· Number of species included is increased from 6300 to over 8700, about 85% of the world?s birds

· Better data for many of the species included in the first edition ? an exhaustive compilation of new data published from 1992 through 2007

· More comprehensive coverage of Latin America, Japan, Taiwan, Southeast Asia, and more coverage of research published in non-English language journals

In 1992 the CRC Handbook of Avian Body Masses broke new ground by providing a compilation of body masses for 6300 species, about two-thirds of the world?s species. The handbook instantly became the gold standard, cited in hundreds of scientific studies and a prominent fixture on the shelves of many ornithologists. Keeping the format that made the first edition so popular, the second edition features dramatic changes both in species coverage and the data quality.

The new edition compiles the results of new samples that have been published for many of the birds included in the first edition, and data found for about 2400 new species, increasing the coverage to over 8700 species, about 85% of the world?s birds. The order of species and families has been revised in the text to fit with the latest publications in avian taxonomy and systematics. The second edition includes an accompanying CD-ROM with a searchable electronic database.