Audubon Magazine Magazine Issues

Summer 2026 Issue

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Ospreys in the Chesapeake Bay Are Starving to Death at Disastrous Rates. What Will It Take to Save Them?
June 25, 2026 — After a spectacular comeback from DDT, the Osprey population has plummeted within the watershed and is showing signs of trouble elsewhere. The birds’ fate may once more rest on collective action.
Conservation News
Are Crows Really Our Friends?
June 23, 2026 — An investigation into the state of corvid–human relations.
Bird Behavior
Two men kneel in a forest-like setting surrounded by dense tropical plants and trees, wearing dark clothing with colorful embroidered panels and bead necklaces and holding instruments made from natural materials.
Meet the Metalhead Turned Anthropologist Who Plays Ancient Instruments Inspired by Birds
June 17, 2026 — In concerts, YouTube videos, and books, Esteban Valdivia shares how musical artifacts can reveal long-lost knowledge of avian species.
Arts & Culture
Illustration of two people looking out at birds flying.
These 5 Research Projects Show How AI Is Revolutionizing Bird Conservation
June 24, 2026 — Scientists are using artificial intelligence to analyze troves of images and audio, gaining unprecedented insight into the lives of birds and how to more effectively protect them.
Bird Science
Left: A man's arm with a lesser yellowlegs tattoo places a decoy of the same bird on the ground. Right: A hand holds a lesser yellowlegs fitted with colorful leg bands.
Biologists Are Racing to Protect These Elusive Shorebirds. But First They Have to Catch Them
June 24, 2026 — Colombia’s rice fields may seem like an unusual place to seek out Lesser Yellowlegs, but these croplands could play an important role in safeguarding the dwindling species.
Photo Essay
Aerial of Lake Powell at its lowest level since 1964.
As Water-Sharing Negotiations Heat Up, Wildlife Habitats Along the Shrinking Colorado River Are at Risk
June 25, 2026 — Extremely low snowpack has raised the stakes for Western states debating how to cut back water use. A new agreement could offer a lifeline to ecosystems or leave them out to dry.
Conservation News
Lyzy Lusterman organizing books in her book store.
An Indie Bookstore for Birders Is a Dream Come True
June 23, 2026 — Buteo Books has sold titles for bird and nature lovers since 1971. Recently Lyzy Lusterman took a risk in opening its first brick-and-mortar location.
Arts & Culture
A group of people stand beneath a tree, looking up and pointing toward something high in its branches.
Audubon’s Climate Watch, Now a Decade Old, Has Tracked Shifts in Bird Ranges as Temperatures Rise
June 23, 2026 — Data from the community science initiative show how birds are adapting to a changing climate—and which species are falling behind.
Climate
A gray and yellow Kirtland's Warbler perches in a young pine tree, framed by the green branches.
Kirtland’s Warblers Are Declining Fast. Can We Turn Their Fate Around Again?
June 25, 2026 — In Michigan, conservationists are experimenting with new ways to manage forest habitats for this heralded comeback species.
Conservation News
A large open field, made up of brown, dormant wild grass.
In Alabama’s Black Belt, Scientists Are Banding Birds In Rare Patches of Prairie to Aid Restoration Efforts
June 25, 2026 — Most of the South’s historic prairie is lost. Alabama Audubon is researching how birds use what remains—and how to piece together more grassland habitat.
Conservation News
A Common Nighthawk flies overhead in front of a crescent moon.
The Common Nighthawk Is Your Gateway Bird to the Weird, Wonderful World of Nightjars
June 24, 2026 — Visible at dusk, the species is more readily seen than its more elusive nocturnal cousins, but all of these oddballs are worth the effort of seeing—or at least hearing—writes Kenn Kaufman.
Birding
A Sri Lanka Frogmouth, a bizarre-looking mottled brown bird with huge eyes, a wide beak, and tiny feet, perches on a lichen-covered branch.
These Not-Quite-Nightjars Might As Well Be Muppets
June 25, 2026 — Potoos, Oilbirds, Frogmouths! Feast your eyes on some of the world's most bizarre-looking nocturnal bird species.
Birding
A landscape of expansive prairie and distant lakes under a colorful purple sunrise.
Visit These Prairies for Grassland Birds and a Glimpse of the Past
June 17, 2026 — Although most of America’s historical prairies have been plowed under, these remnants are big enough to make you feel small.
Destinations
A Hummingbird Clearwing moth hovers at a yellow flower.
Love Birdwatching? Give Bugwatching a Go This Summer
June 23, 2026 — While birds take it easy during the hottest months, set your sights on smaller wonders: insects and other arthropods all around you.
Birding Advice
A green caterpillar on a leaf close-up in the foreground with a house on a suburban street in the background.
An Introduction to Insect Photography
June 23, 2026 — Many of the skills and tools of bird photography translate well to smaller subjects, but getting great pictures of insects and other arthropods can also require special considerations.
Photography Tips and How-Tos
A Monarch butterfly perched in a tree with a tiny gps tracker on its back.
Your Phone Can Already Detect Migrating Monarch Butterflies, but This App Lets You See Them
June 24, 2026 — Thanks to tiny new trackers and Bluetooth, scientists—and you—can now follow the epic journeys of individual butterflies.
Conservation News
A colorful, whimsical illustration of an adult goldfinch feeding its five chicks in a nest.
Check Out These Fresh New Books for Young Birders—and the Young at Heart
June 23, 2026 — From illustrated odes to underappreciated animals to a picture book inspired by a poetry icon, there is something here for all kinds of kids and the birders who love them.
Books
Deirdre's painting of a Golden-winged Warbler with a map in the background, displayed on an easel outside on a porch.
A Golden-winged Warbler Sounds the Alarm
June 25, 2026 — Artist Deirdre Murphy layers colorful maps and data under a strikingly lifelike portrait of a bold little songbird.
The Aviary
A Great Blue Heron wading in shallow water under a large tree.
The Birds of Our Lives
June 25, 2026 — Some species are inextricably linked to the places they inhabit. When we fail to spot them, we look for what is amiss.
Audubon View
Close up of the powerful talons of a banded Osprey.
Making Sense
June 25, 2026 — By creatively and closely observing birds, we can learn to see them in new ways.
Editor’s Note
Other Issues
Spring 2026
Inside the Movement to Grow More Native Seeds—and Why It Matters More Than Ever
Winter 2025
Tufted Puffins Are Vanishing Across the Pacific Northwest—Can an Ambitious New Effort Save Them?
Fall 2025
The Wild Turkey Is a Comeback Bird We Can’t Take for Granted
Summer 2025
After Four Decades, Efforts to Save Great Lakes Piping Plovers Are Seeing Signs of Major Success