Humans have long been captivated by migratory birds, awed by the animals’ biannual treks between their breeding and wintering grounds. A new digital platform, the Bird Migration Explorer, brings this natural phenomenon to your screen, enabling you to pore over the movements of individual species, discover the birds at a specific location, and learn about challenges these far-flying creatures face. 

Created by Audubon and nine founding partners, using science contributed by hundreds of researchers and institutions, the platform paints the most complete picture ever of the journeys of 458 avian species that breed in the United States and Canada. 

Users are met with a colorful map composed of routes of more than 9,300 birds captured by tracking devices and shared by scientists across the Western Hemisphere. The effect is astounding, says Melanie Smith, program director for the project: “You can see how birds trace the outlines of continents, rivers, lakes, mountain ridges.” 

Smith and her colleagues envision a broad audience utilizing the Bird Migration Explorer, from conservationists looking to identify and protect the places migratory birds need to members of the public curious about their seasonal neighborhood visitors. Available in English and Spanish, the platform makes it possible to delve into the fascinating world of migratory birds. Here’s some of what awaits you.