The much-anticipated authoritative field guide by Schulenberg and colleagues at the Field Museum in Chicago, this comprehensive guide, featuring 304 color plates by Dan Lane, covers all 1,792 species of birds recorded in Peru, nearly one-fifth of the world's total. This is the massive project initiated by the much-loved (and dearly missed) Ted Parker. The guide will also be useful for much of western South America, including southeastern Colombia, southern Ecuador, western Brazil, Bolivia, and northern Chile.  (PRU55, $49.50)

Best of 2007