How to Look at a Bird

Bestselling author and acclaimed nature illustrator Clare Walker Leslie invites beginning birdwatchers to hone their observational skills with this easy-to-use visual guide.

Using her signature nature journal illustrations, Leslie shows readers the key clues to look for, from the shape of the beak or talons to distinctive feather colorings, flight patterns, and behavioral traits. She offers simple prompts that encourage readers to embrace curiosity and take a closer look: Where are you? What season is it? How is that bird moving or eating? With an emphasis on the birds that are most likely to be seen at a feeder, in a city park, or at a nature preserve, How to Look at a Bird makes bird watching, identification, and appreciation accessible to everyone, no matter where they live.

• “If you are curious about the amazing world of birds but not sure where to start, How to Look at a Bird is the book for you. With her colorful illustrations and easy-to-understand prose, Clare Walker Leslie guides the reader through the process of identifying birds. Whether writing about a small bird like a warbler or the type of large falcon that I work with, Leslie's love for birds comes through loud and clear. She has learned — as I have — how everything changes when you ‘look up.’”
  Rodney Stotts, author of Bird Brother: A Falconer's Journey and the Healing Power of Wildlife
• “This lovely, wonderfully accessible book is a warm and friendly invitation to pay attention to the birds around us, whether we live in a big city, on the edge of wilderness, or anywhere in between. The section on how to draw birds is especially valuable.” 
  Laura Erickson, author of 100 Plants to Feed the Birds and contributing editor to Birdwatching magazine