Artist Paints 1,000 Birds for App That Wants You Outside

Keith Hansen carefully adds cobalt blue touches to his watercolor of a painted bunting, then slides it into a binder already holding 419 other bird illustrations. He's painting all 1,000 bird species found in the US and Canada, one brushstroke at a time.

The renowned ornithological artist's hand-painted collection will complete an app called Flock. But unlike most apps fighting for screen time, Flock has a refreshingly different goal: getting users outside to discover the joy of birding.

The app was created by Hansen's friends Adam Donkin and Bob Stevenson, two tech veterans with impressive credentials. Donkin led design for Amazon's Kindle, while Stevenson spent decades as a director and producer for over 50 video games.

Their tech expertise serves an unusual purpose. Flock cleverly borrows elements from gaming and social media, like skill progression, collecting lists, and community features, but redirects them toward nature instead of screens.

Stevenson discovered birding at 48 when Donkin visited his home overlooking Richardson Bay, a major bird habitat. "You've got to bird!" Donkin told him, handing over binoculars.

The experience transformed Stevenson. "Going back to nature at that age, you realize what you've been missing," he said.

That revelation sparked the idea for Flock. The pair recognized that birding naturally includes everything people love about games: learning curves, achievement tracking, friendly competition, and supportive communities.

But they also saw a bigger opportunity. A conversation with the Fresno Audubon Society revealed concerns about attracting younger generations to birding, which is critical for future conservation efforts.

The Ripple Effect

Flock addresses this challenge by meeting people where they are, on their phones, then guiding them into the natural world. The app makes birding accessible to beginners while building a community invested in protecting birds and their habitats.

Hansen fell in love with birds in sixth grade when his brother pointed out a cedar waxwing during a Maryland woods walk. He's been illustrating them since high school and settled in the coastal California town of Bolinas in 1986.

Now his lifelong passion combines with his friends' tech skills to create something rare: technology that celebrates the world beyond the screen. Each watercolor Hansen completes brings the app closer to helping a new generation discover what captivated him decades ago.