Birders from the United States, Canada, and worldwide contribute eBird reports that list the birds they see. Along with their bird lists, many birders attach photographs that illustrate one or more of the birds they encountered. These photos are filed in the Macaulay Library at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, and to date more than 30,000 birders have contributed images through their eBird checklists. In fact, birders have contributed more than 82 million photographs to the Macaulay Library archive, and among these images are some very impressive photos indeed.
Each year the staff of the Cornell Lab's Living Bird magazine develop an article that features the best of the best photos taken by eBird contributors, often presented within a theme shared by a number of photographs. Some are artful, some are humorous, some informative, and many are inspiring. Published in the Winter 2026 issue of Living Bird magazine, a selection of outstanding photos from 37 birders are exemplary illustrations that were contributed as part of their eBird reports. While we share a couple examples here, you can refer to the Living Bird article to see many more photographs that were taken while birding near home and during travels at Macaulay Library's Best Bird Photos 2026 | All About Birds