Marin Plank wasn’t interested in birds herself, but she did give her husband a camera-equipped bird feeder for his birthday. By Christmas, Mrs. Plank was obsessed with birds. Most of her Christmas gifts—books, stickers, notecards—were bird-themed. 

“This is who I am now,” she says.

And she isn’t alone. The number of birdwatchers has increased. Smart bird feeders help hobbyists. They snap photos and video of backyard visitors. 

Now friends stop Mrs. Plank on the street to discuss the bird photos she shares on social media. She tells them about the best birdseed blend. A store delivers giant bags of it to her Delaware home.

It all started when she got her first photo from the Bird Buddy app. The app provides photos and video clips that users can download or share.

“You’ve just got to click, and then the bird is in your face looking at you and mugging for you. And it’s like your own little private show,” she says. “Something about their little eyes and their goofy little faces just drew me in, and now I’m a bird enthusiast.”

Bird Buddy has sold 350,000 smart bird feeders since 2022. Several other companies also make camera bird feeders. Bird Buddy is adding more products too. A tiny flower-shaped camera is called Petal. Customers can put together Wonder Blocks to make habitats for butterflies and other insects.

In Ipswich, Massachusetts, Judy Ashley added a Bird Buddy to the 11 bird feeders she already had. “What’s amazing is how close you can see the details of backyard birds that you just wouldn’t see if you just stood there for hours with binoculars,” she says.

In Delaware, birds keep coming to Mrs. Plank’s feeder. A red-winged blackbird. A tufted titmouse. Blue jays. When one arrives, she gets an alert on her phone. She says, “It’s just like a little spark of joy.”

Look at the birds of the air: They neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. — Matthew 6:26