Written for a general audience, with spectacular images for birders
and nature enthusiasts at every level, Hummingbirds of Texas
reveals the enormous appeal of this tiniest and shiniest of birds.
The book opens with a look at the many manifestations of the
human attraction to these flying jewels.
The Hummingbird Roundup, a citizen-science project run by the
Texas Parks and Wildlife Department has recruited hundreds of
people to feed hummingbirds and record their activities throughout
the state.
The RockportFulton Hummer/Bird Celebration, one of several
festivals dedicated to hummingbirds, draws thousands of people
each fall to the Texas coast where birds gather in huge numbers
before migrating south.
Bird-loving landowners invite the public to enjoy hummingbirds that
live and breed on their ranches.
Tips make attracting hummingbirds to your own lawn or garden
easy, such as what to plant in the ground or in pots and how to
choose and take care of feeders.
The authors then showcase the nineteen different hummingbird
species that have appeared in the region covered by the book.
Magnificent color photographs and original artwork aid in
identification and accompany descriptions, range maps, and
abundance graphs for each species.
Birds featured:
Allen's Hummingbird Anna's Hummingbird Berylline Hummingbird
Black-chinned Hummingbird Blue-throated Hummingbird
Broad-billed Hummingbird Broad-tailed Hummingbird Buff-bellied
Hummingbird Calliope Hummingbird Costa's Hummingbird
Green-breasted Mango Green Violet-ear Lucifer Hummingbird
Magnificent Hummingbird Plain-capped Starthroat Ruby-throated
Hummingbird Rufous Hummingbird Violet-crowned Hummingbird
White-eared Hummingbird
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CLIFFORD E. SHACKELFORD is the state-wide non-game
ornithologist at the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department in Nacogdoches.
MADGE M. LINDSAY is currently executive director of Audubon
Mississippi in Holly Springs. C. MARK KLYM, an information
specialist at the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, coordinates
the Texas Hummingbird Roundup.
What people are saying about this book
"Hummingbird enthusiasts, particularly those in Texas and its
surrounding states, will love this book."The Quarterly Review of
Biology
"Hummingbirds of Texas is a book Texans long have needed . . .
Stunning photographs, color drawings, and explanatory tables augment
the clearly written text. You can enjoy the book by merely flipping the
pages or giving it a close read, but in either case you will gain pleasure
and knowledge in equal measure."—Houston Chronicle, September 2005
"Cliff and Mark, Clemente—you have really, really outdone yourselves.
I received my copy of the book (thanks for the inscription, Cliff!! Mark
and Clemente, I need yours too) and I am blown away. The design,
the photographs, the ILLUSTRATIONS, and the content are all fantastic.
There are no weak points. I especially like how you chose to arrange
the information—the practical information on birding sites as
recreational destinations, the hummingbird habitat gardening, sections
on hummingbird behavior and natural history, and the fantastic 'field
guide' to regional birds. I don't want to gush, but it is all fanstastic.
"You have provided an excellent addition to the body of work produced
by TPWD employees, and it will be a valuable resource to urbanites,
rural land owners, and out-of-state birders—I can't think of anyone it
wouldn't appeal to. What a great tool to usher folks into the idea of
wildlife management, urban habitat management, outdoor recreation.
I hope you're ready to start the second printing. I expect you'll sell
out in no time and have people beating down the door for more. I
hope you saved back a few for us to take and sell at outreach events.
"Congratulations, gentlemen!"—Kelly Bender, Urban Wildlife Biologist,
Central Texas, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department
