This
review is specifically about the version of this book seen
pictured here.
This version
of "A Guide to the Birds of Southeast Asia" was
published in 2009 and updated the information contained in
the original version. This book is packed full of detailed
illustrations and written information on 1251 species recorded
in Southeast Asia up to the date of publication. Even with
this number of species this book has been kept to a size which
can be carried in the field, although may be a little too
large for many pockets. For those visiting Thailand as part
of an extended trip to surrounding countries this book is
a must as it is the only guide which depicts all Southeast
Asian species in colour and is the most up-to-date guide covering
the wider region. A brief, but interesting section at the
beginning of this book introduces the reader to the main habitats
to be found in the region and an extensive list of references
for the ornithologist interested in more scientific reading
on the region's avifauna.
For birders
travelling only to Thailand, however, there is a dilemma in
choosing whether to buy this book or the more specific and
far more up-to-date Birds
of Thailand published by Lynx Edicions.
A number
of small problems do exist though and one of the most confusing
of these is the huge number of illustrations crammed into
each of the 104 plates. Although these are clearly labelled
and referenced, such is the number of pictures on each page
that it can be quite visually confusing at times and may slow
identification of species, particularly for those new to the
region. Obviously this issue has been a result of trying to
keep the number of pages as low as possible, but a little
has been lost in clarity of layout to gain in carryability.
A small
amount of text is placed opposite the plates for each of the
species, with a much larger amount of informative text in
the section at the back. The text with the plates is largely
descriptive and as this is reasonably obvious from the pictures
it may have been better to have included key identification
points in this limited space.
Still,
these are minor points when considering the large amount of
species covered in this book and for those birding close to
Thailand's borders with other countries this could be vital
in identifying species that have not before been recorded
in Thailand. Given that many regions of Thailand have been
seldom visited by birders this could potentially be a real
issue.
The main complaints users have of this field guide is the
haphazard way it is layed out, with illustrations crammed
into the pages and poorly annotated. Some birders still use
this field guide in Thailand because it is fairly cheap although
this version is not so easy to obtain. Other versions of this
field guide are reprints from an older version of the book,
so contain an even more outdated taxonomy. There nearly 200
species added to the Thai list since this book was published
and many more name changes, rendering this book extremely
confusing.
If you are birding in many of the countries of Southeast
Asia then this remains a useful book but if visiting only
Thailand then I would strongly recommend not buying this book
and instead check out my review for the newer Birds
of Thailand published by Lynx Edicions. The only advantage
of Birds of Southeast Asia over the Lynx Birds of Thailand,
when birding in Thailand, is price.
Score: 6.5/10
Other Relevant Books
Birds
of Thailand - Published in 2018 this field guide
was based on the taxonomy used in Handbook of the Birds
of the World with several new plates created on consultation
with the authors. Inclusion of all subspecies know to occur
in Thailand makes this book excellent as it makes it relevant
to all taxonomies while anticipating future splits.
Bird
Guide of Thailand - This pioneering field guide,
first published in 1974, covers the species known in Thailand
at that time, making it far from complete from the avifauna
currently known. However, this is still a nice book and
certainly one that Thailand birders will want to add to
their collection, containing useful species accounts.
Birds
of Thailand
Bird
Guide of Thailand
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a full 
Kazakhstan/Kyrgyzstan,
25th May - 7th June 2024
- Pallas's Sandgrouse, Ibisbill, Black Lark, White-browed
Tit Warbler, Saxaul Sparrow, Caspian Plover: £3850
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