Gifts for Your Birding Friends

From new birdsong collections to smartphone apps, online learning, and a kit for beginning birders, here are 10 holiday gift suggestions for the bird and nature lover in your life. All these items are available from the nonprofit Cornell Lab of Ornithology at www.birds.cornell.edu/BirdGifts. Your purchases "pay it forward" by supporting the Cornell Lab's bird conservation efforts.
 
Cornell Lab 2015 Calendar
Spend a year with the birds! This new calendar features stunning photos with fascinating facts about each species. This colorful cast of characters is yours with a gift of $10 or more to the Lab. ($10) Donate now

Be a Better Birder Tutorials
Cornell Lab of Ornithology and eCornell
Part 1: Size and Shape; Part 2: Color and Pattern
These new online tutorials are designed to help beginning birders learn how to identify birds on their own time, at their own pace. They feature interactive exercises and engaging media. In Part 1, you’ll learn which parts of a bird will be most useful in making an ID and the basic groupings used to organize the many species of birds. In Part 2, learn how to locate bits of color on a bird for identification, instead of trying to memorize every color and pattern. Other topics in this section include the challenges posed by juvenile birds and molting birds, and how you can even be fooled by the lighting. $29 each; access provided for 6 months following registration. Purchase and register

Online Bird Behavior Course
Cornell Lab of Ornithology and eCornell
In five weeks it’s possible to learn enough about bird behavior to forever change the way you look at these complex and beautiful creatures. Gain new insight and enjoyment through our online interactive course, “Courtship and Rivalry in Birds.” The goal of the course is to help you learn how to observe and interpret bird behavior and communication. A basic principle of bird behavior as it relates to survival and reproduction is explored each week using multimedia and interactive activities, guided by an instructor. The course is offered multiple times during the year. $295 ($255 for Cornell Lab members). Online Bird Behavior Course 

Master Set Bundle
This year we're offering a special pairing of the Cornell Guide to Birds Sounds: Master Set for North America: Master Set and the unparalleled Birds of North American Online reference. This combo includes a one-year subscription to BNA Online, the most complete source of  information for the more than 700 species of birds that breed in Canada and the United States. Each species account includes the latest science as well as photos, sounds, and videos of interesting behaviors. The new, revised Master Set includes multiple examples of sounds for each of 737 bird species in more than 4,900 tracks. This version of the Master Set requires less storage space than the original. ($69.99; a 20%  savings over separate purchase of these items) Master Set Bundle

Essential Set Bundle
This package includes a six-month subscription to Birds of North America Online and the Cornell Guide to Birds Sounds:Essential Set for North America. The Essential Set provides the most common sounds of 729 bird species found in North America with 1,379 tracks. ($24.99; save more than 30% over purchase of these items separately) Essential Set Bundle
You can still purchase the sounds sets and BNA Online separately:
Cornell Guide to Bird Sounds: Master Set for North America
This comprehensive guide features nearly 5,000 soundtracks for 737 North American bird species. Download includes MP3 sound files and photographs ($49.99), or get files pre-loaded on a flash drive. ($64.99) Sound Sets

Cornell Guide to Bird Sounds: Essential Set for North America
This set includes the most common sounds for 729 species in downloadable MP3 files ($12.99) or on a pre-loaded flash drive. ($24.99) Sound Sets
The Birds of North America Online
This is the most comprehensive reference available for all of North America’s 716 species of breeding birds, updated with the most current scientific information and brought to life with photos, sounds, and video. Image and video galleries show plumages, behaviors, habitat, nests and eggs, and more. This is a gift of knowledge for anyone who loves to learn more about birds. A 30-day subscription is just $5; $42 for a full year.  Birds of North America Online

Project FeederWatch
You can now give FeederWatch as gift, introducing friends and family to this long-running citizen-science project. By submitting bird observations to the Lab, participants help contribute to scientific understanding of feeder birds and learn more about their backyard friends along the way. ($18) Project FeederWatch
BirdSleuth Game Cards
Hit the deck! This deck of 5" x 7" game cards from the Lab’s BirdSleuth K-12 program has full-color images of the 36 most common backyard birds, plus games and a bonus online quiz. With each purchase you also receive a finch sock feeder, two bird ID posters, and BirdSleuth Investigator, the program’s kid-friendly publication. ($14.95) Game cards

