Key facts
- Ornithological artist Keith Hansen is creating 1,000 hand-painted bird illustrations for the Flock app.
- Flock aims to use technology to encourage users to spend more time outdoors birdwatching and engaging with nature.
- The app was developed by Adam Donkin, a former Amazon Kindle designer, and Bob Stevenson, a veteran video game producer.
- Flock features social networking and gamified elements to foster a community of conservationists.
- The app's design intentionally avoids addictive patterns common in other applications.
In Bolinas, California, ornithological artist Keith Hansen is meticulously hand-painting watercolors of approximately 1,000 bird species from the US and Canada. These illustrations are destined for Flock, a new app co-created by Hansen's friends Adam Donkin and Bob Stevenson, both veterans of the tech and video game industries. Unlike most applications that aim to capture user attention, Flock's mission is to draw people outdoors into the world of birding, fostering a community of conservationists. Hansen, who has been illustrating birds since his senior year of high school, is completing his task, having already finished 420 of the planned 1,000 species. His work will form the visual core of the Flock app. Donkin, a former lead product designer at Amazon, and Stevenson, an experienced art director for video games, share a deep passion for birds. Donkin began birding at age four, while Stevenson rediscovered nature in his late 40s, recognizing the parallels between birding and multi-player gaming, such as skill mastery, collecting, and community engagement. The idea for Flock was partly inspired by a conversation with the Fresno Audubon Society, which expressed concern about attracting younger generations to birding, a pursuit critical for conservation. To avoid the addictive design conventions of many apps, Donkin and Stevenson decided to self-fund Flock, aiming to create a companion for the birding experience rather than a time-sink. The app features a minimalist interface with sections for searching birds, recording sightings (potentially with AI assistance from apps like Merlin), a leaderboard based on monthly species counts, and a community tab for sharing photos and congratulating other users. Instead of a 'like' button, Flock uses a 'cheer' system to encourage interaction.