Our BIRD: The Definitive Guide giveaway seems to be going swimmingly. Entries for the fourth stage of the giveaway are in and ready for your reading pleasure. Readers were challenged to write an original essay of at least 250 and no more than 750 words in praise of a single bird species. Six admirers of avifauna were so moved by their infatuation that they submitted spirited salutations of their chosen species. We’ll be publishing each one at noon over the next six days starting today. While enjoying each one, be sure to take notes because next week the polls will open and you’ll need to vote for your favorite. This particular giveaway is winner take all!

Fortunately, we still have one remaining copy of BIRD: The Definitive Visual Guide to give away. If you haven’t had the opportunity to spend quality time with this book yet, you don’t know what you’re missing. I think it would make the perfect gift for any birder and believe me, with holidays approaching like a bullet train, I’ve given the topic plenty of thought. How about you? Do you have original, innovative, or infallible ideas about what gift best suits a bird watcher? If so, you may be able to, pardon the phrase, kill two birds with one stone here. Send me one excellent suggestion for what you would buy for the birder you love (or like or are obligated by familial or social ties to purchase gifts for, etc.) by Friday, December 7. Corey, Charlie, and I will choose our favorite idea and award the last copy of BIRD to the author of that idea. We’ll also aggregate all the gift ideas in the hopes of assuaging everyone else’s last-minute giving needs.

BIRD: The Definitive Visual Guide

Participate in this promotion and everybody wins, but with hope, it will be you most of all!

Written by Mike
Mike is a leading authority in the field of standardized test preparation, but he's also a traveler who fully expects to see every bird in the world. Besides founding 10,000 Birds in 2003, Mike has also created a number of other entertaining but now extirpated nature blog resources, particularly the Nature Blog Network and I and the Bird.