Birding Magazine
Welcome! You’ve found all the online content for the March/April 2013 issue of Birding. We hope you enjoy your visit.
Photo: Young birder Mia Hartley shows us Bill Schmoker's photo of a rosy-finch, appearing on p. 37 of the March/April Birding. The caption says it's a Brown-capped Rosy-Finch, but it looks like a Gray-crowned Rosy-Finch. What's up with that? Join the discussion online.
This landing page is basically an electronic table of contents to all the online material in the March/April issue. Click on the links below, and off you go!
About the Cover. No question about it: The Pribilof Islands, in the middle of the Bering Sea, are iconic in North American birding lore. Read the article, pp. 44–51, or, better yet, join us on “the Pribs.” That’s right—we’re offering ABA members a special opportunity to bird the Pribilofs. Note that this tour can be combined with an unforgettable arctic expedition to search for migrating Ross’s Gulls past Barrow. (Some years hundreds are observed). Photo of Chris Benesh (front) and participants in a Field Guides, Inc., tour by © George L. Armistead.
Birding Together. ABA President Jeffrey A. Gordon, in his regular column in the print Birding (pp. 9–10), introduces and welcomes us to “The New ABA.” Gordon shares additional thoughts online, and solicits your input on recent and future developments with the ABA and the broader birding community. Photo by © Liz Gordon.
Your Letters. There’s no topic birders won’t touch! Letters to the editor in the March/April 2013 Birding delve into such matters as eBird, Evening Grosbeak speciation, the legacy of Chandler S. Robbins (b. 1918), and—wait for it—how to render the plural forms of Hawaiian bird names. Please join the discussion online. Photo by © Jacob Spendelow.
Sightings Online. Starting with the March/April 2013 issue, you’re getting a double dose of Amy Davis’s must-read “Sightings” column. That’s not quite right: You’re getting more than a double dose. Along with the print content (mid-January through mid-February 2013, pp. 22–25, 62), you’re getting expanded online coverage, with especially generous photo reproduction, of North American rarities from mid-February through mid-March 2013. Photo by © Dick Rowe.
Members-only content!
Another Checklist Shuffle. Paul Hess reports in “News and Notes” (pp. 26–28) on the possibility of a major reshuffling of the sequence in which shorebirds appear on our checklists. Do you “like” it when the AOU makes changes to our checklists? Join the discussion at The ABA Blog. Figure by © Kei Sochi.
Surprising Harriers. Everybody knows that adult male Northern Harriers are “gray ghosts,” pale gray with inky black tips. Except it turns out now that that’s not right! Read Jerry Liguori and Brian Sullivan’s article in the print Birding (pp. 30–35), and go online for further insights, discussions, and photos. Photo by © Alan Murphy.
Jackpot Birding! Please refer to “About the Cover,” above, for links to your Bering Sea and Arctic Ocean adventures with the ABA. Photo by © Doug Gochfeld.
Photo Quiz Answers. Test yourself! Before you read quizmaster Tom Johnson’s answers and analyses (pp. 52–55), go online to see just the photos. If you want a bit more help, view the comments posted just below each photo. Click here for Quiz Photo A, click here for Quiz Photo B, and click here for Quiz Photo C. Photos by © Tom Johnson.
Book Reviews. In a brief but important essay in the print version of the March/April issue (p. 60), Rick Wright celebrates the varied voices that breathe life into Birding magazine’s venerable and much admired Book Review column. Click on the photos of the reviewers, and read their diverse and thoughtful book reviews.
Donna Schulman
Jim Williams
Hannah Floyd
Troy Corman
New Photo Quiz. Stumped by the series of grainy photos on p. 64 of the print version of the March/April issue? Then be sure to view this 26-second video of the quiz bird. In the video, you can see behaviors that the still photos cannot show. Watch the video, and become a better birder!
Click here to order the entire March/April 2013 issue. Or better yet, join the ABA today, and get the March/April 2013 issue, plus all the other benefits of ABA membership.
View the Table of Contents of this issue here.
Birding Online—January/February 2013
Thanks for stopping by! We hope you enjoy all the online content in the January/February 2013 issue of Birding magazine.
Photo: Young birder Andrew Floyd delights in our coverage in this issue of the status and distribution in the ABA Area of the Lesser Black-backed Gull.
Here’s the lineup for the January/February 2013 issue:
About the Cover. Artist Andrew Guttenberg reflects on his childhood experiences with the 2013 ABA Bird of the Year, the Common Nighthawk (Chordeiles minor). And we invite you to do the same. Check out Andrew’s essay, and then share with us your own experiences with and impressions of the 2013 Bird of the Year.
Birding Together (by Jeffrey A. Gordon, p. 9). In a spirited and informative interview, ABA President Jeff Gordon (pictured here at right) and artist Andrew Guttenberg (left) discuss the genesis of the 2013 Bird of the Year art. Watch the 11-minute video, and feel free to follow up with questions for either Jeff or Andrew. Photo by © Liz Gordon.
Your Letters (by ABA members, pp. 12–18). Birding is a members’ magazine. You, the vibrant membership of the ABA, play a key role in determining the magazine’s content. Take a look at this brief overview of how we decide what to publish in the magazine, and please consider sharing with us—either in print or online—your own thoughts about content in Birding.
News and Notes (by Paul Hess, pp. 32–33). In a short news item (“Soft Songs are Potent,” p. 33), we learn about the surprising “soft song” of the Song Sparrow. But what does this soft song sound like? Listen to a few audio recordings, and find out. For more detail, read the complete online article—accompanied by additional sound recordings and sound spectrograms. The full online article, plus the complete array of recordings and spectrograms, are for members only. Join the ABA today, and get access to all members-only online content.
