🎯 Where Should I Start?
ⓘ About David Allen Sibley
David is the son of Fred Sibley, a Yale University ornithologist, and he started birding when he was a child. Sibley started bird watching in Cap May Point, New Jersey in the year 1980, right after dropping out of college. As a largely self taught bird illustrator, he was inspired to pursue creating his own illustrated field guide after he led tours during the 80s and 90s and found that the existing field guides did not generally describe or illustrate alternate or juvenile plumages of birds. Simple observation always leads to new discoveries and new ideas, and one of David’s greatest satisfactions is learning new things about the natural world.
All Book Series by David Allen Sibley
The Sibley Field Guide to Birds of Eastern North America
Book 6 of 38 · published 2003
Sibley's Backyard Birds of New England & Northern New York
Book 8 of 38 · published 2005
Sibley's Common Trees in the Cities & Towns of the Northeast & Upper Midwest
Book 16 of 38 · published 2008
Sibley's Trees of Cities & Towns of the Southeast
Book 17 of 38 · published 2008
Sibley's Trees of Trails & Forests of the Southeast
Book 18 of 38 · published 2008
Sibley's Trees of Trails and Forests of the Northeast & Upper Midwest
Book 19 of 38 · published 2008
Sibley's Common Trees of Trails & Forests of the Mid-Atlantic & Midwest
Book 20 of 38 · published 2008
Sibley's Common Trees in the Cities & Towns of the Mid-Atlantic & Midwest
Book 21 of 38 · published 2008
Sibley's Common Trees of California Folding Guide
Book 24 of 38 · published 2014
Sibley's Backyard Birds of the Rocky Mountain States
Book 26 of 38 · published 2015
The Trees of North America: Michaux and Redouté's American Masterpiece
Book 32 of 38 · published 2017
? Frequently Asked Questions
Who is David Allen Sibley?
David is the son of Fred Sibley, a Yale University ornithologist, and he started birding when he was a child. Sibley started bird watching in Cap May Point, New Jersey in the year 1980, right after dropping out of college. As a largely self taught bird illustrator, he was inspired to pursue creating his own illustrated field guide after he led tours during the 80s and 90s and found that the existing field guides did not generally describe or illustrate alternate or juvenile plumages of birds.
Which David Allen Sibley series should I start with?
David Allen Sibley's books stand alone rather than forming a numbered series, so there is no reading order to follow. The natural first pick is The Birds of Cape May (1997).
How many books has David Allen Sibley written?
David Allen Sibley has 38 books catalogued in this guide, published between 1997 and 2023. They all sit in a single category — Non-Fiction — rather than in numbered series.
In what order should David Allen Sibley's series be read?
No reading order is needed: none of the 38 books catalogued here do not form a numbered series, so any title can be picked up first. Within each category they are listed by publication year.
How are David Allen Sibley's books organised into series?
This guide splits David Allen Sibley's 38 books into categories rather than numbered series: Non-Fiction (38 books).