About
About Birdfolio
Birdfolio (mybirdfolio.com) turns a birder's own sightings into a hardcover book of every species they've seen, each beside a classic painting by Fuertes, Audubon, Gould and others (or a credited photo), with the date and place first seen. Books cost $79 to $129 with US shipping included. Birdfolio is independent and not affiliated with eBird or the Cornell Lab.
Orders open November 1, 2026, for US addresses only.
It started on a porch.
My mother has been a birder for thirty years. Not only on big trips or in famous places, but mostly right at home: sitting on the porch, watching the birds come to eat and listening to them sing. For her it has always been a kind of therapy. The world slows down. Everything else can wait.
Every birder knows those moments. The first song of spring, heard long before you find the singer. An old friend back at the feeder after a long winter. The day a bird you have never seen lands right in front of you, and you hold your breath so it won’t fly away. Years later, you still remember exactly where you were standing.
That is what a life list really is. Not a column of names, but years of mornings, seasons and small, quiet joys.
I wanted to give her something she could hold: every bird she has ever seen, each beside a beautiful classic painting, with the day and the place she first saw it. A book to open on the porch, and one day to pass on.
That is how Birdfolio began. The very first copy is hers.
If someone you love has spent their life looking up, I hope you’ll make one for them. Or for yourself. You’ve earned it.
— Jan, founder
Facts at a glance
| What it is | A hardcover book of every bird species on your life list, made from your own records. |
|---|---|
| Size | 8.5 × 11 inches, hardcover. |
| Sizes and prices | Standard $79 (up to 300 species) · Complete $99 (up to 1,000 species) · Grand $129 (over 1,000 species). US shipping included. |
| Express shipping | $30 more. |
| Ships to | US addresses only, for now. |
| Orders open | November 1, 2026. |
| Delivery | Ships within 7 business days of your order (12 for orders placed Nov 16 to Dec 31). Standard shipping usually arrives in about 2–3 weeks from the order (about 3–4 weeks in November and December); Express in about 1–1.5 weeks (2–3 weeks in November and December). |
| Files it reads | Your eBird “Download My Data” file (MyEBirdData.csv, as the .zip or the .csv), an iNaturalist observations export, or a typed list. |
| Pictures | About 7 in 10 birds are classic paintings; the rest are credited wildlife photos. No AI-generated birds. Your own photos are free to add. |
| Returns and reprints | Every book is personalized, so there are no change-of-mind returns. A damaged or defective book is reprinted free: send a photo within 7 days of delivery. |
| Gift cards | $79, $99 or $129, emailed right away. They never expire. |
| Account | None needed, to try it or to order. |
| Independence | Independent. Not affiliated with eBird, the Cornell Lab of Ornithology or iNaturalist. |
How it works
- Bring your list. Download your sightings from eBird (the file is called MyEBirdData.csv) or iNaturalist (your observations export), or paste a simple list with one bird per line.
- See it as a book, free. You see your species count, your first bird and your milestones, then a preview of your pages.
- We print and ship it. Your hardcover is printed and bound to order by our production partner, Lulu, and shipped to your door in the US.
What’s in the book
- A plate for every species: Each bird sits beside a classic plate by the great bird painters: Louis Agassiz Fuertes, John James Audubon, John Gould and others.
- The day you first saw it: The date and place of every first sighting, taken from your own records.
- Your milestones: Your first bird, your 100th, 250th, 500th and beyond, each marked in the book.
- Your birding in numbers: Best day, year-by-year growth, the families you know best.
- A map of where you've birded: The states and countries on your list. Place names only, never your exact spots.
- An index: Every species by common and scientific name, so the book works as a reference too.
- Nothing lost: records that aren’t a full species (a “gull sp.”, a hybrid) go on an “Also recorded” page, and a notes page explains names changed by recent splits and lumps.
- A dedication, if you like: a name on the cover and up to 60 words near the front. Handy for a gift.
Prices and shipping
| Book | For life lists of | Price, US shipping included |
|---|---|---|
| Standard | up to 300 species | $79 |
| Complete | up to 1,000 species | $99 |
| Grand | over 1,000 species | $129 |
- Express shipping: $30 more.
- A second copy of the same book, in the same parcel: $49 (Standard), $69 (Complete) or $79 (Grand).
- Gift cards: $79, $99 or $129, one per book size. They’re emailed right away and never expire. The birder adds their own list when they’re ready.
- No launch discounts, and no “was” prices.
- You see the total, and your delivery dates, before you pay. Details: Shipping and Returns.
Your list
How we handle your list: Is my data safe?
Where the pictures come from
- Paintings, about 7 in 10 birds. Classic plates from books published between the 1750s and the 1920s. The scans come from libraries such as the University of Pittsburgh, the New York Public Library, the Biodiversity Heritage Library and Smithsonian Libraries. Meet the painters.
- Photos, where no painting exists. Wildlife photos shared under open licenses such as CC0 or CC BY, or by US government agencies, always with the photographer’s name.
- No picture yet? Your preview tells you before you order. You choose: we find a real picture (your book ships about 5 business days later), a simple outline marked “Outline” in the book, or your own photo.
- No AI-generated birds, in the books or anywhere else.
- Every picture is credited on the Picture Credits pages at the back of your book: the artist and the source book, or the photographer and license. Site credits: Credits and Licenses.
- Bird names follow AviList, the global checklist of the world’s birds (v2025b, CC BY 4.0), credited in every book.
Who it’s for, and who it isn’t for
It’s for birders who keep a list, in eBird, iNaturalist or a notebook, and would like it as a book to keep; and for anyone giving a gift to a birder. You don’t need to know their list: a gift card lets them add it themselves.
It isn’t for someone who loves writing their list by hand (a journal or our free printable life list suits them better), a list that changes every week (a book is a snapshot of your list on the day you make it), or addresses outside the US, for now. Other countries will follow.
More on the choices: how to print your bird life list.
Not affiliated
Birdfolio is independent and not affiliated with eBird, the Cornell Lab of Ornithology or iNaturalist. We simply read the files those services let people download.
Our name
Our website is mybirdfolio.com. We're not connected with birdfolio.com, an earlier bird-sightings website project, or with the @birdfolio account on X.
The company
Birdfolio is a small, independent business, run by its founder.
Contact: hello@mybirdfolio.com
For writers and clubs
You’re welcome to quote the first paragraph of this page word for word: it’s our standard description.
Facts checked .