South Africa bird guide recommendations?

Crowthorne

Crowthorne

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Staff member
10+ year member
I'm hoping to tap the Zoochat hive-mind and seek recommendations for any good bird guides for South Africa. If we make it there, (it's just talk right now) we'll be staying within KwaZulu-Natal on the eastern side of the country. Usually when I go overseas and want a bird guide I go for Helm guides, they're pretty clear and not too bulky, but unless I've missed it in searching, Helm don't seem to do a guide to South Africa. If anyone can recommend any decent bird guides for the region I would be so grateful! Thanks in advance Zoochatters :)
 
I spent three months in South Africa about two years ago now, and I bought Birds of Southern Africa: Fourth Edition by Ian Sinclair, et al. before I left. It was suggested to me by a number of other ZooChatters, and I found it to be a particularly nice and useful guide.
 
Crowthorne said:
I'm hoping to tap the Zoochat hive-mind and seek recommendations for any good bird guides for South Africa. If we make it there, (it's just talk right now) we'll be staying within KwaZulu-Natal on the eastern side of the country. Usually when I go overseas and want a bird guide I go for Helm guides, they're pretty clear and not too bulky, but unless I've missed it in searching, Helm don't seem to do a guide to South Africa. If anyone can recommend any decent bird guides for the region I would be so grateful! Thanks in advance Zoochatters :)
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There are basically three good bird guides for Southern Africa: The Sasol, the Robert's and the Newman's. I personally have the Sasol guide by Sinclair et al. and I am very happy with it, but I can't give too much advice on how these guides differ. It seems the Robert's guide gives the most different plumages. A brief look online will show you there is considerable debate which of the 3 is the best, so you should just choose the one that fits you best based on the sample plates...
 
Thank you so much @Kudu21 and @lintworm I'll take a look at plates from the books and see which suits me best :)
 
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