These Sandhill Cranes Have Adopted a Canada Gosling, and Birders Have Flocked to Watch the Strange Family

Ornithologists and locals wonder what the future holds for this chick being raised by much taller, but still doting parents

These Are the Greatest eBird Checklists for the United States

Audubon

Since eBird’s launch in 2002, there have been more than 61 million U.S. checklists submitted to the community birding platform, from more than 703,000 birders. The majority of them are fairly mundane—a couple of American Robins in the backyard, maybe, or some Ring-billed Gulls in a parking lot.

Hurricane Helene Couldn’t Stop Birders From Using eBird

WIRED

Last week, Hurricane Helene spun north into western North Carolina causing catastrophic damage, particularly in the Asheville area and surrounding counties. Entire homes and businesses were flooded, some floating away in a horrific wave of debris.

When I Became a Birder, Almost Everything Else Fell Into Place

Last September, I drove to a protected wetland near my home in Oakland, Calif., walked to the end of a pier and started looking at birds.

Nature: Teeny-tiny golden-crowned kinglets are small, yes, but ‘tough as nails’

What is the smallest songbird in Ohio? Ruby-throated hummingbird? Wrong, although it’s a trick question of sorts, as hummingbirds are not songbirds. They belong to the non-passerine birds, a large group that includes sandpipers, waterfowl, woodpeckers, hummingbirds and many other families.

The Eternal Search for the ‘Nemesis Bird’

In the world of birding, Peter Kaestner stands alone. No one has seen and identified more birds than Mr. Kaestner, a retired U.S. diplomat who aspires to become the first birder to spot 10,000 of the planet’s roughly 11,000 avian species. With 9,697 on his eBird list so far, he is getting close.

Is Social Justice for the Birds? Audubon Attempts an Answer.

On the same day George Floyd was murdered by a police officer on a Minneapolis street — Memorial Day, 2020 — Christian Cooper was searching for songbirds in Central Park. Mr.

Our Plan to Attract a Flock of Birders

We would not count ourselves as birders. Elaine, who visited the Everglades occasionally when she lived in Miami, knows a purple gallinule when she sees one.

What It Takes to See 10,000 Bird Species

Outside Online

Editor’s Note: Since this story ran in print (in the May/June 2023 issue of), Kaestner’s life list has increased to 9,856 species, as of May 11, 2023. He is now the world record holder.T.

The Birder

The Paris Review

I knew a birder once. I liked him—it’s pointless to deny it and in any case I don’t think I can write about him without it being abundantly clear—though we redirected early enough that friendship seemed possible. For him it always was a friendship, anyway.

Trying to Find Your Place in the World? Try Birding From a Different Angle.

Some events are simply too big for us to fathom.

Yes, Birding Does Change Your Brain

Audubon

Most doctors in training don’t begin a new semester expecting to learn about birds. But after her first year studying at Harvard Medical School, Lynn Hur was hooked. “It’s become one of my favorite activities,” she says. Hur came to the hobby courtesy of associate professor Rose H.

Flying High: Sophomore Is a Rising Star in the Birding World

Cornellians | Cornell University

Isaiah Scott ’25 loves sharing his passion for all things avian—particularly with other young people and communities of color It’s a postcard-perfect fall day on the Hill: mild temperatures, brilliant blue sky, leaves ablaze with color.

A Bird Idiot’s Guide To Winter Birding

The pandemic changed us. COVID-19 stripped away basic social facets of humanity, and as we coped we each rewrote a chunk of source code within ourselves. I have a friend who started painting wine bottles. My wife became an expert in caring for houseplants.

An Ode to Weird Duck Time

Audubon

Pledge to stand with Audubon to call on elected officials to listen to science and work towards climate solutions. As a birder living in the Northeast, I love to watch the seasons change because each one brings its own joys.

A Long-Running Ode to the All the *&#% Birders See

Audubon

It all started a decade ago with a dark early morning and a little too much coffee. Julie Davis and Jackie Bain, along with their husbands, were making the two-hour drive on New Year’s Day to contribute to the Audubon Christmas Bird Count.

Here’s How Drastically Birding Has Changed Over the Past 50 Years

Audubon

More than 800 North American birds at your fingertips—all for free. It was 25 years ago this month—July 1997—that my Kingbird Highway was published.

Ask Kenn: Is There a Difference Between Bird Songs and Calls?

Audubon

Who's Kenn? Simply put, Kenn is a national treasure. A renowned birder, author, and conservationist, Kenn Kaufman has spent his life dedicated to observing birds, reading about birds, writing about birds, and sharing the world of birds with others.

The Strange, True Story of John Williams and Charles Pennock

Audubon

On a mid-December day in 1919, a travel-weary stranger stepped off the train in St. Marks, a forlorn fishing village along Apalachee Bay in northwestern Florida. He was there to find a man named John Williams.

The Man I Loved, the Birds He Watched

Outside Online

Real Housewives–