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I am looking at buying a new bird guide, and I've narrowed it down to Sibley's, National Geographic, and Kaufman's.  I live in Maine, so I would need an eastern guide, and maybe even a North American guide.  If you have any other suggestions other than the ones I have, please share them.  Thanks!

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Life List: 124 Species
Recent Sightings: Gray Catbird, Greater Black-Backed Gull, Florida Scrub Jay

Year List- 112 species

I have the Kaufman and the Peterson Eastern US.  I like the Peterson because it shows multiple views (such as back, front, side) of the birds and it shows groups of birds in flight together (such as hawks, ducks) so it is easy to make comparisons.  I use them both although I use the Kaufman a little more.  I've asked Santa for a Sibley's this year. 

Your best bet is to look at all of them and see which suits your needs best.

I find the National Geographic to be the most useful. The full Sibley's is much to large for the field ( although I carry a copy in my car ) and the pocket Sibley's too small and hard to use.

I found the pictures in the Kaufman extremely unsatisfactory. I haven't used a Petersen's in a while so I can't comment on it.

 

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What is not forbidden is inevitable.

When I needed a newer Western Guide, I looked at the Kaufman's also but selected the Sibley's (note: mine saying nothing about a Natl Geo. connection).  I felt that the pictures were overall were truer to real life.

I've had a Peterson's Western for many years and it is good and I like how he marks key identification points on each bird.  I do consult it but I am using the Sibley's the most.  I use it even for a backup for my general Guide.  I do plan to get a Sibley's Eastern sometime soon.

Note: I do use a general N. Am. Guide.  It is published by Golden Books and is not the children's book.  I got it because it was my orginal first Guide many, many years ago.  I worn the covers off of it.  So, I searched for another until I found a used one.  I'd say at least 90% of time the pictures are accurate enough to make an ID.  Plus I can view all members of a Family regardless of where their range is.

May i also suggest that you contact your local Fish and Game and see if you can get a small pocket guide to the ducks and geese of your Waterway.  I find that is just another help Guide which has to be very precise and it is FREE.

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http://whatbird.com/forums/photos/birdman/

I have Sibley's Guide to North America, and Sibley's eastern Guide and find both guides indispensable. The larger North American guide is of course larger and heavier, and therefore can not really be called a "Field Guide" and cannot be carried in the field (but I find this to be not a problem because I generally don't take a guide out in the field), but the illustrations are much better. Some people say that "the eastern Guide is better for beginning birders, because it has a much better description, and can be carried into the field", this is true but on the other hand the North American guide has like I said much better illustrations, and therefore it is easier to ID your bird without much help from the forums (such as us). If I was you and had the option to get two field guides I would buy both Sibley's.

If I had a second favorite guide, it would be the National Geographic, it it is beautifully illustrated, but that's usually not enough though to help you positively identify some species, regardless of whether you are an expert or casual birder. The description next to each birds' illustration are very handy. They give vital clues about behavior, habitat or some other factor that can help clinch the identification. Maps that show breeding, year round and winter ranges are well placed on each page. Which helps avoid situations like this: "I just saw a Louisiana Waterthrush. But wait, I'm in South Florida, can't be then, it must have been a Northern.

Kaufman's Guide would be second to last on my list of "favorite guides". Field Guides of Birds come in two different forms and each has its supporters. Some people prefer those showing photographs. Others prefer those based on paintings that can be made to highlight key features. Kaufman's Field Guide attempts to blend the two approaches by using digitally enhanced photos as its basis of identification. The photos are not what I expected when I bought the guide, there is a degree of artificiality to the photos that is unsatisfying. The paintings of Sibley's and National Geographic are, to my eyes, more useful in helping understand the key elements of shape, plumage, and other key characteristics.

But like I said above if I was had a choice of two field guides, I would buy both Sibley's. Sibley wins (IMO) hands-down.

Another vote for Sibley's from me.

The Smithsonian guide has some beautiful photos which can help and The Shorebird Guide by Kaufman and the other guys is also great to have.

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Life List: 413
Last Added: Swainson's Hawk

I use Sibley's Eastern and National Geographic.  The first guide I used 4 years ago was the ABC's All the Birds, which I think is underrated (and maybe out of print now). It has some tremendously helpful essays for the new (and old) birder and is the perfect size for slipping in your back pocket. The vinyl cover of the 1997 edition is indestructible.

