Discover Audubon Magazine
Audubon magazine delivers essential news, advice, and reporting on birds and bird conservation, pairing compelling journalism with stunning photography and design. Each quarterly issue helps readers grow their appreciation of birds and learn how to help them thrive. Audubon also emphasizes, through stories and visuals, the importance of a diverse and inclusive science and conservation effort to help meet the challenges facing both birds and people today. To receive our award-winning print publication, become a member of the National Audubon Society. Our editorial team also reports and publishes stories on Audubon.org daily, including science and conservation news, birding tips, photo galleries, and interactive reader experiences.
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Highlighted Features
News
How the War in Ukraine Takes a Devastating Toll on Nature
As the collateral damage to the nation’s environment and wildlife mounts, conservationists, scientists, and birders do what they can to continue their work and help each other.
News
Meet the Fire Starters Restoring One of North America’s Greatest Forests
In the Southeast, the fates of longleaf pines and Red-cockaded Woodpeckers are inextricably tied. To save both, we must remember how to embrace fire.
News
Social Dilemma: What’s at Stake When We Propel Wild Birds to Stardom?
Manhattan Bird Alert, a New York-based social media account, has fueled the rise of celebrity birds while attracting droves of new birders. But like many a story of unchecked fame, the phenomenon is also a cautionary tale.
News
The Flight of the Spoonbills Holds Lessons for a Changing Everglades—and World
As sea-level rise transforms South Florida’s fringe of wetlands into open ocean, Roseate Spoonbills are moving north. Land managers are following their lead, restoring the ecosystem with an eye for resilience, too.
News
Travel in the Time of Climate Crisis
As climate-related disasters ramp up, how can travelers minimize the harms and maximize the benefits they bring to recovering destinations?
Recent Stories
From Audubon Magazine
As Stands of Whitebark Pine Disappear, Could the Clark's Nutcracker Soon Follow?
November 18, 2023 — An intrepid researcher faces steep odds as she attempts to study nutcrackers in the Cascade Mountains. But the birds—and the singular trees they help sustain—are too important for her not to persist.
From the Magazine
The Bone-eating Bearded Vulture Is Reclaiming Europe’s Skies
November 17, 2023 — Once widely persecuted, the majestic scavenger is making a remarkable rebound in Europe, but new threats could undermine a full recovery.
From Audubon Magazine
A Force of Conservation, the Endangered Species Act Faces a Fraught Future
November 17, 2023 — Fifty years after its passage, the powerful policy has proven effective at preventing wildlife from going extinct. Only with innovation and advocacy can it continue to do so for decades to come.
Investigations
News
The Internet Has a Rat Poison Problem
How online sales of highly regulated, super-toxic rodenticides exploit gaps in the law and imperil wildlife.
From Audubon Magazine
A New Plastic Wave Is Coming to Our Shores
A glut of natural gas has led to a U.S. production surge in tiny plastic pellets, called nurdles, that are washing up on coasts by the millions.
News
This Brutal Pesticide Creates a 'Circle of Death.' So Why Is It Making a Comeback?
Carbofuran, a century-old chemical, is increasingly being weaponized against birds and other wildlife, decimating entire food webs.
Profiles
From Audubon Magazine
Best-Selling Author Jeff VanderMeer Finds That Nature Is Stranger Than Fiction
The novelist attained fame with gripping works of eco-fiction. How hard could it be to rewild his own backyard?
News
Seventy Never Looked So Good: The Long, Wondrous Life of Wisdom the Albatross
The Laysan Albatross is the oldest known wild bird on the planet, an international icon, and still hatching eggs. This year she had her 39th chick.
News
How an Acclaimed Composer Found His Musical Voice Through Birdsong
Decades after a songbird's whirling melody set him on a new artistic path, John Luther Adams is more determined than ever to help us hear the planet's power and wild beauty—and fight to protect it.
Audubon Magazine
Explore Our Archives
Find new and old issues of Audubon magazine from the past decade.
Essays
From Audubon Magazine
How Migrating Snow Geese Helped Stretch My Perspective
The seasonal movements of birds have captivated humans for millennia. Now we know enough about their flights to make surprising connections.
Bird-Friendly Communities
When a Battle Against an Invasive Weed Feels Like a Battle for Your Spirit
I was feeling discouraged in life, when I began volunteering at a local park. That’s when the project’s leader, Eleanor Osgood, changed my outlook.
COVID-19
What a Songbird Lost at Sea Taught Me About Survival
Aboard a mission to explore the alien life of the deep ocean, a chance encounter with a migratory bird offered a point of connection—one that has felt poignant this past year.
COVID-19
In Quarantine, I Finally Understood the Magic of Birds
It took a pandemic for me to see what my mother had been trying to show me my whole life.
Culture
Remembering Toni Morrison, the Bird Whisperer
A year after Morrison’s passing, a journalist and birder reflects on how her time with the cherished author changed her relationship with birds—and with herself.
COVID-19
Sheltering in Place in Manhattan—With 18 American Chestnut Saplings
Disease and logging nearly wiped out the towering trees in the early 20th century. Now the pandemic endangers a one-man operation trying to help the species endure.
The 2022 Audubon Photography Awards: Top 100
Take a scroll through these spectacular, artistic, and playful avian images, while reading the story behind each.
Dispatches
From Audubon Magazine
Seeking Auwo: Inside the Search to Find a Secretive Tropical Bird Lost to Science
Last fall, an international team arrived on a small Papua New Guinea island to look for the elusive Black-naped Pheasant Pigeon. To track it down, they needed help from the experts: the island’s Indigenous hunters.
