The Biggest Week In American Birding

07/28/2026

Check out the latest "A Walk in the Park with..." podcast, a partnership series with WGTE Public Media and Metroparks Toledo. This adventure features urban birding in Toledo, and The Biggest Week gets some love.

/*-->*/ With urban birding front of mind, Erin heads to Middlegrounds Metropark to explore just how rewarding birding in downtown Toledo can be. There's sometimes no need to leave your own backyard to get the full experience, even when you are in a busy city center.

06/15/2026

Event Recap: An Evening with Acclaimed Actress and Author Lili Taylor

What a night. 🐦✨

We were absolutely captivated, as always, by the remarkable Lili Taylor — actress, author, and passionate birder — as she took us on a deeply moving journey through the heart of her beautiful book, Turning to Birds.

Lili's reflections sparked something profound: a reminder that the birds around us can be teachers, healers, and guides — if only we pause long enough to listen.
Black Swamp Bird Observatory Executive Director Kimberly Kaufman prepared the perfect list of interview questions, weaving a conversation that was equal parts intimate and expansive — exploring how birding invites us to slow down, breathe deeper, and rediscover wonder in the world just outside our doors - wherever that door may be!
The evening wrapped with a lively, laugh-filled Q&A and a book signing that had guests glowing long after they left. Nights like this are exactly why we do what we do. 💚

Get your copy of Lili’s book while supporting BSBO by visiting the Swamp Shop! https://swampshop.bsbo.org/product/turning-to-birds-the-power-and-beauty-of-noticing-by-lili-taylor/635?cp=true&sa=false&sbp=false&q=true

06/14/2026

Event Recap: Birdcast: Tracking Migration with Weather Radar ☁️🌙

Black Swamp Bird Observatory extends a HUGE thank you to Meteorologist Ross Ellet at 13abc, Toledo, and Dr. Adriaan Dokter from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology for a fantastic event!

Thank you to everyone who joined us for this incredible presentation on how weather impacts on bird migration, the BirdCast project, and how that information is being used locally in northwest Ohio. Attendees learned how radar technology, weather forecasting, and research are helping scientists better understand migration patterns and support bird conservation efforts. Thank you to Black Swamp Bird Observatory’s Banding Projects Director Ryan Jacob and Morning Flight Counter Gautam Apte for adding their insights on how this information is used for our Morning Flight Count and in the Navarre Marsh Banding Station.

📸 Images by Biggest Week Volunteer Photographer Kati Barricklow

06/13/2026

Birding is for everyone, and at Biggest Week, everyone has a place. This year, you helped make that clear.

Black Swamp Bird Observatory (BSBO) offers a heartfelt THANK YOU to our trip leaders and every participant who joined us for our BIPOC Birding Trip during The Biggest Week in American Birding. Watching this community show up for safe, inclusive, barrier-free birding is something we carry with us long after the warblers have moved on.

To our extraordinary guides: your expertise, and deep commitment to making every single participant feel safe, valued, and welcomed is nothing short of inspiring. You don't just lead birding trips — you create belonging. That is a gift.

At BSBO, we believe that access to the joy of birds and nature is a right, not a privilege. These trips are a living expression of that belief — and they only happen because of people like YOU. Whether you attended, volunteered, guided, or cheered us on from afar, you are part of making birding a safer, more equitable, inclusive, and joyful space for all.

06/12/2026

Event Recap: Birder Prom 🐦💃

Oh, what a night at the Birder Prom! Thank you to Birds & Blooms Magazine for sponsoring this memorable evening and to Bonner Black for kicking off the festivities with a fantastic live performance. Congratulations to William and Patricia (Pattye) Nicholls, our 2026 Birder Prom King and Queen! We also celebrated their 49th wedding anniversary that night! Pattye owns PattyeBakes Cookies and we encourage you to visit her page and learn more about her fabulous cookies. She generously donates many cookie proceeds to Black Swamp Bird Observatory's Ohio Young Birders Club! So give her page a Like/Follow!

Thank you to everyone who joined us for an evening of music, dancing, and birding fun.

A special thanks to volunteer A/V techs John Lowry and Norm Sohar for all the extra effort, to Next Level DJs for keeping the dance floor alive all night long, to River Bend Homestead for donating the gorgeous flowers for the centerpieces, and to Omar Smaidy, our fantastic prom photographer!

