This is the only book in the English language on the birds of the wide area between Fiji, New Caledonia and Micronesia. This practical handbook, by an acknowledged authority, intended primarily for the field student, tells him how to identify and name the birds which he encounters, and what kinds of birds he can expect to find on each island. There is also a condensed summary of the present
knowledge of distribution, geographical variation and habits. Whenever feasible, keys have been supplied to facilitate identification. These keys are simply
and clearly worked out for the beginner who may not know the difference between a curlew and a godwit, or a triller and a graybird.

Three magnificent color plates show 39 species which include at least one representation of all of the prominent bird families of the southwest Pacific.
A series of black and white drawings show additional species. These pictures
will be particularly valuable to bird students who have never seen a
wood swallow, a flower pecker, a white-eye or a triller.