David Allen Sibley, in my opinion, has entered the realm of best American nature illustrators including Sargent, Audubon and Peterson by expanding his stunning illustrative talents. Sibley shows his versatility by equaling his bird field guide with this new tree field guide. "Guide To Trees" fully illustrates 600 tree species, including introduced species with detailed information on fruit. leaf and flowers. I like what I see!
Cover: The Sibley Guide To Trees, Knopf
Comments
It’s a beautiful book and I will definitely get a copy. One comment, however: the illustration of the scraggliest possible Black Spruce doesn’t really do justice to this species. They come in quite a wide variety of looks. I’ve seen some very full, beautiful ones and even the skinny ones that inhabit the boreal forest are typically less sparse than this illustration, and lovely to look at. I’m a fan of this species so perhaps my bias shows; after all, yes, there are scraggly Black Spruces like that. But it was my only quibble with this otherwise gorgeous book. I’m buying at least one!
I live in eastern North Carolina and we have seen changeing in our tree production and Deer Season Coming in on October 17 and the trees in some parts are dieing
In my experiences with tree field guides there is no better guide then those with photos as opposed to illustrations. When I was in Dendrology the field guide recommended to us was also illustrated with drawings/paintings. This offered little to no use in identifying individual species from within a genus. I had to purchase a different field guide with photos. Granted, I haven’t seen this new guide but drawings/paintings cannot give you the detail neeeded for proper identification.
I have to agree that as beautiful as these illustrations might be, they are not as helpful as guides with photographs. The two most helpful guides for me are the “National Audubon Society Field Guide to North American Trees” and the “National Wildlife Federation Field Guide to Trees of North America”.
Sibley certainly has made a remarkable artistic statement, though!
Bill Hughey