This book summarises the status and distribution of all species of wild birds known to have bred in Britain and Ireland since 1800.

John Parslow's book is based on Status changes among breeding birds in Britain and Ireland, his invaluable series of eight papers which first appeared in British Birds in 1967-68. The original text has been corrected and new material added, and now forms the Specific List section of the book. In addition, the species accounts note fluctuations which have occurred and give their cause wherever these are known or may be surmised.

A separate section reviews extinctions, colonisations and changes in breeding populations in general, and shows that despite widespread habitat destruction there were more bird species breeding in Britain and Ireland at the time of publication than at any time since 1800.

Two new sections have been added to the original material. The first, The Years Since 1967, discusses the more significant status changes of the last few years and the factors which may have influenced or have been responsible for them. The second, a major and most important addition, includes 225 distribution maps for all breeding species, each map keyed to show status and approximate numbers, with notes on recent status changes and most favoured habitats.

The wide interest and acclaim accorded to the original papers would in itself have justified their publication in book form, but the present work with its additional sections and the unique distribution maps is certain to be doubly welcomed by ornithologists in Britain and abroad, and to remain a standard work for many years to come.

The jacket illustration of the Red-backed Shrike and Long-tailed Tit, and the drawings throughout the book, are by Rosemary Parslow.