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Birds in Norfolk is a celebration of Norfolk's birdlife. It is written by Andy Brown and includes 115 watercolour paintings and numerous watercolour sketches by James McCallum.
Norfolk is famed as the best county in Britain for year round birdwatching and has a long history of bird recording. Birds in Norfolk is more than a county avifauna – instead the importance of the area, past and present, is seen from both a national and international perspective.
Some of the county's most famous habitats, such as the North Norfolk Marshes, Breckland and Broadland are looked at in detail. There are chapters devoted to the county's specialist species such as breeding waders, harriers, wintering waterfowl, waders and passerines. The list of bird species recorded in Norfolk is enviable and some of the rare visitors and spectacular 'falls' of common migrant birds also feature.
James McCallum's watercolours compliment the text and are not simply commissioned illustrations but outdoor paintings and sketches completed on location in Norfolk. Concise picture captions have been written by the artist detailing date, location, weather and relevant behaviour. These add further authenticity to the pages and give Birds in Norfolk an extra personal dimension.
Please note that volume 22 in this series was originally announced as A Celebration of Butterflies, but that this title has been abandoned.
Andy Brown is a professional ornithologist who has been birding in Norfolk since the mid 1980s. He has published numerous scientific papers and co-authored Birds in England in 2005.
James McCallum was born in Norfolk and continues to live there. He is a graduate of the Royal College of Art and earns his living painting and writing about nature. He works almost exclusively in the field and has already published seven books of his paintings and observations.
"This is a fine addition to the long series of Norfolk bird literature. At a casual glance, it might almost be dismissed as a coffee-table work, a vehicle for the display of impressionistic and highly original paintings by James McCallum. [...] It is in fact very much more than such a showcase, with a scholarly and far-ranging text updating records and commentary [...]"
– David Ballance, Ibis 159(1), December 2016
"[...] accessing James’ paintings alongside authoritative and interesting words is a rare thing. If you would use a tank of fuel to drive yourself along the Norfolk coast for a winter day’s birding, then having this book at home to relive the special wildness of Norfolk’s birds seems essential."
– Andy Clements, BTO book reviews