Bird Spy Bingo Cards
This is a great stocking stuffer from the Lab's BirdSleuth program! Each dry-erase card invites kids outside to look for birds. Spotting a group of birds, a colorful bird, a feather, or even bird poo can help you win bingo! Play while traveling, out for a walk, or just sitting in your backyard. Cards are available in English and Spanish. ($1.50) Bingo cards

Birds of Paradise: Revealing the World’s Most Extraordinary Birds
By Tim Laman & Edwin Scholes
National Geographic Books & Cornell Lab of Ornithology

Marvel at the stunning images and groundbreaking research that reveal, for the first time, all 39 species of the spectacular birds-of-paradise. Male birds have developed intricate dances, outrageous plumes, and decorative ornaments to woo as many mates as possible. It took 18 expeditions and 8 years for Cornell Lab of Ornithology biologist Ed Scholes and photojournalist Tim Laman to document all the species. Retail: Wild Birds Unlimited at Sapsucker Woods

BirdLog app
Birds-in-the-Hand LLC
The BirdLog data entry app for both iPhone and Android smartphones allows users to record bird observations as they make them and submit their data directly to the eBird online checklist program. BirdLog is available via the iTunes app store or at the Google Play app store for Android devices. A portion of the proceeds goes to fund research and conservation work at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

Cornell Lab Membership
When you become a member of the Cornell Lab you give back to the birds by supporting our mission of research, education, conservation, and citizen science. Benefits of membership include our award-winning Living Bird magazine and discounts on projects and courses, plus the latest birding news and discoveries in our monthly eNewsletter. Whether it’s a membership for yourself, your family, or a gift for a loved one, this is a meaningful way to support conservation and enhance the understanding and enjoyment of birds. Supporter level memberships begin at $44 per year. Lab Membership

Cornell Lab Bird Q&A: Your Birding Questions Answered App
This new app from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology makes learning more about birds fun. Find the answers to questions you have about birds and learn more about bird identification. This app is based on real questions asked of the experts at the Cornell Lab. Compatible with iPhone 3Gs, iPod Touch (3rd & 4th generation), and iPad. Search "Cornell Lab" in iTunes store to download.

The Bird Watching Answer Bookby Laura Erickson
Storey Publishing
Drawing from the tens of thousands of inquiries that pour into the Cornell Lab each year, author and bird expert Laura Erickson has compiled answers to more than 200 common and not-so-common bird questions. This handy pocket-sized book reads like a conversation with your friendly neighborhood "bird lady" and contains down-to-earth answers to questions about watching and feeding birds, bird behavior, and bird biology. Readers will find plenty of quirky stories and interesting facts tucked into every corner. Retail: Wild Birds Unlimited at Sapsucker Woods
BirdsEye & BirdsEye Lite bird-finding apps
Bird-in-the-Hand LLC
It’s like having thousands of local birding experts at your command. The BirdsEye app for iPhone® and iPod touch® harnesses the power of current data from the Cornell Lab’s eBird program to help users find the birds they want to see—showing where specific species have been reported and providing a map to get there. The app includes images and audio for the 470 most frequently observed birds in North America. Additional content is available for more elusive birds—for a total of 847 species. (BirdsEye Lite features 135 species.) Bird sounds come from the Cornell Lab’s Macaulay Library archive, images from the VIREO collection at the Academy of Natural Sciences. Acclaimed birder and author Kenn Kaufman wrote each species account describing habitat where each species is likely to be found. BirdsEye App

Birds and Beans Gift Set
Just in time for the holidays, get more than 25% off this special gift set. It contains a dozen 12-ounce bags of bird-friendly coffee, including Wood Thrush Breakfast Roast, American Redstart Light Roast, Scarlet Tanager French Roast, and more. Ground or whole bean available. Your purchase supports organic shade-grown coffee farms that shelter migratory birds. A portion of the proceeds supports Cornell Lab conservation efforts. ($115, includes shipping) Birds & Beans

Singing Plush BirdsWild Republic

The plush birds in this popular series make great collectibles for children and adults with new species introduced each year. Each bird contains authentic sounds from the Cornell Lab’s Macaulay Library and is created with colorful anatomical details. From the haunting wail of the Common Loon to the familiar call of the Black-capped Chickadee, these fuzzy friends make a bird in the hand informative and fun. Available from: Wild Birds Unlimited at Sapsucker Woods