> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://hyperallergic.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # All of Audubon's 'Birds of America' in One High-Resolution Flock - URL: https://hyperallergic.com/all-of-audubons-birds-of-america-in-one-high-resolution-flock/ - Published: 2015-02-25T17:06:51.000Z - Updated: 2025-11-24T16:31:51.000Z - Description: This digital version of Birds of America draws you back into Audubon’s world while emphasizing the need for conservation today. - Author: Allison Meier - Tags: Art, Animals, john james audubon, #wp, #wp-post, #image-position-hidden, #Import 2025-11-24 07:08 (2014, 2015, part 2) ![John James Audubon, “Louisiana Heron” (Plate 217 from ‘The Birds of America’) (courtesy Audubon Society)](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2015/02/audubonbirds05.jpg) John James Audubon, “Louisiana Heron” (Plate 217 from ‘The Birds of America’) (courtesy Audubon Society) When the Audubon Society launched its redesigned website last month, it included gorgeous [high-resolution images](http://www.audubon.org/birds-of-america?ref=hyperallergic.com) of the 435 plates from John J. Audubon’s [*The Birds of America*](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The%5FBirds%5Fof%5FAmerica?ref=hyperallergic.com). Available for free download and online navigation into all their details, the images are accompanied by Audubon’s original text and link into a bird guide with details on the species’ current habitats and audio of their songs. Some, however, have gone extinct since Audubon worked from 1827 to 1838 on the life-sized watercolors. The Audubon Society’s digital library, designed by [Mule](http://new.muledesign.com/?ref=hyperallergic.com), has the option to arrange the birds alphabetically, chronologically, or by those that have vanished, such as the Carolina Parrot, where the last known member of its species [died in 1918](http://johnjames.audubon.org/last-carolina-parakeet?ref=hyperallergic.com) at the Cincinnati Zoo. The stunning illustration of a small flock of the birds on a tangle of branches is the subject of [one of Audubon’s personal asides](http://www.audubon.org/birds-of-america/carolina-parrot?ref=hyperallergic.com): “Doubtless, kind reader, you will say, while looking at the figures of Parakeets represented in the plate, that I spared not my labour. I never do, so anxious am I to promote your pleasure.” ![John James Audubon, “Carolina Parrot” (Plate 26 from ‘The Birds of America’) (courtesy Audubon Society)](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2015/02/audubonbirds01.jpg) John James Audubon, “Carolina Parrot” (Plate 26 from ‘The Birds of America’) (courtesy Audubon Society) Mostly, though, the text is a thorough documentation of the observed habitats of the feathery fauna, although even there Audubonhad a poetry to his words that revealed his awe for these birds. On the Louisiana Heron [he wrote](http://www.audubon.org/birds-of-america/louisiana-heron?ref=hyperallergic.com): “Delicate in form, beautiful in plumage, and graceful in its movements, I never see this interesting Heron, without calling it the Lady of the Water.” The digital version of *Birds of America* draws you back into Audubon’s world while emphasizing the need for conservation today. As you zoom into the images, a feature activated by a tiny pair of binoculars, it’s about as good as it gets for seeing the illustrations other than in person. As it happens, there’s a chance to do so next month at the New-York Historical Society when it opens [*Audubon’s Aviary: The Final Flight (Part III of The Complete Flock)*](http://www.nyhistory.org/exhibitions/audubons-aviary-final-flight-part-iii-complete-flock?ref=hyperallergic.com), the third part of the museum’s trilogy on Audubon’s preparatory watercolors. Until then, you can scroll through all the close details of the avians through the Audubon Society’s platform. ![Zooming in on the details of a watercolor in the Audubon Society's portal for 'Birds of America' (screenshot by the author for Hyperallergic)](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2015/02/audubonbirds7.jpg) Zooming in on the details of a watercolor in the Audubon Society’s portal for ‘Birds of America’ (screenshot by the author for Hyperallergic) ![John James Audubon, “Columbia Jay” (Plate 96 from ‘The Birds of America’) (courtesy Audubon Society)](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2015/02/audubonbirds02.jpg) John James Audubon, “Columbia Jay” (Plate 96 from ‘The Birds of America’) (courtesy Audubon Society) ![John James Audubon, “Barn Owl” (Plate 171 from ‘The Birds of America’) (courtesy Audubon Society)](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2015/02/audubonbirds04.jpg) John James Audubon, “Barn Owl” (Plate 171 from ‘The Birds of America’) (courtesy Audubon Society) ![John James Audubon, "Scarlet Ibis" (Plate 397 from 'The Birds of America') (courtesy Audubon Society)](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2015/02/audubonbirds06.jpg) John James Audubon, “Scarlet Ibis” (Plate 397 from ‘The Birds of America’) (courtesy Audubon Society) ![The Audubon Society's portal for 'Birds of America' (screenshot by the author for Hyperallergic)](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2015/02/audubonbirds8.jpg) The Audubon Society’s portal for ‘Birds of America’ (screenshot by the author for Hyperallergic) [*View all of the 435 prints from John James Audubon’s Birds of America*](http://www.audubon.org/birds-of-america?ref=hyperallergic.com) *on the newly redesigned Audubon Society website.* *h/t* [*Austin Kleon*](http://tumblr.austinkleon.com/post/109913667001?ref=hyperallergic.com)