I once lived in the very vicarage to which this 1875 mourning cover was addressed. More than a 150 years later, that chance connection inspired an investigation that combined genealogy, social history, and postal history. tinyurl.com/2w2y4ep8 #philately

I've just released a new History of #Ornithology article on my Substack, about a cover from William Chapman Hewitson, author of British Oology, to his good friend, the renowned ornithologist and taxidermist John Hancock. It's all about Oology! tinyurl.com/3ztbvmhb #philately

For two weeks in July 1948, Australian mail carried a humanitarian message: GIVE A DAY UNITED NATIONS APPEAL FOR CHILDREN. This postal slogan promoted UNICEF’s first global fundraising campaign to help children impacted by WWII. Full story here... tinyurl.com/48bx7md2 #philately

I'm going to add another post to the many already on Bluesky lamenting the passing of Bill Oddie. Like many, I grew up watching The Goodies while reading his wonderful birding books, over and over again! RIP 🦤 share.google/IUctRLRTFvel...

Bill Oddie, naturalist and broadcaster, dies aged 85

Coming to fame in The Goodies, Oddie was later known for his wildlife expertise and presented BBC Springwatch

share.google

Over on my Substack, I've released the second short history in my new series Slogan Shorts, in which I explore the social histories behind Australia's slogan cancels. #philately open.substack.com/pub/stampden...

Victory Cancelled

How a postal slogan crossed enemy lines and met German resistance

open.substack.com

📣 We are hiring a new Communications Specialist! This is a remote, flexible independent contractor role. We're seeking candidates with experience in science communication and familiarity with WordPress, social media tools, etc. Please share widely!

Job Opening: Communications Specialist (Contract)

Are you a science communicator interested in a flexible, remote, part-time role with an ornithological society? Read on!

wilsonsociety.org

1/3) This c.1949, philatelically-inspired cover from Niamey, Niger, addressed to Miss. Serle at 64 Strathearn Rd, Edinburgh, was likely sent by the Scottish doctor and ornithologist William Serle, who was listed at this address in 1950s editions of IBIS and the BOC Bulletin. #ornithology #philately

Launching History of Ornithology on Substack, where I will explore the development of #ornithology in North America between 1850 and 1950, through the lens of social #philately, in a series of monthly essays. To begin... a simple introduction. open.substack.com/pub/ornithol...

The Development of North American Ornithology, 1850–1950

Personalia in Ornithology

open.substack.com

Launching History of Ornithology on Substack, where I will explore the development of #ornithology in North America between 1850 and 1950, through the lens of social #philately, in a series of monthly essays. To begin... a simple introduction. open.substack.com/pub/ornithol...

The Development of North American Ornithology, 1850–1950

Personalia in Ornithology

open.substack.com

What can three old envelopes reveal? More than expected! Behind these covers lies a story of family, migration, ambition, and a woman who continually reinvented herself. Available at: tinyurl.com/dn2p6dw8 #philately

Three Covers: The Story of Lottie, Ingfrid, and the Prima Donna

How three envelopes revealed a story of migration, ambition, reinvention, and forgotten connections

tinyurl.com

1/3) The Cooper Ornithological Club (COC) was founded 133 years ago today, on 22 June 1893. One week later, this postal card was sent to William Otto Emerson (1856-1940), a founding member of the club, and of its forerunner, the California Ornithological Club. #ornithology #philately

1/3) #Ornithology and #philately collide with Danish ornithologist Peter Skovgaard. In 1920 he founded Dansk Ornithologisk Central (DOC) and the journal Danske Fugle, launching a bird-ringing scheme that eventually marked over 256,000 birds. He sent this 1943 DOC cover to his nephew Roland.

