The Maine Coast is rich with iconic locations. Some are known for their striking austere beauty. Others, for a unique geological feature. Still others, for their historical significance.

Birders, on the other hand, are drawn to places that harbor lots of birds. Usually, such places are not the famous spots that draw crowds.

But once in a while, the birding hotspot and iconic Maine Coast are one and the same.

Just 10 miles offshore from the Pemaquid Peninsula lies one these special places: Monhegan Island. A mile and a half long and just over a half-mile wide, the island is famous for its scenic beauty, deep history, and special features including its high, rocky headlands. In summer, hundreds of people swarm to this beautiful outpost to enjoy its charms.

Birds come here, too. During spring and fall migration, they can number in the thousands under certain weather conditions, with a hundred or more species found on a really good day. Those birds attract birders, from all over the country or even the world.  For many, a trip to Monhegan Island is almost like a birder’s version of a pilgrimage.

We have loved visiting Monhegan Island for more than four decades. We have countless Monhegan memories of amazing birds seen and wonderful times spent there with family and friends.

Now, thanks to author Brett Ewald, we can virtually visit the island at any time without a boat ride. We can just pick up his new book, “The Birds of Monhegan.”

Brett, who is director of the famous Cape May Bird Observatory in New Jersey, became enthralled with Monhegan after a short visit to the island with his wife in 2001. His fascination with the place never waned, leading to trip after trip, to the pulses of bird migration and culminating, after 15 years of work, in this newly published well-researched book.

Even for those only mildly interested in the birds of Monhegan, the book has chapters on the island’s history, habitats, and landmarks that will be of great interest. All are illustrated with carefully considered historic photos and gorgeous modern ones. One photograph shows a group of “amateur ornithologists” on the island in 1917! A collage of photos on another page shows brightly colored warblers hopping on the beach and rocks at the feet of the photographer during a May fallout. Another photo collage that we particularly enjoyed was of “lobster trap birds”—a variety of bird species hopping around in (one nesting in!) stacked lobster traps. It’s a common sight on Monhegan Island to see birds using the stacked traps as if they were a hedgerow—finding safety inside them from hawks and cats.

The bulk of the book features accounts of the incredible 336 species that had been documented on Monhegan Island as of Feburary 2023 (we’ve heard of at least one possible new species found this fall). Brett combed through every possible repository of bird records to make sure each status summary was complete.

He also included charming details that those who’ve birded the island will find especially memorable. Describing details of the first Maine record of Cassin’s vireo, found and photographed in September, 2017, he writes “Rediscovered the following day between Tribler Cottage and the Community Garden (behind the library).” If you’ve been to Monhegan, you probably know this exact spot. Even if you haven’t, it gives you a sense of the intimate terrain over which birders roam on this little island.

One final detail of the book that we find fun is that it is chock full of gorgeous photographs of birds, all taken on Monhegan. Check out the one of the bright orange monarch butterfly riding on the back of a mallard at the Ice Pond. Or the brown creeper hitching up the weathered clapboards of an island home.

As always, check first with your local bookseller. Also available through Amazon. Find out more about  “The Birds of Monhegan” at https://birdsofmonhegan.com/

Jeffrey V. Wells, Ph.D., is a Fellow of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and Vice President of Boreal Conservation for National Audubon. Dr. Wells is one of the nation's leading bird experts and conservation biologists. He is a coauthor of the seminal “Birds of Maine” book and author of the “Birder’s Conservation Handbook.” His grandfather, the late John Chase, was a columnist for the Boothbay Register for many years. Allison Childs Wells, formerly of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, is a senior director at the Natural Resources Council of Maine, a nonprofit membership organization working statewide to protect the nature of Maine. Both are widely published natural history writers and are the authors of the popular books, “Maine’s Favorite Birds” (Tilbury House) and “Birds of Aruba, Bonaire, and Curaçao: A Site and Field Guide,” (Cornell University Press).