We’ve featured a lot of amazing birds this calendar year, from our start with the emperor penguin way back in January to the most recent weekly bird, the northern cardinal. I’ve tried to visit every continent – lots of North American birds, of course, but also the galah and mistletoebird of Australia, the long-tailed tit of Europe, the boat-billed heron of Central and South America, the Asian barred-owlet of Asia, the violet-eared waxbill of Africa, and back to the emperor penguin of Antarctica.

We’ve featured a ton of bird families, from flamingos to woodpeckers to parrots, as well as raptors, vultures, rails, doves, cranes, warblers, ducks, hummingbirds, owls, and pheasants.

Our profiles have changed from basic information and overviews to more fun facts with extra photos, tips for adding the birds to your life list, and recommended resources for learning more about each bird. This has broadened our flock in new ways, allowing us to appreciate birds and discover why each one is unique.

Yet even with all this avian diversity, there’s still so much more to learn, and thousands more birds to explore. Each week I hope to bring you new and exciting birds from around the globe. Some you may already know and may even be very familiar with, but hopefully you will learn something new with the unique trivia we uncover. Some birds you may have heard of once or twice, and I hope you’ll welcome the opportunity to learn more about them or even consider adding them to your life list. And some you will never have heard of at all, and I hope you will enjoy discovering new and amazing birds around the world.

Thank you for being part of the Be Your Own Birder 2018 flock! As we look forward to a very birdy 2019, now is your chance to let me know what birds YOU want to learn more about in the coming year. Share your must-know birds in the comments, and you may see them fly onto our pages as weekly featured birds. Happy New Year, and happy birding to all!