News
The Cerrado, the World’s Most Biodiverse Tropical Savannah, Is in Peril
A young bird expert is among the scientists racing to document Brazil's ancient and understudied biome—while simultaneously raising the alarm about what’s being lost.
From Audubon Magazine
It Takes a Helicopter Parent to Rescue a Rare Seabird from Extinction
Raising the world’s entire population of Bermuda Petrels, or Cahows, requires undivided attention—and a relentless drive to see them succeed.
From Audubon Magazine
The Grand Dream of an International Park With Mexico Meets a Complicated Reality
Much has changed since F.D.R. called for a great transboundary conservation area spanning the Rio Grande, but the vision lives on. Is it an idea whose time has come—or come and gone?
Dispatch
Can the Ivory-Billed Woodpecker Be Found in Cuba?
A birder, ornithologist, writer, and photographer set off on an extreme adventure through the muck and memories of eastern Cuba.
News
Can These Seabirds Adapt Fast Enough to Survive a Melting Arctic?
On a remote Alaskan sandbar, under the watchful eye of a devoted scientist for more than four decades, climate change is forcing a colony of seabirds into a real-time race: evolve or go extinct.
Climate
The Audubon Guide to Climate Action
Feeling like you can’t make a difference? That couldn’t be further from the truth. Our award-winning guide shows you where to begin and how to amplify your efforts to make lasting change in the world.
Birding
News
Don’t Sleep on the Other Sandhill Season
Spring may squeeze more birds into a single area, but autumn offers a cornucopia of crane-viewing options.
News
This Wave Theory of Spring Migration Will Prepare You for Your Next Birding Outing
Songbirds don’t leave their wintering grounds all together. Here’s when to expect different species as they cross the eastern United States.
News
Appreciate These Magnificent Avian Nests—and the Next One You Find in the Field
Birds build an amazing variety of nest types, and each construction is a work of art.
Binocular Guide
The Audubon Guide to Buying Binoculars
Seeking your first set of bins, or just looking for an upgrade? Our guide features excellent options for every budget.
Photo Essays
Photography
Fall In Love With the Ancient Dance of the Sharp-tailed Grouse
Beguiled by the birds’ courtship ritual, wildlife photographer Noppadol Paothong makes a difficult journey to document their glory so that others can appreciate it.
News
The Intimate Relationship Between Pinyon Jays and Piñon Pines Is Unraveling
Drought, beetle infestations, and warming temperatures have pushed both species into a snowballing decline. Scientists are working to revive them.
From Audubon Magazine
Portrait of a Forest on the Climate Edge
In Minnesota, a boreal forest ecosystem could shift north over the Canada border this century. Local photographers, scientists, and land managers are grappling with what that means—and how to respond.
Photography
Windows Into Another World: Take a Tour of Bird Blinds Across the Country
What compels birders to hunker down in dark, often cramped structures? An intimate view of avian lives. But as with birds, every blind has its own character—and story.
The Future of North American Birds
Audubon’s new climate report warns of massive avian losses if we don’t change course and stabilize global carbon emissions.
Birding Culture
News
Why You Should Scale Up Your Birding By Looking for Reptiles
Lower your binoculars and expand your next trip by seeking out snakes, lizards, and amphibians. Here are some expert tips to get you started.
News
Some of Music’s Biggest Names Create a Trove of New Tunes to Help Birds
The man behind your favorite film soundtracks wants to build a joyful movement around bird conservation. On ‘For the Birds: The Birdsong Project,’ he’s enlisted musical legends and silver-screen icons to help.
Culture
A Ludicrously Deep Dive Into the Birds of Spelling Bee, Wordle, Scrabble, and More
It’s only a game. It’s only a game.
Books
Books
‘Flight Paths’ Unfurls the Wondrous History of Migration Science
A new book details how amateur birders and bird-loving scientists pieced together the true story of avian migration.
Books
A New Book Explores Our Disdain for Pests
Journalist Bethany Brookshire argues that the idea of a “pest” is more about humans’ view of unwanted animals than the critters themselves.
Books
Master Falconer Rodney Stotts Extols the 'Healing Power of Wildlife'
Stotts' new memoir details his unlikely journey to the ancient art. Now, his dream is to inspire more people like him to discover a love for raptors.
Books
Ziggy Marley Is Here to Teach Kids About ‘Vulture Culture’
A new children’s book by the musician and his wife, Orly, aims to educate youth on the threats the birds face and the vital ecological role they play.
Books
This New Field Guide Aims to Change Your Mind About Pigeons
Cartoonist and author Rosemary Mosco shines a witty and compassionate spotlight on what she calls "the world's most misunderstood bird."
Books
5 New Climate Books to Empower Teens and Help Turn Anxiety into Action
Climate change is happening—and it's scary. But these nonfiction reads prove people all over can come together for a brighter future.
The Aviary
Where Birds Inspire Art, Awe, and Action
In this series we ask artists to explore the intersection of birds and art as a catalyst for shifting perspectives and perceptions.
The Audubon Bird Guide
Black-crested Titmouse
Latin:
Baeolophus atricristatus
Northern Wheatear
Latin:
Oenanthe oenanthe
Willow Flycatcher
Latin:
Empidonax traillii
Audubon's Shearwater
Latin:
Puffinus lherminieri
