Research Guides: Birds: How to Be a Birder Wherever You Are

🦉 Birds 🐦‍⬛

Birding is for everyone.

Image: "Red-shouldered Hawk, Rockwoods Reservation, 1/8/16", by Andy Reago & Chrissy McClarren, CC BY 2.0

How To Get Started

Birders often carry binoculars, and many also use bird identification apps (see some free ones listed below), but neither are required. The most important thing is to be respectful of both birds and birders.

Remember the American Birding Association's code of ethics (see the link for the full code):

Respect and promote birds and their environment.

Respect and promote the birding community and its individual members.

Respect and promote the law and the rights of others.

Birding Code of Ethics/American Birding Association Guidelines on Birding and Social Distancing (American Birding Association)
How to be an ethical birder from the American Birding Association.

If you're interested in learning more about the best ways to find and see birds, and track what you see, check out these guides:

Birding for Beginners (US National Park Service)
How to bird, where to bird. “Birding is a low-cost hobby that you can take with you anywhere in the world. There are only three things you need to get started: bird guide; binoculars; [and a] positive attitude”!
How to Start Birding (Audubon)
How to get into birding, including potential gear and locations, from the National Audubon Society.
Building Skills: The 4 Keys to Bird Identification (Cornell)
A blogpost from Cornell Lab's All About Birds to help new birders learn how to identify birds based on 4 key factors.

Where to Go

You can do some great birdwatching from your own window or backyard with a bird feeder. Once you have your feeder(s) set up, consider participating in these citizen-science research projects.

The Best Window Bird Feeders (D. Bergeson, July 2020, Seabird Sanctuary)
A 2020 list of good bird feeders that use suction cups to adhere to glass. You can use one anywhere you have a window! All you need is some birdseed.
November - April: Project FeederWatch (Cornell/Birds Canada)
Project FeederWatch is a winter-long survey running from mid-November through early April to track birds that visit feeders in backyards and other places. Each tracking period lasts for two consecutive days. Get a feeder, fill it, and track the birds that come. Even if you only track for one two-day period, that's still really valuable data!
February: Great Backyard Bird Count (Cornell/Audubon/Birds Canada)
The Great Backyard Bird Count takes place over four days in February. Participants spend at least 15 minutes a day anywhere they want watching for birds and keeping a list of every bird.
You will need a Cornell Lab account to track the birds through the Merlin Bird ID app, the eBird Mobile app, or the eBird web page.

Diagram of Winter Geographic Areas for Watch List Species, Partners in Flight

(page 23 of the 2016 Landbird Conservation Plan)

ABA Birding Trails (USA/Canada)
Birding trails throughout the US and Canada, from the American Birding Association.
HawkCount (HMANA)
A map of hawk watches through the US and Canada from the Hawk Migration Association of North America.

Birdwatching Apps (iOS/Android)

There are many bird apps out there; here are a few from reputable organizations.

Accessible Birdwatching

Guides to birdwatching with a disability and where to find accessible birdwatching locations

The Birdability blog and related Audubon maps are by an American birder in a wheelchair, Virginia Rose, who's done a lot to promote and expand accessible birdwatching in the US.

Birdability
A blog by Virginia Rose, a birder in a wheelchair.
Birdability Maps (Audubon)
The National Audubon Society teamed up with Virginia Rose to create Birdability maps, showing accessible birding locations in the US.
Birding for All (UK)
A nonprofit in the UK that promotes "barrier free access to nature."
Watching birds | Advice For Disabled Birdwatchers (RSPB; UK)
Practical advice from the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (UK).

Inclusive Birding

Birding is for EVERYONE.

While there have always been birders of every ethnicity, amateur birding and ornithology communities are predominantly white, and birders who identify as Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) are sometimes subject to racist incidents. Such an event became national news in May 2020 when birdwatcher Christian Cooper was harassed by a racist white woman in Central Park. As a result, a number of Black birders came together to create the first #BlackBirdersWeek to call attention to the interest and expertise of BIPOC birders and nature lovers all over the US.

Big names in birding include Drew Lanham (Audubon posts, Birding While Black), Tykee James (Audubon posts, Wildlife Observer Network), Corina Newsome (@hood__naturalist), Day Scott (@thewildernessgoddess), Tyus Williams (@sciencewithtyus) and many others!

Learn more about #BlackBirdersWeek and the lack of diversity in birding:

Colorful World of Birding Has Conspicuous Lack of People of Color (M. Hamilton, National Geographic, Sept. 2014)
This 2014 article observes that “developing more diversity among birders will broaden support for measures needed to protect birds—plus the nesting grounds, woodlands, meadows, wetlands, and other habitats in which they thrive, and in which birders delight—while also helping to create more citizen scientists, which would be a boon for everyone.”
These Black Nature Lovers are Busting Stereotypes, One Cool Bird at a Time (AJ Willingham, CNN, June 2020)
The @BlackAFinSTEM group develops #BlackBirdersWeek.

Social Media

Organizations

Black Girls Trekkin'
An LA-based group meant to provide "a safe space for black women to explore the outdoors and connect with one another" but also open to "allies of every race, ethnicity, or gender who support our mission". @blackgirlstrekkin on IG
Diversity Joint Venture for Conservation Careers
DJV is "a partnership of federal and state agencies, universities, non-governmental organizations, foundations, and professional societies that work together to increase the number of women and people of color in the conservation workforce."
Green 2.0
Green 2.0 is a nonprofit "advocacy campaign to increase racial diversity among environmental organizations."
Greening Youth Foundation
"The Greening Youth Foundation’s (GYF) mission is to engage under-represented youth and young adults, while connecting them to the outdoors and careers in conservation."
Outdoor Afro
A nonprofit that "celebrates and inspires Black connections and leadership in nature". @outdoorafro on Twitter/IG.
Soul Trak Outdoors
Soul Trak Outdoors is a "D.C. based nonprofit that connects communities of color to outdoor spaces while also building a coalition of diverse outdoor leaders". @soultrakoutdoors on IG
We Got Next
"WeGotNext amplifies individual stories of adventure and activism from communities that have been underrepresented in outdoor and environmental spaces." Nonprofit. @wegotnextorg on IG

Birding Organizations

International

BirdLife International: Partner Organizations
BirdLife International is a partnership of non-governmental organizations across the world. Check here to find a partner birding organization in your region.

North America

American Birding Association
The American Birding Association is a nonprofit organization dedicated to recreational birdwatching.
Birds Canada
A Canadian birding organization with information on species.

Local (US):

Audubon Near You (Audubon)
The National Audubon Society's network of state and local Audubon chapters can provide you with a lot of local information about the birds that live where you do.

Birds in action 🦅

Audubon Puffin Loafing Ledge (Audubon and EXPLORE.org)

Audubon Bird Cams
All current bird cams from the National Audubon Society, including puffins, ospreys, terns, hummingbirds and more!
All About Birds Cams (Cornell)
The full list of bird cams from Cornell Lab's All About Birds, from petrels in Bermuda to California condors in CA.

Birds