The Birds of the Western Palearctic
Encyclopedia
The Birds of the Western Palearctic (full title Handbook of the Birds of Europe, the Middle East, and North Africa: The Birds of the Western Palearctic; often referred to by the initials BWP) is a nine-volume ornithological handbook
covering the birds of the western portion of the Palearctic zoogeographical region.
BWP is a comprehensive regional avifauna for the Western Palearctic. It consists of 9 volumes, the first published in 1977 and the ninth in 1996. BWPs format and breadth influenced the development of regional avifaunas for other parts of the world, notably The Birds of Africa
.
A two-volume Concise Edition was produced in 1998. Both the full and concise editions were published by Oxford University Press
(OUP).
The boundary used for the region included (a) Iceland
, but not Greenland
, (b) all of Macaronesia
, (c) North Africa, (d) the northern parts of the Arabian peninsula
, (e) Iraq
and Kuwait
, but not Iran
, and (f) Russia
west of the Ural
s. A number of subsequent papers have questioned the appropriateness of this boundary, particularly its southern and southeastern delimitations, among them Martins & Hirschfeld (1994). Martins and Hirschfeld published a more detailed paper in 1998, discussing the boundary in Iran
and the Arabian peninsula
.They concluded that the mountainous western and northern areas of Iran, and the Arabian peninsula, except for two small enclaves in the south, should be included in the Western Palearctic. Ullman (2000) disagreed with their conclusions regarding the Arabian enclaves, however, arguing that their depauperate avifauna, when compared to species-rich areas in northeast Africa, justified inclusion of the whole of Arabia in the Western Palearctic. Roselaar (2006), analysing the breeding distributions of 1037 passerine
bird species in the Palearctic region, and northern parts of the Afrotropical and Oriental regions, also proposed a southern boundary somewhat to the south of that used by BWP. He excluded southernmost parts of Arabia, albeit with a slightly different border to that used by Martins & Hirschfeld.
A journal, BWP Update, was published for a number of years following the completion of BWP.
Two electronic versions of BWP have been produced. The first, produced by OUP, suffered from a number of technical problems and customers were offered a refund. The second, known as "BWPi", was produced by BirdGuides Ltd. This includes the full text of the nine volumes, the concise edition, all updates from BWP Update, new video and audio, and recent taxonomical changes.
Ornithological handbook
An ornithological handbook is a book giving summarised information either about the birds of a particular geographical area or a particular taxonomic group of birds...
covering the birds of the western portion of the Palearctic zoogeographical region.
BWP is a comprehensive regional avifauna for the Western Palearctic. It consists of 9 volumes, the first published in 1977 and the ninth in 1996. BWPs format and breadth influenced the development of regional avifaunas for other parts of the world, notably The Birds of Africa
The Birds of Africa
The Birds of Africa is a seven-volume ornithological handbook.Its authors/editors were C. Hilary Fry, Stuart Keith and Emil Urban, and each volume contained colour plates painted by Martin Woodcock...
.
A two-volume Concise Edition was produced in 1998. Both the full and concise editions were published by Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press
Oxford University Press is the largest university press in the world. It is a department of the University of Oxford and is governed by a group of 15 academics appointed by the Vice-Chancellor known as the Delegates of the Press. They are headed by the Secretary to the Delegates, who serves as...
(OUP).
The boundary used for the region included (a) Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
, but not Greenland
Greenland
Greenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for...
, (b) all of Macaronesia
Macaronesia
Macaronesia is a modern collective name for several groups of islands in the North Atlantic Ocean near Europe and North Africa belonging to three countries: Portugal, Spain, and Cape Verde...
, (c) North Africa, (d) the northern parts of the Arabian peninsula
Arabian Peninsula
The Arabian Peninsula is a land mass situated north-east of Africa. Also known as Arabia or the Arabian subcontinent, it is the world's largest peninsula and covers 3,237,500 km2...
, (e) Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
and Kuwait
Kuwait
The State of Kuwait is a sovereign Arab state situated in the north-east of the Arabian Peninsula in Western Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to the south at Khafji, and Iraq to the north at Basra. It lies on the north-western shore of the Persian Gulf. The name Kuwait is derived from the...
, but not Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
, and (f) Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
west of the Ural
Ural Mountains
The Ural Mountains , or simply the Urals, are a mountain range that runs approximately from north to south through western Russia, from the coast of the Arctic Ocean to the Ural River and northwestern Kazakhstan. Their eastern side is usually considered the natural boundary between Europe and Asia...
s. A number of subsequent papers have questioned the appropriateness of this boundary, particularly its southern and southeastern delimitations, among them Martins & Hirschfeld (1994). Martins and Hirschfeld published a more detailed paper in 1998, discussing the boundary in Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
and the Arabian peninsula
Arabian Peninsula
The Arabian Peninsula is a land mass situated north-east of Africa. Also known as Arabia or the Arabian subcontinent, it is the world's largest peninsula and covers 3,237,500 km2...
.They concluded that the mountainous western and northern areas of Iran, and the Arabian peninsula, except for two small enclaves in the south, should be included in the Western Palearctic. Ullman (2000) disagreed with their conclusions regarding the Arabian enclaves, however, arguing that their depauperate avifauna, when compared to species-rich areas in northeast Africa, justified inclusion of the whole of Arabia in the Western Palearctic. Roselaar (2006), analysing the breeding distributions of 1037 passerine
Passerine
A passerine is a bird of the order Passeriformes, which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds or, less accurately, as songbirds, the passerines form one of the most diverse terrestrial vertebrate orders: with over 5,000 identified species, it has roughly...
bird species in the Palearctic region, and northern parts of the Afrotropical and Oriental regions, also proposed a southern boundary somewhat to the south of that used by BWP. He excluded southernmost parts of Arabia, albeit with a slightly different border to that used by Martins & Hirschfeld.
A journal, BWP Update, was published for a number of years following the completion of BWP.
Two electronic versions of BWP have been produced. The first, produced by OUP, suffered from a number of technical problems and customers were offered a refund. The second, known as "BWPi", was produced by BirdGuides Ltd. This includes the full text of the nine volumes, the concise edition, all updates from BWP Update, new video and audio, and recent taxonomical changes.
BWP
- Volume 1 (1978): ISBN 978-0198573586, 722 pages
- Volume 2 (1979): ISBN 978-0198575054, 696 pages
- Volume 3 (1983): ISBN 978-0198575061, 913 pages
- Volume 4 (1985): ISBN 978-0198575078, 960 pages
- Volume 5 (1988): ISBN 978-0198575085, 1136 pages
- Volume 6 (1992): ISBN 978-0198575092, 760 pages
- Volume 7 (1993): ISBN 978-0198575108, 610 pages
- Volume 8 (1994): ISBN 978-0198546795, 956 pages
- Volume 9 (1994): ISBN 978-0198548430, 522 pages
BWP Concise
- Snow, D. W.David SnowDavid William Snow was a celebrated English ornithologist born in Windermere, Westmorland.-Career and personal life:He won a scholarship to Eton and started there in 1938 just before his 14th birthday...
& Perrins, C. M. (1998). The Birds of the Western Palearctic Concise Edition. ISBN 0-19-854099-X.