Book Review

Owls of the World by Claus Konig and Friedhelm Weick Second Edition, 2009, Helm, London.

Abstract

The book follows the well-established pattern for such family monographs, with a useful checklist at the start, then an introduction followed by succinct introductory chapters on morphology and anatomy, topography, food, hunting, behaviour, breeding, vocalizations, systematics and taxonomy, how to study owls, conservation and molecular phylogeny and systematics of the Strigiformes. Then follows 72 attractive, albeit pale, colour plates, many extensively revised from the original edition, before the systematic section, which includes useful range maps. The species accounts vary in length from about half a page for poorly known species to several pages for well-studied ones.