Birds of La Plata.
London & Toronto: J.M. Dent & Sons, 1920. Two volumes. 4to. xvii, 244; ix, 240 pp. FIRST EDITION. With 22 color plates after H. Grönvold. Original publisher’s cloth (no dust jackets), gilt decoration on cover and gilt lettering on spine; an excellent copy from the Library of James M. Dolan, with his stamp on both title pages. Item #16315
First edition, one of three thousand copies printed for distribution in England and the United States. Hudson introduces new species that have been discovered since his previous work on Argentinian avifauna (Argentine ornithology written with Philip Lutley Sclater and published in 1888-89). “In the present work the classification, synonymy, &c. in the former work has been expunged, leaving only the account of the birds’ habits as written by Hudson himself. The plates are new” (Wood). Hudson, as he states in the preface, believes that new species are continually being added by collectors and so his previous work was already out of date as soon as it was published. South America, according to the author, is richer in bird life than any other territory of similar dimension and about a quarter of the entire number of South American species inhabit Argentina, half of them in the La Plata district. A delightful work with beautiful illustration of the birds in their native habitats.
Hudson (1841-1922), author, naturalist and ornithologist, was a founding member of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds. Born in Argentina to American parents, he settled in England. He is probably best known for his novel Green mansions.
Anker, 138; Casaey Wood, p. 393.
Price: $300.00