extended caption, tap the image or title once to go to the corresponding plate.
When viewing a plate, tap the image once to go to the corresponding extended caption.
Tap any image twice to view it in a full-screen, zoomable format.
Tap the i icon to view a species profile in your web browser.
A Note About This Edition
T
HIS BOOK DIFFERES IN A NUMBER OF WAYS from earlier editions of The Birds of America and
from John James Audubon’s original, massive Double Elephant Folio, the heaviest volume of which
weighs 56 pounds. These plates are organized not in the order that Audubon produced them for his
subscribers but phylogenetically; that is, in a modern scientific classification sequence that somewhat
parallels the evolutionary history of a genetically related group of organisms—from the most primitive
living examples to the most recently evolved—in this case going from loons to sparrows and buntings. The
numbering of our plates roughly follows the sequence of orders, families, and species in the Checklist of
North American Birds prepared by the American Ornithologists’ Union, as adapted and updated by the
American Birding Association, but only roughly, as there have been many minor changes in sequence since
1981 when this book was first published. However, all common and scientific names are up to date as of
1990. It is instructive to see the bird paintings grouped in this manner, to compare Audubon’s handling of
closely related species and to note that he sometimes repeated a typical pose, as in his storm-petrels, rails,
and warblers.
In the Appendix, we have included a two-way Concordance relating our numbers to the numbering of
plates in the original Elephant Folio—as well as an Index to the birds illustrated.
The plates are captioned with each bird’s currently accepted vernacular name, followed in brackets by
Audubon’s identification (in original spelling and capitalization) when it differs. In addition, each plate
carries the bird’s scientific classification by order, family, and species. The narrative captions grouped at
the beginning of each chapter are illustrated by thumbnail images of the plates for ease of reference, but no
attempt has been made to give well-rounded summaries of life histories, habits, or ranges of each bird; such
information can be found in more extended form in any number of standard bird books.
In this volume we have concentrated on faithfully reproducing the art and on Audubon himself, quoting
some of the more intriguing passages from his Ornithological Biography, which accompanied the Elephant
Folio, and from his octavo edition of Birds of America, published several years later. We frequently have
drawn comparisons between the attitudes toward birds that prevailed in Audubon’s time and the changes
that have taken place in the succeeding century and a half, much of it set in motion by the great Audubon
movement that bears his name. Many species of birds are less numerous today than they were then, due to
persecution from which they never fully recovered and, perhaps more significantly, from subsequent
attrition or loss of habitat.
Another feature of this edition of Birds of America is its full-color illustrated survey, in the Introduction,
of the work of other major North American bird artists and illustrators (many fine European artists are
excluded by the book’s scope), from Mark Catesby and Alexander Wilson, who preceded Audubon, to the
growing number of bird portraitists who have come on the scene since. Of those who painted birds prior to
1930, we can be certain of only two—Audubon and Louis Agassiz Fuertes—whose work will be
remembered centuries hence. As for the hundreds who have painted birds since 1930, most of them still
living and improving their skills, it is too early to assess their durability (or possible immortality) in the
evolution of bird art.