Click on the image to hear the “soft song” of the Song Sparrow.
Young Birders (by Chad Williams, pp. 48–53). This feature article, on the rise of “YBCs” (young birder clubs), has prompted extensive online commentary, much of it quite thoughtful. See what everybody is saying, and join in on the discussion, still ongoing. Other feature articles offer surprising insights about the status in the ABA Area of Lesser Black-backed Gulls (by Amar Ayyash, pp. 34–41) and Common Black-Hawks (by Charles J. Babbitt, pp. 42–47). Photo by © Chad Williams.
Photo Quiz Answers (by Tom Johnson, pp. 54–55). Challenge yourself! Before you read Tom Johnson’s analysis, see if you can figure out the birds on your own. Click here for a shorebird flock in flight (Quiz Photo A), and click here for a small flock of gulls loafing on a beach (Quiz Photo B). We’re delighted that so many folks have chimed in with their own analyses, and we hope you will, too. Photos by © Tom Johnson.
Book Reviews (commentary by Rick Wright, p. 60). You really owe it to yourself to read Rick Wright’s short yet revolutionary commentary in the print version of the magazine. Then see what Rick’s talking about. Our January/February 2013 book reviews start off with Steve Rooke’s detailed analysis of a major new field guide to the birds of Central Asia; next up is Eric Salzman’s charming review of two quirky books about extinct, er, “boids”; and we wrap up the January/February reviews with Rick’s own thoughts on an intriguing but problematic book on the role of birders in the amateur science ethic in the United States.
New Photo Quiz (p. 64). Quizmaster Tom Johnson’s answers will appear in the March/April 2013 Birding. But there’s no need to wait that long for all-out debate and discussion about these birds. Join the online conversation about each of the three quiz photos: Quiz Photo A (a flock of ducks); Quiz Photo B (a pointy-headed gray bird); and Quiz Photo C (a hawk in flight). Photos by © Tom Johnson.
Not an ABA member? But you’d like to get Birding magazine, plus access to members-only online content? Please join the ABA today—We’ll rush you a copy of the January/February 2013 issue, and we’ll set you up with a password for all your members-only online content. Click here to join, or call us at 800-850-2473.
Birding Online—November 2012 issue
In addition to all the print content in the November 2012 issue of Birding, we are pleased to bring you substantial additional online content. Here’s a guide—think of it as an electronic Table of Contents—to the extensive online material in the November 2012 issue.
About the Cover. Native to Africa, the Rosy-faced Lovebird has become solidly established in recent years in the Phoenix, Arizona, metro region. Photographer Cindy Marple introduces us to these bewitching birds, and shares with us some thoughts on how to study and appreciate them. Click here for Marple’s essay.
Hawaii. In “Birding Together” (p. 9), ABA President Jeffrey A. Gordon presents the results of a nonbinding referendum on expansion of the ABA Area. And, man, are they ever talking about it on The ABA Blog! Click here to see the results of the referendum (including figures not included in the print version of Gordon’s article), and join in on the discussion.
Your Letters. ABA members are thoughtful, opinionated, and fun. In the November Birding, members share their opinions on the ABA Code of Birding Ethics, expansion of the ABA Area, and other matters (pp. 10–16). Click here to see what everybody is saying, and please consider joining the conversation. We’d love to hear from you!
Nocturnal Flight Calls. You’ve read the interview (pp. 18–21), and you know that Andrew Farnsworth is one of the world’s foremost experts on nocturnal flight calls. But what do those mysterious flight calls sound like? And how do you recognize them? Click here for Andrew Farnsworth’s Expert Advice for Learning to Appreciate Flight Calls, exclusively for ABA members.
New Birds on the Checklist! In their annual report (pp. 28–33), Jon Dunn and members of the ABA Checklist Committee reveal the latest additions to the ABA Checklist. The committees’ actions have generated tremendous discussion among ABA members and friends. Click here to join the conversation, which is still ongoing.
Camp Colorado. Teen birder Rosemary Kramer tells the story of Camp Colorado–2013. Blood pressure alert: Kramer’s approach to birding is about as high-octane and caffeinated as it gets. And it comes through in Kramer’s writing! (Is she channeling her inner Jen Brumfeld?) Click here for Kramer’s recap—and stunning bird photography.
Bird of the Year. In his feature article (pp. 34–40), Evening Grosbeak expert Aaron Haiman tells us about the five distinct call types of the ABA 2013 Bird of the year. As a supplement to the print version of Haiman’s article, we provide ABA members with soundfiles and sound spectrograms of the different call types. Click here for this members-only exclusive.
Interactive Book Review! With the November 2012 issue, we begin a new era for book reviews in Birding magazine. All book reviews now appear online, in an interactive format. You can comment on the book (or the review). And if you like what you’re reading, you can buy the book. We’ve made it as easy as possible to buy each book, and your purchase benefits the ABA.
Click here to read Rick Wright’s review of Julie Zickefoose’s The Bluebird Effect.
Click here to read Rick Wright’s review of Robert Burton and John Croxall’s Field Guide to the Wildlife of South Georgia.
Click here to read Brian L. Sullivan’s review of Pete Dunne and coauthors’ Hawks in Flight, second edition.
New Photo Quiz. Well? What are they? Of course, you’ll have to wait until the January 2013 Birding to get the answers. But there’s no reason we can’t discuss the photos right now.
Click here for discussion and speculation about the main quiz photo (shorebirds, right) on p. 72.
Click here for discussion and speculation about the supplemental quiz photo (gulls, left) on p. 72.
Not an ABA member? But you’d like to get Birding magazine? Please join the ABA today, and we’ll rush you a copy of the November 2012 issue. Click here to join, or call 800-850-2473.