1/3) In 1852, a fifteen-year-old boy left Cornwall carrying a newly issued midshipman's ticket. His first voyage took place on the pioneering first official mail service between Britain and Australia by steamship. #philately #history #Australia

(1/3) It's May 10, so here's a 10 May 1905 cover sent by the natural history dealer Frank Haak Lattin to William H. Fisher at 1318 Bolton Street, Baltimore, Maryland. This was the stockbroker William Harmanus Fisher Sr., a pioneer Maryland ornithologist and bird photographer. #ornithology #philately

My essay this month looks at covers as traces of human thought. A 1938 Hong Kong cover forms a case study onto past lives. open.substack.com/pub/stampden... #philately #history

(1/3) This 3c postal stationery cover, postmarked Washington D.C., 21 May 1863, is addressed to Addison Emery Verrill at Harvard’s Museum of Comparative Zoology (MCZ). A Smithsonian Institution handstamp at top left marks it as a trace of MCZ efforts to build its collection. #ornithology #philately

(1/2) A 6 Dec 1926 cover from the Royal Australasian Ornithologists’ Union to Bradshaw Hall Swales (1875-1928), Honorary Assistant Curator of Birds at the U.S. National Museum. Swales became Honorary Custodian of birds’ eggs in 1918, advancing to his curatorial role in 1921. #ornithology #philately

In Nov 1883, Charles Aiken of Aiken's Free Museum in Colorado Springs, needed a taxidermist. In this podcast we explore his recruitment methods, the intersection between commerce & science, and how Aiken became a pioneer of #ornithology in Colorado. open.substack.com/pub/stampden... #philately

This article was based on my recent Display at Virtual Stampex 2026, which was just voted as joint Best Display. My humble thanks to everyone who voted! #philately

History of Ornithology@stampden.bsky.social · 4mo ago

Another philatelic article is now available on my Substack. Inbetween my monthly written articles, I release social #philately podcasts. open.substack.com/pub/stampden...

(1/3) In Dec 1926, this postcard travelled from Boston to the natural history dealers Angel & Cash in Providence, Rhode Island, signed by (or on behalf of) Edward Howe Forbush (1858-1929), Director of the Division of Ornithology at the Massachusetts Department of Agriculture. #ornithology #philately

Philadelphia, 1848. I can hear the courier asking the sender what the closest cross street is, and then asking around for Rev. Williams. Goes to the a point in the Substack essay by @stampden.bsky.social about context and postal history. Philadelphia population in 1848 being 120,000 residents

Another philatelic article is now available on my Substack. Inbetween my monthly written articles, I release social #philately podcasts. open.substack.com/pub/stampden...

(1/3) June 1897 cover sent to J. Parker Lewis, 723 Walnut St, Philadelphia, from natural history dealer Prof. Carl Braun of Bangor, Maine. The manuscript note on the front: “Re – Pine Grosbeaks" points to a very specific collecting transaction. #ornithology #philately

It's the 8 March, so let's celebrate this cover, sent 201 years ago today, to Rev. Bulwer, who discovered the petrel that still bears his name. #ornithology #philately

History of Ornithology@stampden.bsky.social · 2y ago

This March 1825 cover from London to Madeira is addressed to Rev. James Bulwer (1794–1879), an English antiquarian, artist, and naturalist. It was in the Spring of 1825, in Madeira, that Rev. Bulwer discovered a previously unknown species of Petrel. #ornithology #SocialPhilately

In case you weren't aware, my latest Substack article, From Description to Explanation: Why Social #Philately Matters, is now available. Link below.... open.substack.com/pub/stampden...

From Description to Explanation: Why Social Philately Matters

March 2026

open.substack.com

(1/3) Shown here: an 1884 Notice of Removal postal card bearing a handstamp for the "Bulletin of the Cooper Ornithological Club." The manuscript date “8/30/99” appears beside it. Not postally used, the card was likely used to test a new handstamp. #ornithology #philately

(1/3) When Frank Chapman published Color Key to North American Birds (1903), he insisted a bird be “in hand” to be identified. Field observations by amateurs carried little scientific weight; authority still rested with the gun and the specimen drawer. #ornithology #philately

Kotokunuma (古徳沼) in Naka City, Ibaraki, Japan, is one of the leading wintering site for migratory swans (mainly Whooper Swans) in the Kanto region. The pictured signboard shows the annual count since S41 (Showa 41 = 1966). The numbers since H29 (2017) have been steadily increasing. #ornithology

(1/3) Registered cover dated 13 February 1922, sent from Papeete, Tahiti, to Robert Cushman Murphy at the American Museum of Natural History, New York. The envelope bears no sender’s name but is clearly connected to the Whitney South Sea Expedition. #ornithology #philately