The Birds of Britain and Europe Heinzel, Fitter and Parslow

The Birds of Britain and Europe

With North Africa and The Middle East

by Hermann Heinzel, Richard Fitter and  John Parslow

Collins, 1972, colour illustrations throughout, paperback

Very Good Condition, some edge and shelf wear, some rubbing, bumping, creasing and soiling to edges and corners, previous owners inscription on title page (see photographs)

This book is the first bird guide to describe and illustrate in colour every bird of Europe, The Middle East and North Africa.  It extends east to Russia to the Ural Mountains, north to Iceland and Spitzbergen, south to the Sahara, west to the Canaries and Azores.
The paintings illustrate in colour every species, every distinct sub-species, every notable distinction of plumage.  No past guide has done this.  All have been painted specifically for this book.
Opposite each painting is a concise description.  The stresses in particular the characters useful for identification, whether of colouring, patter, size, voice, flight or habits.  The status and abundance of each British bird is further indicated by an easy system of symbols and letters."