A First-Edition Copy of Roger Tory Peterson’s A Field Guide to the Birds, Archived at the University of Manitoba, and a Note on Peterson’s Connection to Saskatchewan

Bird watching changed forever in North America with the publication, in 1934, of Roger Tory Peterson's A Field Guide to the Birds: Giving All Species Found in Eastern North America. 1 Several keys and books designed to aid identification of birds in the field were already available, and bird watching was becoming a popular pursuit, 2 but Peterson used schematic drawings to depict each species in similar poses, initially, most in black and white but some in colour, of males and females, where their plumages differed.He omitted confusing details to show the bird as it appears to the eye in the field with critical distinctive points emphasized, in some species guided by arrows.Armed by that time with better binoculars, identification of birds in the field became easier, and even more popular.3,4,5 Many printings and new editions of the field guide followed and, in 1941, the geographical scope of the book was expanded, focusing on birds found in western North America, which now included all of the species expected to occur in Saskatchewan.The number of subject areas covered by field guides in the "Peterson" series increased in ensuing years and other groups of animals, as well as plants, rocks and celestial features, were treated.Many competing guides, also covering birds in North America, but also in most other regions of the world, have appeared on the market in recent years.This is a testament to the sustained interest in bird identification and other studies of nature by people around the world. First Edition of A Field Guide to the BirdsNumerous authors have assessed Peterson's accomplishments, as ornithologist, teacher, wildlife painter, and conservationist.6,7,8 The purpose of this article, however, is to examine a rare copy of the first edition of Peterson's field guide (Fig. 1), with its surviving, albeit slightly tattered, dust jacket (Fig. 2), and to add another slant to Peterson's early connection to Saskatchewan.The book is housed in the rare book room of the Archives and Special Collections, Dafoe Library, at the University of Manitoba (catalogued QL 681 P48 1934), and was among a large collection of books and manuscripts donated, in 1995, by

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