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The books are arranged by publication date with the most recent at the top of the page.

South American bird books

For bird books about individual South American countries see the pages:

Argentina
Bolivia
Brazil
Chile
Colombia
Ecuador
French Guiana
Guyana
Paraguay
Peru
Suriname
Uruguay
Venezuela

Magical Birds of Bolivia / Aves Mágicas de Bolivia

Daniel Alarcón Arias

2015

"Magical Birds of Bolivia / Aves Mágicas de Bolivia contains photographs, maps and general information that will facilitate the observation of all the endemic birds of Bolivia, most of which are classified as rare or in danger of extinction. It is an excellent representation of the most spectacular, authentic national treasures of a country that is taking this opportunity to inform the world of the wealth of its biodiviersity."

Birds of Bolivia 2.22

Sjoerd Mayer

2010

CD-ROM release that contains 2530 sound recordings of 941 bird species, all occurring in Bolivia, with accompanying texts and identifications of all background species. Also includes 1390 photographs of 756 species.

Areas Importantes Para La Conservacion de Las Aves En Los Andes Tropicales

Editors: K Boyla and A Estrada

BirdLife International / BirdLife Ecuador

2004

"More than 600 researchers contributed to the book, which took eight years to compile. 455 sites are identified, covering 17 percent of the land area of Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela. A comprehensive introduction covers habitats, protection, threats and other issues. Each site is described in detail, with thumbnail location maps, graphics and data tables . While it serves as an excellent site guide for birders, this is primarily a blueprint for governments and conservationists involved in planning protected area networks. More than half the sites have no protection."

This book is in Spanish with English chapter summaries.

Biodiversity: The richness of Bolivia

Editors: Pierre L. Ibisch, Gonzalo Mérida

2004

A review of research on biodiversity in Bolivia. Includes a full list of vertebrate species..

Illustrated Checklist: Birds of Southern South America and Antarctica

Martin R De La Pena and Maurice Rumboll

2001

"South America, though home to about one-third of the world's bird species and twice as many endemic families of birds as any other continent, has the world's sparsest population of birdwatchers. Birds of Southern South America and Antarctica illustrates and describes all the known species - more than 1,000 of them - in a vast swath of this underexplored birder's paradise, from Argentina, Chile, Bolivia, Paraguay, southern Brazil, and Uruguay to parts of Antarctica. Just some of the birds it covers are teals, tinamous, chachalacas, conebills, cuckoos, macaws, parakeets, parrots, penguins, nightjars, hummingbirds, ovenbirds, tyrants, and tanagers. The habitats range from torrid rainforests and cloudforests to grasslands, the world's driest desert, second highest mountain range, and ice caps. The 97 color plates depict each species' male in breeding plumage, with the female and young often shown as well. On the facing page are concise textual descriptions of each species, highlighting not only salient physical features and behavioral patterns but the calls or songs of each. Casual birders and ornithologists contemplating a journey to the region, or simply interested in a one-volume overview of its bird life, will not want to miss this book."

A Birdwatcher's Site Guide to Peru

Frank Rheindt

"A comprehensive guide to most of the major birding sites in Peru, including a few previously unpublished localities, and sites in Bolivia and Northern Chile visited during a stay in South America from September 1997 to March 1998."

Illustrated Checklist: Birds of Southern South America and Antarctica

Martin R De La Pena and Maurice Rumboll

1998

"This field guide illustrates and describes 1140 species of bird found in Argentina, Chile, Bolivia, Paraguay, southern Brazil and Uruguay. The text details what kind of habitat the birds are found in, key identification features and notes on the songs and calls of each species."

Birding Bolivia 1997

Bruce C Forrester

A 40 page booklet providing site information and a checklist of over 560 species.

Ornithological Gazetteer Of Bolivia

Raymond A. Paynter

1992

A gazetteer and bibliography.

Birds of the High Andes

Jon Fjeldsa and Niels Krabbe

1990

"The area covered is the temperate and alpine zones of the Andean region, from Venezuela and Colombia in the north, through Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia and Argentina, to the southernmost point on the coast of Chile. For each species, there is a full description, including plumage, habits, voices, breeding, habitat selection and range, plus detailed distribution maps. The colour plates depict over two thousand separate plumages in nearly one thousand species and subspecies. In addition there are numerous line drawings showing differential details, postures and nests."

An Annotated List of the Birds of Bolivia

J.V. Remsen, Jr. and Melvin A. Taylor

1989

78 page checklist with notes on distribution and birdwatching sites. Over 1200 species.

Birds of Chile and the Adjacent Regions of Argentina, Bolivia and Peru

A.W. Johnson

1965

A two volume, 398 page guide to the birds of the area. With colour plates.