Birding resources
Guides for birders who keep their own records.
Straight answers on life lists, journals, sightings and identification — written by birders, updated as we learn more.
Getting Started
What is a lifer in birding?
A lifer is a bird species you're seeing for the first time. Here's where the term comes from, how birders count lifers and why the moment matters.
3 min read
How to start birding
What you need to start birdwatching, where to go, how to look, and how to begin keeping track of the birds you see.
6 min read
Life Lists
What is a bird life list?
A bird life list is a personal record of every bird species you have seen or heard in the wild. Here's what counts, how to start one and what to record.
5 min read
Bird Journaling
How to keep a birding journal
What to write in a birding journal, how often to write, and how to keep one you'll actually return to years later.
6 min read
How to record bird sightings
What to record when you see a bird, how to keep your sightings accurate, and how a consistent record becomes a life list, map and journal.
5 min read
What to look for in a birding journal app
The features that actually matter in a birding journal app — records that last, photos kept with sightings, private locations and an export you own.
5 min read
Bird Identification
How to identify a bird
A practical process for identifying birds by shape, behaviour, habitat and sound — and how photo identification fits in.
7 min read
Birding Technology
Choosing a birding app: what each type is good at
Birding apps fall into a few distinct categories. Here's what identification apps, observation databases, community apps and journals each do well.
6 min read
eBird vs Merlin: what each one is for
eBird and Merlin are built by the same organisation for different jobs. Here's what each does, and where a personal birding journal fits alongside them.
5 min read
Bird guide
Species guides
Curated, original write-ups of birds worth knowing well.