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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 Stories
The Power, Limits, and Evolving Uses of the Endangered Species Act
November 17, 2023 — Close to 1,700 animals and plants have been listed under the policy, each with its own rich, complex history. These nine case studies represent benchmark moments in the act's history.
Illustration of a prairie chicken walking on a farm with cows, a tractor, and an oil well in the background.
How to Fortify the Endangered Species Act for the Next 50 Years
November 17, 2023 — In the years ahead, flora, fauna, and the ecosystems they depend on will face many hazards, both old and new. These actions could strengthen the act’s ability to meet evolving challenges.
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.
A nuthatch standing on wood covered in suet dough holds a chunk in its beak.
This Addictive Homemade Suet Will Keep Your Birds Returning for More
November 17, 2023 — Give feathered visitors a dietary boost with Zick Dough, an energy-rich delicacy made by nature writer Julie Zickefoose.
A group of people sitting on lawn chairs and blankets in the grass, all looking in the same direction with binoculars and cameras.
A New Book From the Feminist Bird Club Offers a Fresh Framework for Birders
November 17, 2023 — Not your typical birding guide, the book explores how we can promote the well-being of birds alongside the people that care for them.
A whimsical, surreal oil painting of a towhee perched on a branch in a snowy, mountainous landscape with a bright blue sky filled with swirling clouds.
A Surreal Spin on An Abundant Sparrow
November 16, 2023 — In "Spotted Towhee" artist Phyllis Shafer depicts a widespread bird of the West in a rapidly changing landscape.
An Evening Grosbeak with a GPS tag on its back, held in someone's hand with a snowy forest behind it.
A Beloved Winter Finch Is In Decline—and Scientists Want to Know Why
November 15, 2023 — Feeder visits from Evening Grosbeaks are rarer than in the past, and a new initiative is trying to understand the root causes.
A group of male and female Wild Turkeys foraging close together.
Native Americans Domesticated Turkeys Long Before the Pilgrims Arrived
November 15, 2023 — Indigenous societies in the Americas valued the birds so highly that they tamed them at least twice, including in the U.S. Southwest. Turkey feathers still have abundant uses to tribes there today.
A kayaker paddles in a pristine lake, the clear water mirroring the forest on either side.
This New App Looks to the Birds to Bolster Southeast Alaska’s Economy
November 15, 2023 — A birding trail developed by Audubon Alaska and partners seeks to shift the region away from reliance on extractive industries.
A woman stands outside looking up at the trees overhead holding binoculars and a phone.
How Do Birds Respond to Extreme Wildfire Haze? Project Phoenix Aims to Find Out 
November 15, 2023 — Harnessing the power of community science can help birds as smoke pollution from blazes becomes more extreme.
Bird and Conservation News
More News
Silhouette of someone installing a pole in the ground next to a body of water and wind turbines. A second photo of someone holding a bird affixed with a gps tag.
Scientists Can Now Track the Roseate Tern's Migration—and Identify Dangers Along the Way
December 18, 2025 — The findings could help ensure the imperiled seabirds safer passage from the northeastern United States to roost sites in Brazil, where offshore wind development is ramping up.
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.
Collage of birds flying around binoculars pointed at a city and logging.
To Reverse Common Bird Declines, Conservationists Will Need to Think Bigger
December 17, 2025 — The most abundant birds are disappearing the fastest. Saving them requires bold, landscape-scale action.

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 Long, Exceptional Life of Frank Graham
A man sitting at a desk with a microscope looks up and smiles.
The Long, Exceptional Life of Frank Graham

As Audubon magazine’s Field Editor for 45 years, Frank Graham, Jr. brought the beauty and resilience of nature into focus—as well as the tenacity of those striving to save it.

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.

More 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
Arts and Culture
‘Feather Detective’ Roxie Laybourne’s Career in Six Objects
A metal instrument called a cloacascope on a black background.
‘Feather Detective’ Roxie Laybourne’s Career in Six Objects

From a gynandromorphic grosbeak to feathers collected at a murder investigation in Florida, biographer Chris Sweeney shares six unusual artifacts he found while researching his new book about the world’s first forensic ornithologist.

The Audubon Bird Guide
Redwing
Thrushes
Yellow Rail
Rails, Gallinules, Coots
Flesh-footed Shearwater
Shearwaters and Petrels
White-tipped Dove
Pigeons and Doves