Best Gifts for Birdwatchers 2020

Let’s face it, birders receive a fair share of questionable gifts. Come to think of it, where is that mug with a picture of a chickadee in snow boots? This short wish list, written by birders for non-birders, is a great place to turn when searching for something special. We think it's important to shop small this holiday season, so we’re including stuff we love from small businesses.

1. Apparel from Bird Collective

Of course our list starts close to home! Birders can do their thing in comfort and style with these eco-friendly and hand-screened items. Warbler tees, Birds of Prey sweatshirts, migrating bird bandanas...we’ve got you covered. Plus, we donate 20% of profits to bird conservation groups.

2. Birds and Beans Bird-Friendly Coffee

As it turns out, you can help conserve rainforest habitat by drinking coffee. Birds and Beans has a great selection and all of its coffee is organic, fair trade, and certified Smithsonian Shade Grown “Bird-Friendly.” 

3. Felt Birds by TreeHouse Crafts

We love Lisa Hess’s fiber art. She transforms 100% wool felt into realistic bird sculptures and patches using hand stitching and machine embroidery.

4. Wingspan from Stonemaier Games

This wildly-popular and beautifully-illustrated board game, designed by Elizabeth Hargrave with art by Natalia Rojas, Ana Maria Martinez Jaramillo, and Beth Sobel, is finally easy to get a hold of – it was on back-order for months after its 2019 release. It’s our go-to game with birding and non-birding friends alike. 

5. Nature’s Best Hope: A New Approach to Conservation that Starts in Your Yard, by Douglas Tallamy

In his second book, Tallamy, an author and University of Delaware professor of wildlife ecology, presents a plan for anyone with a garden to make a difference in conservation. No matter how small a plot of land is, it can become part of a native plant corridor, providing habitat to wildlife.

6. Birding Patch Club Pre-paid Subscription by Bird Collective

Let migration come to your birding friends and family! Sign them up and we’ll mail them a new embroidered bird patch each month. You can choose from pre-paid bundles of 3, 6, or 12 months. And 20% of profits go to bird conservation groups.

7. PinFeather Embroidery

Jackie Kozlowski’s hand-embroidered birds are beautifully detailed and capture the character of each species. Your best chance to get one of her pieces is to follow her on Instagram to see when she updates her Etsy shop. 

8. Greeting Cards from Tiny House Big Woods

Laurel Mundy’s shop has a great collection of illustrated bird greeting cards printed on 100% recycled card stock paper. Plus, a portion of proceeds goes to conservation groups.

9. Bird Suncatchers by Glass Art Stories

Ivan from Glass Art Stories makes colorful stained glass suncatchers by hand. They ship for free from Ukraine, so order early in time for Christmas.

10. Hats from Bird Collective

All of our hats are great for birding, and support bird conservation with every purchase. 

11. Swarovski EL 8.5 x 42 Binoculars

And for those whose gift-giving knobs dial up to 11, might we suggest some bins? Their jaw will drop while looking through the crystal clear precision optics...and yours may also when you spot the price tag (no magnification needed for that).