The Ultimate Bird Drawing Throwdown Showdown Graphic featuring images of David Sibley and H. Jon Benjamin

Join BirdNote tomorrow, November 30th!

Illustrator David Sibley and actor H. Jon Benjamin will face off in the bird illustration battle of the century during BirdNote's Year-end Celebration and Auction!

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Shows With Contributions by Mark Bramhill

Male Common Yellowthroat, showing its yellow breast and throat, and black "mask" across its eyes and cheeks

Games Make Bird ID Fun

When science educator Chidi Page began teaching her students how to identify birds, she wanted a way to engage kids and help them learn quickly. Unable to find one for sale, Chidi decided to make her own game. Similar to the game “Guess Who,” players ask questions about what the game’s…
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Group of pigeons standing close to each other, showing their grey bodies, whitish wings and iridescent green and purple head and neck feathers.

The Royal Pigeons

Despite their modern reputation, pigeons were once beloved by royalty. Akbar the Great, ruler of the Mughal Empire in the 16th Century, kept over 20,000 pigeons. Owning pigeons in parts of Europe was a privilege restricted to the nobility. Pigeon ownership became a flashpoint during the…
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American Goldfinch seen from its left side, sitting in sunlight

Spark Bird: Rosemary Mosco's Bird and Moon

Rosemary Mosco was drawn to birds as a shy child, because they rewarded patience. In college, she struggled to connect with her classes in anthropology. She began volunteering with a group in Toronto that tries to stop birds from hitting windows. At the same time, she created a cartoon…
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American Goldfinch seen from its left side, sitting in sunlight

Spark Bird: Rosemary Mosco's Bird and Moon

Rosemary Mosco was drawn to birds as a shy child, because they rewarded patience. In college, she struggled to connect with her classes in anthropology. She began volunteering with a group in Toronto that tries to stop birds from hitting windows. At the same time, she created a cartoon…
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American Crow calling, perched on branch against clear blue sky

Spark Bird: Kira Jane Buxton's Crow Rescue

Kira Jane Buxton wrote two novels about a foul-mouthed pet crow navigating the extinction of humanity. But her love for crows began just a few years before writing the books. She found an injured crow surrounded by 60 others calling out in alarm. Though Kira was nervous, she took the crow…
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American Crow calling, perched on branch against clear blue sky

Spark Bird: Kira Jane Buxton's Crow Rescue

Kira Jane Buxton wrote two novels about a foul-mouthed pet crow navigating the extinction of humanity. But her love for crows began just a few years before writing the books. She found an injured crow surrounded by 60 others calling out in alarm. Though Kira was nervous, she took the crow…
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Greater Adjutant Storks standing in their nest with young chicks at their feet

Filming Rare Storks in Their Nests

Photographer Gerrit Vyn traveled to northeastern India to document the daily life of the Greater Adjutant stork. These endangered birds nest high in trees on privately owned land in the state of Assam, where they’re known as Hargila. Conservation biologist Purnima Devi Barman helped Gerrit…
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Purnima Devi Barman seen in the middle of a group of women dancing, the "Hargila Army"

Saving the Hargila

Conservation biologist Purnima Devi Barman returned to Assam, India, where she grew up, to work with the highly endangered Greater Adjutant stork. The species nests in populated areas of Assam, where it’s known as Hargila. Because they’re scavengers, some see Hargila as unclean and remove…
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Blackburnian Warbler perched on leafy branch and showing its bright orange breast, and black-and-orange striped head and dark wings

Spark Bird: A Blackburnian Warbler’s Journey

Justine Bowe fell in love with birds when she was a kid, on a hike with her dad when she saw the fiery colors of a Blackburnian Warbler. Justine now manages the Bird Friendly Coffee program at the Smithsonian Institute's Migratory Bird Center, working with coffee farmers to preserve…
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Blackburnian Warbler perched on leafy branch and showing its bright orange breast, and black-and-orange striped head and dark wings

Spark Bird: A Blackburnian Warbler’s Journey

Justine Bowe fell in love with birds when she was a kid, on a hike with her dad when she saw the fiery colors of a Blackburnian Warbler. Justine now manages the Bird Friendly Coffee program at the Smithsonian Institute's Migratory Bird Center, working with coffee farmers to preserve…
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