Wild Bird magazine ceases publication! (1 Viewer)

When I picked up my mail today, I got one of the few magazines that I eagerly look forward to: the September/October issue of Wild Bird. As I sorted through the rest of my mail, there was a post card from the publisher of Wild Bird saying that "due to increased printing and postal costs", they were ceasing publication immediately... with the issue I had in my hand!!

To say I am angry and annoyed is an understatement! Wild Bird is/was one of the few publications with good photography, well-written articles and worthwhile information.

The part of this that has me most riled is that the publisher, BowTie Inc. will continue to publish "Dog Fancy" and Cat Fancy"... I am sure that there have to be as many if not more birders than dog or cat fanciers... but then that's just my opinion.

I will now miss having a publication that catered strictly to wild birds, and hope that another publisher will step up to the plate, and resume where Wild Bird left off...

Chris

The editor of WildBird discussed this a little on Facebook. The reason she was given is the rising printing and postal costs. She asked about the possibility of doing a digital-only version, but the publisher just wasn't interested. That's really odd to me, as both of WildBird's main competitors - Bird Watcher's Digest and Birdwatching - both have digital versions.

Chris, if you haven't before, check out those other publications. If I had to put them on a scale, I would say that BWD falls more toward the backyard birder and Birdwatching more to the field birder. But that's just relative to each other - I enjoy both of them. Personally, I've subscribed to all 3 magazines for years now, and preferred these to WildBird. But I'm still sorry to see it go, and hope that it doesn't portend bad things for other bird publications.