Birds of Stanford

125 birds to look for on the main campus

Violet-green Swallow
one of numerous paintings by Carel Brest van Kempen

Information and Activities to Consider

2026
Paul R. Ehrlich, Bing Professor of Population Studies, emeritus, and professor of biology, emeritus
at Stanford University and a Science Art-Nature co-founder died March 13, 2026 at the age of 93.
For years he taught a course in bird biology, often with colleague and friend, Donald Kennedy,
and was senior author of The Birders’ Handbook, which forms the basis of this website. As a researcher
and activist, he gained national attention and won many awards, perhaps most notably the Royal
Swedish Academy of Sciences’ Crawfoord Prize, an annual award recognizing research in disciplines
not eligible for Nobel prizes. A great teacher, he was generous with his guidance, friendship, and
encouragement. In addition to his Stanford responsibilities including more than 1,000 lectures and
seminars, he wrote or co-wrote more than 1,000 papers on population studies, ecology, evolution and
environmentalism, appeared on TV and radio more than 1,000 times, and gave hundreds of public lectures.

2025
The State of the Birds Report: United States of America says: " There are 96 million birders
here, or37% of the adult population—according to the Birding in the United States: A Demographic
and Economic Analysis report, published by the US Fish and Wildlife Service in 2024."
The report lists birds at various levels of risk. Species seen on campus cited at risk include
Allen's hummingbird (red alert--birds with perilously low populations and steep declining trends),
rufous hummingbird (orange alert--birds with perilously low populations and steep declining trends),
and northern pintail (yellow alert--birds with perilously low populations and steep declining trends).

2023
Visit artist Todd McGrain’s large-scale bronze sculptures of five extinct bird species:
passenger pigeons, Labrador ducks, Carolina parakeets, great auks and heath hens,
which are part of his “Lost Birds” Project and will be on campus through February 2024.
For more information, see the Anderson Collection's coverage, which includes a larger map.


American kestrels are relatively common, but declining, with 2 million lost in North
America since the 1970s. Losses may be due to fewer insect and other prey, pesticides killing
rodent and insect prey and building up in kestrels, competition for nest cavities with invasive,
European starling, predation by Cooper's hawks, etc. See Spring 2023 article in Audubon.

This 8"x8" painting (acrylic on panel) is by local artist Floy Zittin.

 

Take a look at the Birds of Jasper Ridge Photo Gallery, a searchable data base of photos
by Peter and Diane Hart, who record JRBP's birds in their natural habitats. 


2022
The Cornell Lab's BirdCast provides county bird migration information. Click to see the
number of birds flying through Santa Clara County (CA) 

2020
Stanford University President emeritus Donald Kennedy, essential to development of the Birds of Stanford website,
died of COVID-19 in 2020. (See this retrospective by Gretchen Daily and Paul Ehrlich in Science.) He
played an essential role in establishing the hummingbird garden at Green Library, and in implementing the
Art at Exits project featuring bird art at the exits of eight buildings. He was staunch advocate for undergraduate
education, environmental science, and public service. In addition to his Stanford responsibilities, he served as
Commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration (1977–1979) and Editor-in-Chief of Science (2000-2008)
where he prioritized the intersection of science, especially environmental science, and public policy. (See below).

2018
GPs in Shetland (UK) can now prescribe "nature" for patients

2017
Study indicates watching birds near home is good for mental health