I and the Bird is Back!

The corner of the blogosphere inhabited by nature lovers circa 2005 was, like most frontiers, an unruly place full of empty spaces and opportunity. Birders online, despite our commonalities, had little sense of connection or community. But what we did have was our own blog carnival! The inaugural edition of I and the Bird featured sixteen bird bloggers from around the world, many of whom are still blogging today (right Sharon and Clare?!) I and the Bird ran uninterrupted every other Thursday until April 2011 with a total of 149 editions presenting the best writing of hundreds of nature bloggers around the world. But all good things must come to an end. As the web matured, the traditional blog carnival lost its relevance. So I put I and the Bird on hiatus, unwilling to bring it back until we could find a better way to present superior bird blogging.

I think we’ve got it!

With a tremendous sense of optimism and excitement, I’d like to request contributions to the inaugural edition of the new I and the Bird.

Much has changed as we’ve jettisoned the old model. We’re not looking for recent links to random posts; we all get plenty of that on Facebook and Twitter. Instead, each edition of I and the Bird will be built with a purpose. We will announce a group, family, or genus of birds and elicit superior web writing and images on the designated topic. We will then curate and present your best contributions on a page that serves as a super hub on the topic. Anyone searching for information on that topic will find the I and the Bird edition with your links. No matter when you wrote your post or snapped your photo, your excellent, relevant content will draw a new, interested audience for months or years to come.

You can read the new rules of participation on the revised I and the Bird page. I also invite you to browse the brilliance of the web’s longest-running nature blog carnival on the I and the Bird Original Archive Page.

And without further ado, allow me to announce the topic of our first new edition of IATB: NUTHATCHES

Have you ever written anything exceptional about any of the world’s nuthatches? If so, please send your links and summaries to I and the Bird editor and bird blogger extraordinaire Nate Swick at naswick AT gmail DOT com. Content covering nuthatches outside North America are especially welcome.  The deadline is Tuesday, November 6 for the November 8 Nuthatch edition.

(Yes, I know that isn’t much time, but we can’t wait another week to get started. Remember that you can submit anything you’ve ever written. So check your archives and make sure you get more notice next time by subscribing to the new I and the Bird mailing list on the IATB page.)

Spread the news… I and the Bird is back and better than ever. We hope that you will be a part of it!