The Birding Gear You Need (If You're a Time Traveler)
The Birding Gear You Need (If You're a Time Traveler)

Over 125 years, 'Ô¼ÅÚÊÓƵ' has featured myriad products to help generations of avian aficionados better know and support birds. We brought gear from every era together for a photo session.

Remember that Ô¼ÅÚÊÓƵ depends on your support to do the conservation work that we do.
Take It or Leave It: Which Birding Practices Stand the Test of Time?
July 20, 2024 — Early issues of ‘Bird-Lore’ and ‘ԼÅÚÊÓƵ’ magazine brimmed with tips and tidbits for the bird enthusiast. Some aged better than others, as the matrix below shows.
Covers of Bird Lore and Ô¼ÅÚÊÓƵ collaged in an aesthetically pleasing manner.
A Sense of Purpose
July 19, 2024 — The ideas that have energized this magazine for more than a century still animate its pages.
A painting of the Black-crowned Night Heron, surrounded by greens and blues with collaged buildings.
The Black-crowned Night-Heron’s Unlikely Refuge
July 16, 2024 — Artist Lauren Levato Coyne’s painted collage is a pointed commentary on how vulnerable the endangered bird is to habitat destruction.
A colorful male Painted Bunting perched on a leafy vine.
See the Special Molting Locations of Three Migrating Bird Species
July 16, 2024 — Called molt-migrants, some birds take a detour on their annual trip south just to refresh their plumage.
Ring-billed Gull in flight in a blue sky.
Why (and How) to Look for Molting Birds This Summer
July 15, 2024 — Bolster your birding skills by observing this vital yet underappreciated phenomenon.
A large painting of a Northern Goshawk on the side of a brick building.
Bring the Ô¼ÅÚÊÓƵ Mural Project to Your Town
July 15, 2024 — For the past decade, the initiative has used public art to showcase birds threatened by climate change. Now, communities are putting their own local spin on the effort—and yours could be next.
An Osprey perches on a bare branch against a blue sky background, looking to the left with its yellow eye.
Birders, Consider a Bridge Camera
July 15, 2024 — A field biologist explains how a superzoom camera can enhance your birding experience without weighing it down.
A Canada Goose stands on a beach stretching its wings out, exposing blue sheaths from which feathers will grow.
Who Wore It Worst? Behold the Awkward Glory of Molting
July 11, 2024 — Replacing feathers can leave birds looking rough—but there's much to appreciate in their unsightly season.
The 2024 Ô¼ÅÚÊÓƵ Photography Awards: Winners and Honorable Mentions
June 20, 2024 — Mating, fighting, dive-bombing for food: This year's prize-winning images and videos are packed with avian action—now, in even more categories.
Black and white image of three distant Whooping Cranes in a field.
These Historic Photos Show the Groundbreaking Campaign to Save the Last Whooping Cranes
May 22, 2024 — Seventy years after Ô¼ÅÚÊÓƵ ornithologist Robert Porter Allen’s efforts led to the discovery of the cranes’ mysterious nesting grounds, we unearthed images of his trailblazing conservation work.
Person with binoculars on ladder leading to rooftop with clouds in the background (left). Wooden chick shelter that reads "Ô¼ÅÚÊÓƵ" in green paint (right).
Coastal Birds Are Ditching the Beach to Nest on Rooftops
May 22, 2024 — Each summer, conservationists around the country protect birds that nest atop buildings as development and sea-level rise erase natural beach habitat. But is this a long-term solution?
Collage of words and photos of wind turbines, corn kernels, a flock of birds, a moth, and a comic, cut out in shapes of birds.
5 Themes That Defined Ô¼ÅÚÊÓƵ's Conservation Coverage, Then and Now
May 22, 2024 — These topics have shaped our magazine’s reporting for decades—and will remain prominent in our pages for years to come.
Brown goo coats several sticks with leaves and other debris trapped in it.
Poaching Birds Is Big Money for the Mafia in Cyprus—but a Brave Few Are Fighting Back
May 22, 2024 — The beautiful, politically complicated Mediterranean island continues to play an outsize role in Europe’s songbird-poaching problem. Despite numerous dangers and even threats against their lives, a group of dedicated conservationists are trying to turn things around.
A vast forest stretches out to a pale blue horizon. In and amidst the trees are a few dozen Wood Storks.
Building Momentum
May 22, 2024 — Across the hemisphere, our conservation successes grow under our Flight Plan.
Illustration of a shorebird standing on a rock in water in front of a low sun.
One Team's Mission to Recover the Indigenous Names of Ontario’s Birds
May 21, 2024 — In the Anishinaabemowin language, bird names are embedded with traditional knowledge. An ongoing project is trying to document as many as possible before they are lost.
A few copies of the Alameda Sun sit on a mostly empty newspaper rack.
The Local Journalism Crisis Is Bad News for the Planet
May 21, 2024 — Newspapers across the country are dying off at a rapid pace—a loss that carries real risks for their communities and the environment.
A wind turbine with one black blade in a field against a bright blue sky.
A Surprisingly Simple Solution to Protect Birds From Wind Turbines Gets its Biggest Test Yet
May 21, 2024 — Painting one turbine blade black has shown promise for preventing collisions. Now researchers are seeing if it can work in Wyoming.
A wall made of logs and branches divides a forest scene. On the left, one person stands in thick growth. On the right, two people stand in a more open area.
Surging Deer Populations Are a Crisis for Eastern Forests
May 21, 2024 — Important habitats for many bird species ‘are in imminent danger of collapse,’ one expert warns, and the federal government may need to step in.
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