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Where the latest news about birds and conservation takes flight.
On Florida's Marco Island, families of Burrowing Owls live among the locals. Photo: Karine Aigner
Winter 2025 Issue
A puffin scampers across the top of the water as it takes off with a fish in its beak.
Tufted Puffins Are Vanishing Across the Pacific Northwest—Can an Ambitious New Effort Save Them?
December 18, 2025 — Armed with enthusiasm, researchers and volunteers have joined forces to safeguard the flamboyant seabirds as climate change warms their ocean homes.
Two owl chicks sit in a nest as their much larger mother, with a rodent in her beak, comes in for a landing atop a broken tree snag.
Dead Trees Support a Bounty of Birdlife, but Preserving Them Isn’t Always Clear Cut
December 18, 2025 — By studying Great Gray Owls, scientists hope to help more people see that snags offer vital habitat.
Get to Know the Ancient Birds That Lived During the Age of Dinosaurs
December 18, 2025 — Tens of millions of years ago, a diverse array of bird species soared, swam, and thrived amid their scaly reptile cousins—and set the stage for modern birdlife.
Editors' Picks
Magazine
Essential reporting on birds and bird conservation delivered to your door.
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. 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. In print and digital, through stories and visuals, Audubon emphasizes the importance of a diverse and inclusive science and conservation effort to help meet the challenges facing both birds and people today.
Latest News and Articles
A charcoal drawing of a wood stork held up in front of a brick wall.
Putting the Quiet Dignity of the Wood Stork to Paper
December 17, 2025 — It may not be the prettiest bird, but Franna Lusson loves it all the same. Through an expressive mixed-media portrait, the artist aims to convey the wader’s deeper essence.
Colorful illustration of a person with binoculars walking outside seeing birds and data visualizations.
Beyond the Checklist: How to Explore, Experiment, and Have Fun With Your Birding Data
December 17, 2025 — Counting and identifying birds is just one option. Try a fresh approach to shake up your time outside.
A gull floating on water stares at the camera and tilts its head slightly.
Forget Valentine's Day—Celebrate Gullentine's Day Instead
December 17, 2025 — This Februrary, start a new tradition with some of North America’s most confounding birds. What could be more romantic?
A flock of Snow Buntings camouflaged in white plumage fly over a snowy field.
Farm Fields Hold a Wonderful Winter Secret: Visiting Arctic Songbirds
December 17, 2025 — Need a nudge to get outdoors when the mercury drops? Take inspiration from these hardy travelers and hit some backroads for a comfy birding adventure.
An Unexpected Baby Boom Is Bringing Snowy Owls South This Winter
December 16, 2025 — A nonprofit science group has discovered a great deal about the species over the past decade, but the irruption shows that Snowies still have the power to surprise.
A male and female mallard swim next to each other with their heads lowered.
Watch For These Early-Bird Mating Displays This Winter
December 16, 2025 — Not every species waits until spring to start wooing their partners.
Caroline Saunders sits at a table showing a platter of small bird-shaped cakes.
How to Be a Better Baker for the Planet
December 16, 2025 — It's not hard to whip up delicious, climate-friendly desserts at home. Try your hand with these tips—plus a recipe!
A backlit Winter Wren stands on a mossy log.
It's Winter. So Where Are the Winter Wrens?
December 15, 2025 — Found across much of these eastern U.S. during the winter, these tiny birds can be tough to spot—providing a fun challenge during the slower birding months.
A Common Grackle vocalizes with its beak wide open and wings outstretched, perching on a cattail.
10 Fun Facts About the Common Grackle
December 10, 2025 — Scrappy, adaptable, and cosmopolitan, this blackbird is a survivor worth celebrating.
A journal open to a painting of a landscape and a watercolor palette sitting on a lichen-covered rock.
How a ‘Mindful Birding’ Camp Helped Me Reconnect With Nature
November 03, 2025 — With watercolors and borrowed binoculars, a non-birding mother-and-daughter duo slow down and follow their curiosity on Audubon’s Hog Island.
Bird and Conservation News
More News
A puffin scampers across the top of the water as it takes off with a fish in its beak.
Tufted Puffins Are Vanishing Across the Pacific Northwest—Can an Ambitious New Effort Save Them?
December 18, 2025 — Armed with enthusiasm, researchers and volunteers have joined forces to safeguard the flamboyant seabirds as climate change warms their ocean homes.
Two owl chicks sit in a nest as their much larger mother, with a rodent in her beak, comes in for a landing atop a broken tree snag.
Dead Trees Support a Bounty of Birdlife, but Preserving Them Isn’t Always Clear Cut
December 18, 2025 — By studying Great Gray Owls, scientists hope to help more people see that snags offer vital habitat.
A Burrowing Owl stands on a concrete block outside a solar panel complex.
How Burrowing Owls Found a Home on an Arizona Solar Farm
December 18, 2025 — As development pushes these charismatic owls from their underground nesting sites, a solar project aims to show that habitat and renewable energy can coexist.

Find a Read

Audubon magazine publishes a variety of story types in print and online. Peruse—and enjoy—just a sampling of our work below. 

Highlighted Feature Stories
North Carolina's Cape Fear River Is a ‘Forever Chemical’ Hotspot—What Does That Mean for Its Birds and People?
North Carolina's Cape Fear River Is a ‘Forever Chemical’ Hotspot—What Does That Mean for Its Birds and People?

Amid mounting global health concerns about PFAS, communities living along the waterway must grapple with how contamination is affecting life on the river. Yet as hard as it is to conduct health studies on humans, it’s even harder with wild animals.

Investigations
A New Plastic Wave Is Coming to Our Shores
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.

Profiles
The Remarkable Life of Roxie Laybourne
The Remarkable Life of Roxie Laybourne

From deep within the Smithsonian, the world’s first forensic ornithologist cracked cases, busted criminals, and changed the course of aviation—making the skies safer for us all.

Essays
The Day We Didn’t Save the Starling
An illustration of a woman and young girl crouching down looking at something in a driveway next to a house.
The Day We Didn’t Save the Starling

In our rescue attempt, I thought I was giving my young daughters a lesson in compassion. It ended up being the reminder that I needed.

What a Songbird Lost at Sea Taught Me About Survival
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.  

Remembering Toni Morrison, the Bird Whisperer
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.

The Audubon Guide to Climate Action
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.

Dispatches
An Anna's Hummingbird perches on a twig in the center of the frame against a blurred background of blue, yellow, and green.

The 2025 Audubon Photo Awards: Top 100

Revel in the staggering beauty and surprising behaviors featured in this gallery of our favorite images.

Photo Essays
Portrait of a Forest on the Climate Edge
A bird's eye view of a winter scene of a forest with some green pine trees and bare aspen, paper birch, and red maple trees.
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.

Birding Advice and News
Bird Books and Culture
The Audubon Bird Guide
European Starling
Starlings and Mynas
Common Nighthawk
Nightjars
! Priority Bird
Brant
Ducks and Geese
Abert's Towhee
New World Sparrows