The Diversity of the Reed Warblers

The book "The Reed Warblers - Diversity in a uniform bird family", richly illustrated with unique photos, drawings and graphs, offers scientists and laymen alike fascinating insights into the reed warblers' lives and into recent topics of ornithological research.

The book "The Reed Warblers - Diversity in a uniform bird family", richly illustrated with unique photos, drawings and graphs, offers scientists and laymen alike fascinating insights into the reed warblers' lives and into recent topics of ornithological research.

Reed Warblers are small, brown and apparently all the same? A closer look shows us that there is unexpected diversity and variety in the habitat and strategies of the 53 species.  The reed warbler family has been used as a model for many ecological and behavioral biology studies which have led to many excellent findings and set new standards in behavioral and molecular ecology.
Dr. Bernd Leisler, of Max-Planck Institute for Ornithology, and Dr. Karl Schulze-Hagen have collected their findings from more than 40 years of studies on the Acrocephalidae in their book, “The Reed Warblers – Diversity in a uniform bird family” which was published in November. A comparative perspective presents the astoundingly diverse biology of this bird family: speciation, songs, nest building, mating systems, their role as host for brood parasites, their life on oceanic islands and much more.


Illustrated with a multitude of unique photos, drawings and maps, this comprehensive book offers scientists and the lay public fascinating insights into the life of this bird family as well as into the current and future fields of ornithological studies.
„What an extraordinarily diverse group of birds! This magnificent book provides a panoramic yet penetrating overview of the reed warblers’ intriguing biology. Scholarly, yet readable and beautifully produced. A model of natural history writing and publishing “ (Tim Birkhead FRS, Professor of Behavioural Ecology, University of Sheffield).
“Hallmarks of Bernd Leisler’s and Karl Schulze-Hagen’s approach are their never-ending, deep love for their study subjects, the clarity of their writing and the intrinsic beauty of their pictures and illustrations.” (Martin Wikelski, Director Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Radolfzell and Professor for Ornithology, University of Konstanz)


Bernd Leisler & Karl Schulze-Hagen, “The Reed Warblers”
KNNV Publishing in cooperation with Max Planck Institute for Ornithology
320 p., 21 x 28 cm, hardback, full colour, richly illustrated with drawings, maps and photos

Other Interesting Articles

Go to Editor View