This comprehensive four-volume work investigates the avian biodiversity and distribution patterns across the various island groups of the Atlantic Ocean. David and W. Mary Bannerman, both established ornithologists with extensive field experience, compile decades of research to document the species inhabiting these isolated ecosystems. The text provides a systematic framework for identifying birds while analyzing the environmental factors that influence their migration and residency in Atlantic territories.

Ornithologists and researchers frequently cite this set as a foundational reference for historical avian data in the Atlantic region. The prose is noted for its academic rigor and descriptive precision, serving as a standard resource for those studying island biogeography.