Molt is an important avian life history event in which feathers are shed and replaced. The timing, duration, seasonality, extent and pattern of molt follows certain strategies and Molting in Neotropical Birds reviews and describes these strategies for nearly 190 species based on information gathered from a 30-year study of Central Amazonian birds. Most species accounts are illustrated with several color photos focusing on wing and tail feather molt, molt limits, and how to use these patterns to accurately age birds. Molting in Neotropical Birds will be a rich source of life history information for ornithologists working on tropical birds.
- Overview of the Guide
- Non-passerine land birds
- Passerines, the Suboscines
- Passerines, the Oscines
– Shortlisted for the The Wildlife Society's 2019 Authored Book award.
"[...] Potentially helpful are the many photos which illustrate most of the sexing and ageing characteristics. Unfortunately, the printing quality is poor for many photos of the smaller species, so that some of the ageing characteristics are hardly recognizable. In addition, in many of the wing photos of smaller species, strong moiré patterns (when the printed pattern of dots interferes with the lines of the feather barbs) appear on the wings and distract from, or even obstruct, the actual coloration. Such moiré effects can only be prevented by the printer by direct supervision of the printing process. That said, for anyone interested in Amazonian species, whether ringer or field observer, this book holds a wealth of information on the plumages of juveniles, males and females and is worth the purchase."
– Lukas Jenni, Ibis, 2021