IOANA SERITAN
Associate Editor, Birding magazine

Welcome to Birding Online! Here, all ABA members can access the extended online content from the October 2019 issue of Birding magazine. The complete issue, containing both print and online content, can be found at:

aba.org/birding-magazine-october-2019

October’s cover features…. a bird. But what kind of bird? This cover is also our Featured Photo for October. The title in the bottom left cover gives a nudge – “Identification of Juvenile Swallows.”

Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Utah. June 2019. Photo by © Mia McPherson.

Take a gander at the photograph, captured by Mia McPherson in Utah in June 2019. When you think you have an idea, chip in to the conversation on the ABA Blog (coming soon!). Then, read Mia McPherson’s analysis in the online issue.

On the topic of bird photography, this month’s Birding Interview is with another renowned photographer (and cinematographer, and sound recordist): Gerritt Vyn. He takes a moment out of his jam-packed travel schedule to speak with Noah Strycker about his work and goals. Click here to flip to the Interview.

As always, members get access to exclusive online content for “Frontiers in Ornithology.” Paul Hess calls our attention to recent research on the health of seabird populations – and how those population trends can predict larger issues at sea. Accompanying his text is a series of photographs of wild aquatic birds in care at International Bird Rescue. I actually work at International Bird Rescue as a wildlife rehabilitator, and it is so exciting to see two organizations that I care about collide for such an important cause. Click here to flip open to the members-only content, and hopefully learn something new!

The Feature articles for October 2019 are worth a mention, although they appear exactly the same in the online issue as they do in the physical issue. Click here to enjoy the first feature, Bianca Bujan’s story of her search for the Bermuda Petrel. Then, Derek J. Lovitch tells us the tale of Troppy, the unexpected but welcome Red-billed Tropicbird in Maine. Finally, Birding Editor Ted Floyd encourages us to keep our eyes open, even at truck stops.

Finally, members can enjoy the extended Book Reviews in our online issue and on the ABA Blog. Click here to flip straight to the first extended Book Review. First, Dominic Mitchell reviews the “Handbook of Western Palearctic Birds: Passerines” by Hadoram Shirihai and Lars Svensson. You can also click here to read the review on the ABA Blog (coming soon!). Second, Laura Kammermeier reviews Kenn Kaufman’s “A Season on the Wind: Inside the World of Spring Migration.” Click here for the ABA Blog (coming soon!). And last but not least, Lance Tanino reviews “Belonging on an Island: Birds, Extinction, and Evolution in Hawaii” by Daniel Lewis. Click here for the ABA Blog (coming soon!).

We hope you enjoy the October issue and its extended content. Click here to flip open to the Table of Contents, and find your favorite part!