India Wildlife & Birdlife Guidebooks

Here are a variety of books to help prepare you for your journey. You can order books online through Amazon or NHBS or via booksellers like Stanfords in London, your local bookseller or buy through bookshops or in hotels in Delhi, Mumbai or other major cities.

Some of these are possible to buy at souvenir shops in and around the park areas or at park gates – but better to purchase before you arrive.

GUIDEBOOKS

Author Title Description
Vivek Menon Indian Wildlife Insight Guide Very good and comprehensive. Covers all mammals in the sub continent. Second Edition published by Dorling Kindersley
TOFTigers Good Wildlife Travel Guide to India and Nepal Travellers Guide A travellers guide to 26 of the best parks and wildlife in India and Nepal, together with a nature guide, and the best ‘Nature Friendly’ companies and accommodation to use while there. See more here
Grimmett R, C & T Innskipp. Pocket Guide to the Birds of the Indian Subcontinent This is a pocket version companion to “Birds of the Indian Subcontinent” covering all the bird species found in India, Pakistian, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh and the Maldives. A must have for birders.
Ali S. The Book of Indian Birds For nearly fifty years “The Book of Indian Birds” has been a close companion of the recently inducted bird- watching enthusiast as well as of the seasoned ornithologist in India. The book remains an indispensable field guide for everyone who wishes to enjoy the rich and varied bird life of the country.
David Raju & Surya Ramachandran A Photographic Field Guide to the Wildlife of Central India Excellent and comprehensive Field Guide, supported by TOFTigers, to the extensive wildlife of Central India.
Sanctuary Guide to Corbett (with TOFTigers) Pocket Field Guide to this Premier Tiger reserve Good ring bound field guide to Corbett, includes fold out map, details on wildlife and conservation, mammals, reptiles, butterflies and bird lists, PUG rated accommodation and much else besides. Click here to order a copy.
Kolipaka D Shekar A field Guide to the Tracks & Signs of Indian wildlife Much needed guide to Indian wildlife tracks and signs, often those aspects so often overlooked by park guides and can make any walking or nature trip ten times more fascinating.
Pradip Krishen Trees of Delhi – A Field Guide India’s trees are fabulous and so numerous that they are hard to fit in a single book, but this book with concise information, excellent illustrations and insights does include a lot of the trees you see in India’s parks and in Delhi itself.

Tiger Hardback Books

Author Title Description
Ullas Karanth & Manfredi P. In Danger This book discusses the relationship between people, endangered habitats and wildlife. The book forms part of an attempt by Ranthambhore Foundation to try and bridge the widening gap between nature, protected areas and people.
Thapar V. Land of the Tiger This is an exploration of the extraordinarily diverse natural history of the vast area covered by the Indian subcontinent, which extends from Pakistan in the west to Burma in the east, and stretches north to encompass the Himalayan kingdoms of Bhutan and Nepal.
Ward G. C. Tiger-Wallahs Describes efforts to save the Indian tiger from extinction, and why those efforts seemed doomed to failure.
Thapar V. The Tiger’s Destiny Drawing on 16 years’ association with Ranthambhore National Park in India, Valmik Thapar has written a book about the tiger – past, present and future. It is a celebration of this glorious predator, but more importantly it is a cry for help.
Thapar V. The Secret Life of Tigers Documents the family life of three tigresses and their cubs from soon after birth to adulthood. An extraordinary account if records for the first time the active role the male tiger plays as a father.
Mountfort G. Saving the Tiger A complete account of the tiger in the wild, and the efforts to save it from extinction.
Green S. Tiger Historical and cultural account of the tiger, showing how the decline of its natural habitat and relentless pressure from poachers and farmers have turned a naturally retiring, solitary creature into an aggressive man-eating predator.
Bittu Saghal and Anish Andheria India Naturally A Sanctuary Asia hardback book, that beautifully illustrates India’s finest landscapes covering over 20 of India’s finest parks. Beautiful book for the coffee table.

BIOGRAPHIES & CLASSICS OF WILDLIFE LITERATURE

Author Title Description
James Forsyth The Highlands of Central India Classic of Indian Literature, written by a young Conservator of Forests in 1860’s. Full of stories of hunting big game in India, but also fascinating on tribes and cultures in what today in Madhya Pradesh. Illustrates graphically the abundance of wildlife that existed in the area 150 years ago.
Duff Hart-Davis Honorary Tiger – The Life of Billy Arjan Singh A fascinating read about a pioneer of wildlife conservation in India, who highlighted the original plight of the animals to Indira Gandhi.
Ruth Padel Tigers in Red Weather A beautifully written personal travelogue following the Tigers plight across its whole range from India to Indonesia.