Cardon Man - 1-8-2009 at 08:01 PM
In your opinion, what is the best and most comprehensive guide book to the flora of Baja California? I own the "Baja California plant field guide" by
Norman c. Roberts. Just wondering if there are other good sources of info out there...
Mexitron - 1-8-2009 at 09:04 PM
"Flora of Baja California" by Ira Wiggins. Very comprehensive, but no photos; and be forewarned you may have to bring a microscope with you to key
out plants in the field--very lab taxonomy oriented at times. But I have still found it very useful, often using a process of elimination in IDing
plants rather than following the key. Wealth of information in there.
flyfishinPam - 1-9-2009 at 09:18 AM
Wiggins would be THE source for Baja California plant ID's. Like the Munz "A California Flora" guide for California, USA Wiggins' thoroughly covers
the plants of the Baja with descriptions and a dichotomous key. Norman Robert's guide is written by an amateur natural science enthusiast and it is a
good reference to the major plants with photos but it is seriously lacking. I understand that a new edition is due to come out pretty soon. To
differentiate between some species a stereo microscope is useful but rarely will you need to make slides and put them under a light microscope.
Thanks
Cardon Man - 1-10-2009 at 03:17 PM
I'll be sure t check out the Ira Wiggins book. Gracias.
rockman - 1-14-2009 at 06:59 PM
Here are a few additional references to plant life in Baja:
The Agaves of Baja Calif. Howard S.Gentry. Calif Academy of Sciences Occ Paper #130, 1978.
Baja In bloom. Jennifer Bierich & Bill Robinson in Baja Life magazine, Vol 1#2, p52. 1994.
The Boojum and its Home. Robert R. Humphrey. 1974/79.
Desert Plants of Baja, G.E.Lindsay. Pacific Discovery (Cal Academy of Sci): Vol XVIII, #4, Jul/Aug 1965
Flora Iconografica de Baja California Sur. Jose Luis Leon de la Luz & Rocio Coria, eds. 1992.
In Spanish; good sketches. Available thru WWF.
Flora of Baja Calif. Tina Kasbeer. 1971. La Siesta Press.
Grasses of Baja Calif, Mexico. Frank Gould & Reid Moran; San Diego Soc of Natl Hist Memoir 12, 1981.
Strange Plants of the Vizcaino Desert of Central Baja California. Lloyd M. Smith, Baja Symposia IV,1966. (English and Spanish).
Studies in the Flora of Lower Calif. Alice Eastwood, in Calif Acad of Sci v18#14, 1929.
Seaweeds of the Pacific Coast. Jennifer & Jeff Mondragon. 2003. ISBN 0-930118-29-4.
If anybody would like a more complete list (60+) of Baja plant references, just send me an email and I will email the list to you. normanc@olypen.com
Many of the items on the list can be found at major libraries if you know to look for them.
[Edited on 1-16-2009 by rockman]
[Edited on 1-17-2009 by rockman]
danaeb - 1-14-2009 at 07:15 PM
Not to hijack, but in the same vein, is there a Baja bird book? I've looked all over. I have the Sibley Birds of Western North America, but I was
hoping to find something more specific.
rockman - 1-14-2009 at 08:34 PM
I can Email a list of about 30 books and periodicals relating to the birds of Baja. If interested, contact me at normanc@olypen.com .
Many of the items on the list can be found at city or university libraries if you know to look for them.
It includes:
ABA Field List of the Birds of Baja Calif. Kurt Radamaker. 1992.
Baja Quail. Gary Kramer in Baja Life magazine, Vol 1#3, p50. 1995.
Birds Collected in Lower California. Charles H. Townsend. Am Mus Nat Hist Bull: vXLVIII, art I, March, 1923.
Birds of the Baja Calif Peninsula: Status, Distribution, Taxonomy. Erickson & Howell, eds, ABA monograph #3. 2001.
Birds of the Cape Region of Lower Calif. Wm Brewster, Bull of Museum of Comparative Zoology, Harvard College, Vol XLI, #1, Sept. 1902.
The Birds of ESSA (Exportadora de Sal, S.A.) Field Guide [Las Aves de ESSA]. 2000. Excellent bilingual pictorial field guide to The birds of the
Guerrero Negro salt marsh area.
[Edited on 1-15-2009 by rockman]
[Edited on 1-17-2009 by rockman]
marv sherrill - 1-15-2009 at 07:48 PM
For the lay person - Just go with the Roberts book - you will need a college course in botany to even come close to using the Wiggins book - I have
both, but always use the Roberts book in the field - It is quite comprehensive