06/11/2026

Everyone is welcome in birding, and at Biggest Week, everyone is part of the flock. This year, you helped make that vision even stronger. 🐦🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️

Black Swamp Bird Observatory (BSBO) offers a heartfelt THANK YOU to our friends at Q***r Birders of Cincinnati, our trip leaders and every participant who joined us for our LGBTQ+ Birding Trip during The Biggest Week in American Birding. Watching this community show up for safe, inclusive, barrier-free birding is something we carry with us long after the warblers have moved on.

To our extraordinary guides: your expertise and commitment to making every single participant feel safe, valued, and welcomed is nothing short of inspiring. You don't just lead birding trips — you create belonging. That is a gift.

At BSBO, we believe that access to the joy of birds and nature is a right, not a privilege. These trips are a living expression of that belief — and they only happen because of people like YOU. Whether you attended, volunteered, guided, or cheered us on from afar, you are part of making birding a safer, more equitable, inclusive, and joyful space for all.

We can't wait to do it again next year!

06/10/2026

📸 A huge THANK YOU to our Volunteer Photographers!

Black Swamp Bird Observatory would like to extend a huge thank you to Rick & Kati Barricklow, Jennifer Gunderson, and Omar Smaidy for their incredible contributions of time and talent as volunteer photographers during the 2026 Biggest Week In American Birding. Their dedication and passion for capturing amazing festival memories and the beauty of spring migration brought the festival to life through their lenses.

Their work is featured in our 2026 photo gallery, where you can relive the magic of the event. https://www.biggestweekinamericanbirding.com/2026-photo-gallery.html

06/09/2026

Birding belongs to everyone, and at Biggest Week, everyone belongs. This year, you helped prove it. 🐦❤️

Black Swamp Bird Observatory (BSBO) offers a heartfelt THANK YOU to our friends at Birdability, our trip leaders and every participant who joined us for our Accessible Birding Trips during The Biggest Week in American Birding. Watching this community show up for safe, inclusive, barrier-free birding is something we carry with us long after the warblers have moved on.

Although she couldn't be here with us this year (she was keynoting the Indiana Dunes Birding Festival, another outstanding event!), we'd also like to give a MAJOR shout-out to Freya McGregor at Access Birding. Freya's guidance and consulting work have had a significant impact on Biggest Week and all of our work at Black Swamp Bird Observatory. Her incredible work in this space has changed birding throughout the entire country in the best possible way.

To our extraordinary guides: your expertise, and deep commitment to making every single participant feel safe, valued, and welcomed is nothing short of inspiring. You don't just lead birding trips — you create belonging. That is a gift.

At BSBO, we believe that access to the joy of birds and nature is a right, not a privilege. These trips are a living expression of that belief — and they only happen because of people like YOU. Whether you attended, volunteered, guided, or cheered us on from afar, you are part of making birding a safer, more equitable, inclusive, and joyful space for all.

We can't wait to do it again next year!

06/08/2026

If you weren’t able to join us for this year’s Biggest Week, you can STILL be a part of all the joy with your own Official Biggest Week and Black Swamp Apparel - now available in the BSBO Online Swamp Shop! All proceeds benefit the mission of Black Swamp Bird Observatory ! 🛍️

We’re especially thrilled with this year's featured Biggest Week t-shirt designed by Killian Sullivan, a 14-year-old student member of BSBO’s Ohio Young Birders Club (OYBC)! (When we say that the OYBC empowers young birders, we aren’t kidding!)

Thanks for your enthusiasm and support for this year’s designs! As we rebuild inventory, orders may take a little longer than usual to ship, but we can’t wait to get this year’s apparel to you.
https://swampshop.bsbo.org/shop/apparel/2?page=1&limit=30&sort_by=category_order&sort_order=asc&location_id=7HS3EBJGCRZ09

06/06/2026

Thank you to all of our partners, sponsors, and vendors for another fantastic year at Optics Alley! A special thank you to Land Sea & Sky for another year of excellent Optics Alley coordination. We’re so grateful to everyone who had products for sale, shopped, or simply visited Optics Alley during the Biggest Week this year!

Thank you to Land Sea & Sky for being the official optics dealer and The Pixel Connection for being the official camera dealer of the Biggest Week in American Birding.

📸 Images by Biggest Week Volunteer Photographers Jennifer Gunderson and Kati Barricklow.

💬 Did you discover a new favorite tool? Make a big upgrade? Tell us what you loved most about Optics Alley in the comments!