Collins Bird Guide may be a tad too comprehensive for a beginner birder who is only interested in identifying British species. Many of the birds covered in the Collins are not present in Britain, so unless you’re planning a European bird trip or have an interest in foreign species, then you may want to look elsewhere; either Britain’s Birds or the RSPB Handbook of British Birds would fit the bill.

There are a lot of different bird identification books available and they do vary in quality and the amount of detail they provide. The-- ...one without the gannet?! They've all got the gannet--it's a standard British bird, the gannet's in all the books!) A round-up of the best British bird books for 2023. Find out which guide will be accompanying us on our birding trips this year… The RSPB guide is a similar size to the Collins, yet covers only British species, meaning that there is more space for information on each species. As well as identification tips, you’ll also find facts on population, nesting season, brood size, and lifespan; all useful for building up a picture of a bird’s lifestyle. Session IDs are a 120-bit random number that is represented by a 20-character string. The string is formatted so that it can be included in a URL and it does not have to undergo URL encoding.

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Even experienced birders have problems identifying certain species. The multitude of similar-looking warblers, gulls, waders and ‘little brown jobs’ sometimes seem to exist solely to confuse birdwatchers.

P: RIGHT!!!! I'll buy it FOR you! (ring) There we are, there's your change, there's some money for a taxi on the way home, there's your book, now, now.. Right, the nuthatch, the nuthatch, they're not in here! [tearing] Any more? No gannets, no robins, no nuthatches, there's your book!) This year, Hazel McCambridge, Maria Farooqi and Jenna Woodford represented BTO on the judging panel, while Paul French, Sarah Harris and Stephen Menzie represented British Birds. That said, the photos in Britain’s Birds are consistently excellent and you really are given a good idea of what a bird looks like in ‘real life’. This definitive and bestselling field guide is the perfect companion for nature enthusiasts and birdwatchers.

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Unlike both Collins Bird Guide and the RSPB Handbook of British Birds, Britain’s Birds, published by Princeton University Press, contains photos rather than illustrations. No, we don't have that, funny, we got a lot of books here. Well, I mustn't keep you standing here, thank you-) The very thought of a book on gulls is enough to send some folk running – so the judges were pleased to see that this guide offered a straightforward approach to gull identification.