I have a variety of guides....one I like and use quite often is usually not mentioned...it is the Stokes Field Guide to Birds, Eastern Region. It has decent ID info as well as Feeding, Nesting, "Other Behavior", Habitat, Voice and Conservation status.

I have Peterson Eastern and it is OK. A lot of people love it though, I love my Golden Field Guide by Chandler S. Robbins, it is older but it is great.

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Loving my new D 40

sandylee:

I have a variety of guides....one I like and use quite often is usually not mentioned...it is the Stokes Field Guide to Birds, Eastern Region. It has decent ID info as well as Feeding, Nesting, "Other Behavior", Habitat, Voice and Conservation status.

I love my Stokes.  My Eastern version is so well used.  I recently ordered the Western version and haven't had a chance to break that one in yet.

Rough-Legged Hawk Enthusiast:

I have Peterson Eastern and it is OK. A lot of people love it though, I love my Golden Field Guide by Chandler S. Robbins, it is older but it is great.

 

I agree, I grew up with any earlier version of the Golden (adult version) and several years ago sought out another one Online.  I use it for my general birding and have the Sibley's and Peterson's as back-ups.  Also, use a Audubon Society Field Guide sometimes when a real picture is needed.  However, the Internet fulfills much of that role now.

 

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http://whatbird.com/forums/photos/birdman/

Just a suggestion from a newbie,

How about going to your public library and check out the different texts/editions to see which one works for you. That's what I've been doing. It's fun to try things out first before you purchase, and the price is right!

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"Watch the birdie."
Latest: Sage Thrasher, Ferruginous Hawk (Dark Morph).

Regarding general guides: 

1st guide I had was that 70's Audubon guide with photos.  My bias was to have a guide with actual birds rather than drawings.  However, the format of this guide is obsolete, unwieldy.  As a beginner, I didn't have a very good success rate with it, and it didn't effectively "teach" me.

2nd guide I got was the Sibley's Eastern North America.  I much prefer this guide, and it showed my original photo-bias was mis-directed.  As a beginner, Sibley's helped me learn *how* to look at birds.  Salient points are highlighted with text and arrows in the illustration -- much more efficient and instructive than a photo with text-only description/caption.  One feature I love, don't know if others use it, but at the start of a section, all females of a family (or related families) are arranged on a single page.  This allows scanning for the most likely suspect.  Then you go to the page with the full illustrations and descriptions.  Immensely helpful for narrowing down possibilities on subtler IDs (think Sparrows and Warblers).

3rd guide I got was the Smithsonian (I really only wanted the CD of birdsong).  The photos are beautiful -- a HUGE improvement over the photos in the old Audubon guide.  The photos are consistent for better comparisons (old Audubon guide had photos in all sorts of angles and postures... some not very representative of how you normally see the bird).  There's a couple extra tidbits of info (compared to Sibley's) in the Smithsonian guide which I like (molt strategy for example).

In the end, Sibley's eastern is the guide I use.  I would say it only let me down once (I didn't ID a Purple Sandpiper in non-breeding plumage with it -- however, the O'Brien/Crossley/Karlson Shorebird Guide made the ID obvious).  On the plus side, Sibley's has *guided* me to correct IDs many times over, a much higher success rate than I could ever dream of with the old Audubon guide, and more user friendly and instructive than the Smithsonian.  It is not just a reference, it teaches as you use it and peruse it.

I also like refering to the Smithsonian guide to see an actual photo, and get extra info, but I don't use it much to obtain an ID... more like double-checking, expanding.  BTW, I replaced the Smithsonian bird call CD with the full bird song guides put out by the Stokes.

i am in the west so i only have western guides, but some of them have nice stuff in them! the first one i got is Birds of Alberta by Lone Pine. it has detailed descriptions and pictures for each bird. the other one i have that has real photographs instead of artists rendition, is called the National Audubon Society Feild guide to Birds Western Region. it has great photos to ID from! just my input

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Check list: 101
Recent ones: Lesser Yellow-Legs, American Wigeon, Eastern Kingbird.
My Favs: Black-Headed Grosbeak, Ruby- Crowned Kinglet, Violet-Green swallow.

I bought The Sibley Field Guide to Birds of Western North America. I take it with me on Audubon trips because it's pocket-sized. It's preferred among our society members, I see field biologists using it, and most birdwatching tour guides have one.

Just my $0.02 worth.

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"Watch the birdie."
Latest: Sage Thrasher, Ferruginous Hawk (Dark Morph).