Discover 探花精选 Magazine

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

探花精选 delivers essential news, advice, and reporting on birds and bird conservation.

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 探花精选.org daily, including science and conservation news, birding tips, photo galleries, and interactive reader experiences. In print and digital, through stories and visuals, 探花精选 emphasizes the importance of a diverse and inclusive science and conservation effort to help meet the challenges facing both birds and people today.

To receive our award-winning print publication, become a member of the National 探花精选 Society.  For our full editorial statement, masthead, pitch guidelines, and pay rates, please visit here

Read the Entire Summer 2025 Issue
A plover chick peeks out from under its parent's feathers on a rocky beach.
Read the Entire Summer 2025 Issue

Inside: Using hi-tech trackers to spy on Mallards. A decades-long campaign helps Piping Plovers reach new heights. How smart feeders connect us to local birdlife鈥攁nd each other. The Native-led raptor center protecting sacred species and traditions. In Alaska, a push for more industry threatens irreplaceable habitats. You, too, can have a hummer summer. Read these stories and more.

Highlighted Feature Stories
North Carolina's Cape Fear River Is a 鈥楩orever Chemical鈥 Hotspot鈥擶hat Does That Mean for Its Birds and People?
North Carolina's Cape Fear River Is a 鈥楩orever Chemical鈥 Hotspot鈥擶hat 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鈥檚 even harder with wild animals.

Latest News and Articles
An owl sits on a tree branch in a dense, mossy forest.
Fire Is a Major Threat to California Spotted Owls鈥擟ould it Also Help Save Them?
July 15, 2024 — The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service could soon give the subspecies protection under the Endangered Species Act, and is calling for more beneficial fire to help the birds rebound.
A Canada Goose stands on a beach stretching its wings out, exposing blue sheaths from which feathers will grow.
Who Wore It Worst? Behold the Awkward Glory of Molting
July 11, 2024 — Replacing feathers can leave birds looking rough鈥攂ut there's much to appreciate in their unsightly season.
Thick tree branches covered with cascading moss overlap across the frame, a Limpkin standing in the center.
Zoom Out: Tips for Photographing Birds in their Landscapes
July 02, 2024 — Put down the telephoto lens, and you might just enhance your art.
Black and white portrait of Aldo Leopold sitting in front of a wood shack looking off to his left.
From the Archives: Aldo Leopold's 鈥楥onservation Esthetic'
June 26, 2024 — What is the value of outdoor recreation鈥攁nd how we do use it for the betterment of the environment and wildlife?
A Northern Flicker with bright orange feathers on the bottoms of its wings and tail perches on a thin branch with its wings open.
10 Fun Facts About the Northern Flicker
June 21, 2024 — Discover the quirks that make this weird woodpecker鈥攚hatever you want to call it鈥攕o distinctive.
Birders Flock to Great Salt Lake for Annual Birding Festival
June 20, 2024 — How birding festivals bring people together for birds and the habitats on which they depend
探花精选 Announces 2024 探花精选 Photography Awards Winners
June 20, 2024 — Premiere North American bird photography competition awards new Birds in Landscapes Prize.
The 2024 探花精选 Photography Awards: Winners and Honorable Mentions
June 20, 2024 — Mating, fighting, dive-bombing for food: This year's prize-winning images and videos are packed with avian action鈥攏ow, in even more categories.
Several people and a dog on the shore of a lake with bright green water.
States Are Eyeing Bird-Friendly Wetlands to Help Rid the Great Lakes of Toxic Algae聽
June 17, 2024 — A decade after Toledo鈥檚 water crisis, harmful blooms remain a stubborn reality. Swamps and marshes alone can鈥檛 fix the problem, but they have an important role to play, experts say.

Find a Read

探花精选 magazine publishes a variety of story types in print and online. Peruse鈥攁nd enjoy鈥攋ust a sampling of our work below. 

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鈥檚 first forensic ornithologist cracked cases, busted criminals, and changed the course of aviation鈥攎aking the skies safer for us all.

Essays
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鈥攐ne that has felt poignant this past year. 聽

Remembering Toni Morrison, the Bird Whisperer
Remembering Toni Morrison, the Bird Whisperer

A year after Morrison鈥檚 passing, a journalist and birder reflects on how her time with the cherished author changed her relationship with birds鈥攁nd with herself.

The 探花精选 Guide to Climate Action
The 探花精选 Guide to Climate Action

Feeling like you can鈥檛 make a difference? That couldn鈥檛 be further from the truth. Our award-winning guide shows you where to begin and how to 颅amplify your efforts to make lasting change in the world.

Dispatches

The 2024 探花精选 Photo Awards: Top 100

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

Hooded Merganser. Photo: Edwin Liu/探花精选 Photography Awards
Photo Essays
Birding Advice and News
Bird Books and Culture
A New Book Explores Our Disdain for Pests
A New Book Explores Our Disdain for Pests

Journalist Bethany Brookshire argues that the idea of a 鈥減est鈥 is more about humans鈥 view of unwanted animals than the critters themselves.

The 探花精选 Bird Guide
Thick-billed Murre
Auks, Murres, Puffins
! Priority Bird
Wilson's Plover
Plovers
Juniper Titmouse
Chickadees and Titmice
Rhinoceros Auklet
Auks, Murres, Puffins