Handbook of the Birds of the World

Handbook of the Birds of the World
Name	Handbook of the Birds of the World
Caption	First edition set
Author	Josep del Hoyo; Andrew Elliott; Jordi Sargatal; David A. Christie; Gerald Mayr (editorial board)
Country	Spain
Language	English; Spanish summaries
Subject	Ornithology; Avian taxonomy
Publisher	Lynx Edicions
Pub date	1992–2013
Media type	Print; digital
Pages	10,000+ (approx.)
Isbn	Multiple

Handbook of the Birds of the World is a comprehensive multi-volume encyclopedia that attempted a global, species-level treatment of all known birds. Conceived and published by Lynx Edicions, the series brought together authors, illustrators, and institutions to provide life histories, distribution maps, and plates for every extant bird species recognized at the time. Its production engaged major museums, conservation organizations, and research centers to synthesize taxonomy, natural history, and conservation status.

Overview

The project was initiated to assemble exhaustive species accounts combining field observations, specimen-based research, and illustrative plates, drawing on collaborations with institutions such as the Natural History Museum, London, the Smithsonian Institution, the American Museum of Natural History, the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, and the Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (Spain). Editors coordinated input from researchers associated with the International Ornithologists' Union, the BirdLife International partnership, the Royal Society, the National Geographic Society, and universities including University of Cambridge, Harvard University, University of Oxford, Columbia University, and University of California, Berkeley. Contributors included curators and field ornithologists linked to organizations like the World Wide Fund for Nature, the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, the Zoological Society of London, and the Museo de Historia Natural de Barcelona.

Publication History

Lynx Edicions launched the series in 1992 under editors Josep del Hoyo, Andrew Elliott, and Jordi Sargatal, with publication spanning into 2013 and culminating in 17 volumes plus a species checklist. Production intersected with milestones in publishing and conservation history involving entities such as the United Nations Environment Programme, the IUCN Red List, and the Convention on Biological Diversity. The timeline overlapped with major scientific events at institutions like the Royal Society of London and conferences hosted by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and the World Congress of Ornithology. Editions were issued alongside companion catalogs, exhibitions at venues including the Natural History Museum of Barcelona, and collaborations with illustrators linked to the Society of Wildlife Artists.

Content and Structure

Each volume offered species accounts arranged taxonomically, integrating distribution maps produced with data from the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, museum records from the American Museum of Natural History and the Natural History Museum, London, and observational databases compiled by networks like the Global Biodiversity Information Facility and the Atlas of Southern African Birds. Plates were contributed by artists tied to the British Ornithologists' Union and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds. The work provided detailed entries on morphology, voice, behavior, breeding, migration, and ecology with references to specimen collections at the Field Museum of Natural History, the National Museum of Natural History (France), and the Senckenberg Museum. Taxonomic treatments reflected contemporary debates in journals such as The Auk, Ibis, The Condor, Journal of Avian Biology, and Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, and cross-referenced nomenclatural decisions influenced by committees like the South American Classification Committee and the North American Classification Committee.

Contributors and Editorial Team

The editorial board included prominent figures affiliated with institutions such as the University of Barcelona, the Royal Society, the Zoological Society of London, and the Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales. Scientific contributors comprised curators, systematists, and field researchers from universities and museums including University of Pretoria, University of São Paulo, Tohoku University, Australian Museum, and the Museum für Naturkunde, Berlin. Illustrators and plate artists who worked on the series had ties to galleries and societies like the Society of Wildlife Artists and the British Museum. Peer reviewers and advisors included researchers associated with the Smithsonian Institution, the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, and leading conservation NGOs such as BirdLife International and the World Wide Fund for Nature.

Reception and Impact

Critical reception from academic journals including The Auk, Ibis, Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club, and Emu praised the series for breadth and illustration quality while noting challenges tied to taxonomic changes emerging from molecular studies published in outlets like Nature, Science, Proceedings of the Royal Society B, and Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. The work influenced conservation policy discussions at meetings of the IUCN World Conservation Congress and informed assessments used by BirdLife International and national agencies such as the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the European Environment Agency. Libraries and museums including the British Library, the Library of Congress, the Biblioteca Nacional de España, and the National Library of Australia added the set to reference collections, and universities from University of Cape Town to Yale University adopted volumes for teaching and research.

Later Developments and Successors

Following completion, the project inspired digital initiatives and successors developed by organizations such as the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and BirdLife International, and spurred databases at the Global Biodiversity Information Facility and the Internet Bird Collection (later integrated into other archives). Advances in molecular systematics from labs at Harvard University, University of Copenhagen, University of Helsinki, and Max Planck Society prompted taxonomic revisions incorporated into successor online platforms, checklist projects overseen by the International Ornithologists' Union, and regional field guides produced by publishers like Princeton University Press and Bloomsbury. The legacy endures in museum catalogs at the American Museum of Natural History and the Natural History Museum, London and in curricula at institutions such as University of Melbourne and University of British Columbia.

Category:Ornithology books