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Fife

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

Scotland

Scotland

For books that cover regions of Scotland see:

Argyll
Ayrshire
Borders
Central Valley
Dumfries & Galloway
Fair Isle
Fife
Grampian
Highland
Inner Hebrides
Orkney
Outer Hebrides
Shetland

The Breeding and Wintering Birds of Fife: An Atlas for 2007-2013

Norman Elkins, Jim Reid and Allan W. Brown

2016

"The current breeding and wintering status of birds in Fife is illustrated by 400 fine-scale maps. In addition to maps of breeding status, the abundance of species in both seasons and distribution in winter are mapped for the first time. Copiously illustrated with 240 photographs, mostly by John Anderson, Fife’s celebrated bird photographer, the volume runs to approximately 380 pages. Following an introductory section presenting methodology, habitat and population details, 213 species accounts, written by expert local ornithologists, describe the current status of birds in Fife.  Covering the years 2007-2013, the maps are based on fieldwork undertaken for the acclaimed national Bird Atlas 2007-11. They show new information that highlights the changes in distribution and abundance of birds in the region since the 1990s, an essential conservation tool and a valuable resource for birdwatchers."

Return to One Man's Island: Paintings and Sketches from the Isle of May

Keith Brockie

2011

"Keith Brockie's One Man's Island: Paintings and Sketches from the Isle of May (1984), immediately became one of the bestselling Scottish natural history books of all time. The combination of breathtaking wildlife images with notes and background information, captured unforgettably the beauty of nature, and in particular that of the Isle of May, a little gem of an island in the Firth of Forth. Since then Brockie has constantly returned to the Isle of May. From April through to October of 2010 he stayed on the island, working intensively to produce an entirely new set of drawings and paintings. With his eye for colour and characteristic attention to detail he has produced a huge number of artworks, mixing depictions of the majestic peregrine and white-tailed eagle with sketches of fluffy eider ducklings and kittiwake chicks. All the natural history of the island is represented, from its delicate maritime flowers to fish, crabs and lobsters."

The Fife Bird Atlas

Norman Elkins, Jim Reid, Allan Brown, Derek Robertson and Anne-Marie Smout

2003

"the Fife Bird Atlas maps all Fife's birds in great detail for the first time. Unlike many atlases, the value of Fife's Atlas has been enhanced by the inclusion of data throughout the year. Not only are maps of our own fieldwork shown, but data from a variety of other ornithological surveys is also used. These include long running national censuses of wintering wildfowl and shorebirds, ringing records, seabird censuses, migration counts, and a host of other smaller surveys carried out during the period of the Atlas fieldwork. The publication was overseen by the Fife Ornithological Atlas Group (FOAG), which was established in 1990 to organise the fieldwork.... The book is in A4 format (in line with many other published atlases), with two pages allocated to most of the breeding species described. Breeding distribution is mapped on a 2km x 2km (tetrad) grid and complementary monthly maps of non-breeding distribution on a 5km x 5km grid. For each breeding species there is a text and breeding distribution map, with other maps of non-breeding distribution chosen to depict seasonal variation. One or two pages are also allocated to non-breeding species, with seasonal distribution maps depicted. Appropriate figures showing quantitative data are included for those species for which these are available. Data are also used from the Forth islands that form part of the region, including the Isle of May.

The Wildlife of Inchcolm

Ron Morris

2003

"It is only in fairly recent times that Inchcolm has developed into an important nature reserve for breeding seabird species such as northern fulmar, common eider duck, herring gull, and lesser black-backed gull. The island also has small populations of atlantic puffin, razorbill, black-legged kittiwake and european shag. In previous years, several species of tern bred at the island. Small numbers of grey seal drop their pups at the island's shores each autumn and the common seal has also been known to use the island for pupping during the summer months. Inchcolm has received very little attention from naturalists in the past and it is hoped that this booklet will not only give the visitor a valuable insight into the island's wealth of natural history, but also provide a sound foundation for any future studies that may take place. I have taken the liberty of including the nearby, small, barren rocks of Carr Craig and Haystack, both of which have been important breeding grounds for several species of tern in the past and in more recent times have hosted important colonies of great cormorant and european shag. Carr Craig lies less than half a mile north-east of Inchcolm, whilst Haystack lies about the same distance to the west of the island."

The Nature of Fife: Wildlife and Ecology

Editor: Gordon B. Corbet

1998

"Describes the natural environment of Fife, habitat by habitat, together with a section of annotated lists of the species of plants and animals so far recorded from the area. The book includes: geology and landform; weather and climate; landscape and history; and cliffs, dunes and saltmarshes."

An Ornithological Evaluation Of Fife Region, Scotland, With Special Reference To The Location Of Future Commercial Afforestation

M.A. Bates, C.A. Galbraith & T.E. Tew

1994

"Study of the effect on bird habitat of current & future forestry projects in the Fife region."

The Birds of Fife: An Outline Of Their Status And Distribtion

Anne-Marie Smout

1986

One Man's Island: Paintings and Sketches from the Isle of May

Keith Brockie

1984

"When the original hardback edition of this book was published in 1984, it was an immediate bestseller. Keith Brockie's remarkable artistry and his extraordinary sensitivity to wildlife drew admiration from readers and reviewers all round the world. His 150 exquisite paintings and sketches from the island of May in the Firth of Forth, Scotland, representing not only a year's intensive fieldwork but also a decade of observation devoted to this important wildlife centre."

The Isle Of May

W.J. Eggeling

1960

"Nobody is better qualified to write about the island than Dr. Eggeling of the Nature Conservancy who has known it since boyhood and who was closely associated with the founding of its Bird Observatory in 1934. Important though the Bird Observatory is, the interest of the book extends far beyond ornithology; Dr, Eggeling is a botanist as well as a zoologist and, as a result of his own work and that of many other experts who visited the island, our present knowledge of its natural history extends to all the easily visible types of plant and animal life; in fact there are few other parts of Scotland that have been scientifically explored in equal detail."

The Land Birds In And Around St. Andrews

Including A Condensed History Of The British Land Birds, With Extracts From The Poets And Observations And Anecdotes On Natural History

George Bruce

1895

From the preface:"The origin of this little work dates as far back as January 1855, when attending Dr Day's lectures (by invitation) in the United College, for in one of my notes written at that time the following reason is given: 'Having bought some books on Natural History, and finding the store from which the lectures are taken, it is waste of time to write them from memory. I will go on collecting shells, crabs, eggs, birds, and birds' skins, and refer to these books to tell me their names and habits - my object being to collect most of the shells, birds' eggs, and birds found in Britain. Without a beginning there cannot be an end, so I now begin to follow up this pursuit, and, with good health, expect to find both success and happiness, which the mere pleasure-hunter, idler, or gossiper can never realise.' Another early note of March 1856 says: 'These notes are simply a conglomeration of observations and facts which have come under my notice - hastily and without order set down at different times - but, although they may appear redundant, still something useful can be taken out of them, as their intention is merely to provide a kind of store for future use - not meant to be read otherwise than as a sort of granary of facts, to be culled at leisure' - hence this book."