Rosemary Mosco
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rosemarymosco.com
Rosemary Mosco
@rosemarymosco.com
80K followers 470 following 3.2K posts
Nature comics (Bird and Moon). Books about nature. Talks. Bird facts. rosemarymosco.com She/her.
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Animals with misleading names. I'm seeing this go around as part of a viral tumblr thread so I thought I'd reshare it.
A comic called Animals with Misleading Names. There's an electric eel labeled "not an eel". There's a mountain goat labeled "not a goat." There's a maned wolf labeled "not a wolf." There's a king cobra labeled "not a cobra. Also, snakes are typically self-governing." There's a peacock mantis shrimp labeled "Not a peacock. Not a mantis. Also, not a shrimp." There's a horny toad labeled "Not a toad. Only thinks of you as a friend." There's a mayfly labeled "active through the spring and summer." There's an eastern kingbird labeled "found in the west. Many birds do not recognize its authority."
December 15, 2025 at 4:01 PM
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For folks who don't know, the bird is the Wilson's Warbler, a very small round friend with a hat.
A very small round warbler with a yellow body and a black beret gazes up into the sky as if contemplating its own perfection.
December 3, 2025 at 11:04 PM
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Another comic from this past year. Sometimes I'm in awe about how incredibly small birds can be.
In a comic strip panel, person in a red shirt walks through a sunlit forest. The text says "Sometimes I go looking for a tiny part of the universe." "This part only takes up as much space as: half an apple, a salt shaker, or 2 ping pong balls." Each of these items is shown. Galaxies and stars swirl as the text says "But somehow, in an unfathomably huge universe," and then there's a complex mess of forest leaves, with one tiny Wilson's warbler in one corner, and the text says "this one tiny part". There's a close up of the warbler, blazing yellow against a sparkly yellow background, and the text says "can fill up my whole heart."
December 3, 2025 at 11:01 PM
rosemarymosco.com
I'm working on the next edition of my fun, short, monthly newsletter. buttondown.com/rosemarymosco
Join my Mailing List Flight Club. buttondown.com/rosemarymosco. It's short, monthly, and contains a weird bird of the month. There's a drawing of a turkey vulture carrying a letter with love.
December 1, 2025 at 3:34 PM
rosemarymosco.com
Wildlife tracking! I'm reposting things I made this past year. If you look closely at the deer tracks you'll see I added the hint that they're double registering (hind foot is stepping into the same spot as front foot).
A six-panel comic titled "Wildlife Tracking Tips". In panel 1, the text says "A white-tailed deer traveled through here," and there are white-tailed deer prints in fresh snow. In panel 2, the text says "An American Red Squirrel came by," and the leap marks of a red squirrel are in the snow. In panel 3, the text says "A Snowshoe Hare passed through," and there are the distinctive fluffy-footed marks from a snowshoe hare jumping across the snow. n panel 4, the text says "The Snowshoe Hare found a sword," and one of the front paw marks in the track has been replaced with a long thin line running alongside the track. In panel 5, the text says "The Snowshoe Hare is dual wielding," and both front paw marks have been replaced with long thin lines. In panel 6, the text says "The Snowshoe Hare tamed a mount, vastly increasing its jumping distance. You should run," and the Snowshoe Hare trail runs into a deer track and disappears.
December 1, 2025 at 3:32 PM
rosemarymosco.com
My latest picture book is There Are No Ants in This Book. Art by Anna Pirolli! It's on these lists: Texas 2x2, CCBC Best Book for Kids & Teens, Dolly Parton's Imagination Library, Betsy Bird's Best Picture Book Readalouds & Informational Fiction for Kids
www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/710556...
A book called There Are No Ants in This Book by Rosemary Mosco and Anna Pirolli. A spread from a picture book with many flowers and a winnow ant and honeypot ant, and a facing page with a leafcutter ant holding a large piece of leaf with a cute straw hat.
November 25, 2025 at 6:14 PM
rosemarymosco.com
Looking for a gift for a birding friend or a kid who loves nature? I have 10 books for adults and kids, some bestselling and some award-winning, and you can see them all here: rosemarymosco.com/books
(Note: one of them, Birding Is My Favorite Video Game, is out of print but a new edition is coming!)
A book called The Birding Dictionary: A Tongue-in-cheek guide for people who find themselves obsessed, against all logic and reason, with birds by Rosemary Mosco, with a quote from Sibley: Best. Dictionary. Ever. And a quote from Ed Yong: laugh-out-loud funny A picture book called There Are No Ants in This Book A book called A Pocket Guide to Pigeon Watching A book called Flowers are Pretty Weird
November 25, 2025 at 6:08 PM
rosemarymosco.com
As the year comes to an end, I'm reposting some of the comics I made this year, including this ridiculous thing.
A six-panel comic. In the first panel, a yellow warbler says "Hey so I'm going to go out on a limb here." In panels two through five, the warbler hops along a long branch against a blue sky with clouds. In panel 6, it stops at the end of the branch and sings.
November 25, 2025 at 3:19 PM
rosemarymosco.com
Part 2/2
On page 5, they fly up through a spiral of aurora. He says "We could stop flying!" and she says "We'd lose time if we stopped!" She says "Do you think this thing is dangerous? Is it... alive? Can it hear us?" And he replies "I don't know." Pause. "But I like the way it matches your feathers." On page 6, the female bird pauses, aurora reflecting in her eye and dancing behind her, close to the same color as her feathers. She says "Let's keep flying." They fly through swirls of green and pink aurora. On page 7, they fly through the aurora that arcs and dances. They're having fun. A close up on the female's eye shows the aurora reflecting. A shooting star streaks by. The birds fly on through the night.
November 12, 2025 at 6:14 PM
rosemarymosco.com
With the aurora popping up again last night, I thought I'd repost this adventure from last year. I drew this when the great @nepeteaa.bsky.social wondered what night-migrating songbirds might make of it all. Part 1/2
A seven-page comic. On page 1, the sun begins to set over an autumnal scene in a forest. The sun continues to set, reflected in the eye of a bird. The sun finishes setting, reflected in the bird's eye and zoomed out a bit. The bird has various hues of stormy blue feathers. The sun has fully set and the stars are out, and the bird, a female Black-throated Blue Warbler, says "It's time." On page 2, the bird says "Ready for another night of migration?" to a male Black-throated Blue warbler, who replies "I ate all the good bugs in this forest, so, sure." She says "Okay. Let's do this." They take off from a branch, saying "Up up up." They hit their cruising altitude and fly through the starry darkening sky. On page 3, they are flying along and the male says "I think this trip is going pretty good so far-" And the female interrupts "Wait." There's a green reflection in her eye. She says "There's something behind us." They turn and see the eerie glimmer of aurora. The male says "Oh" On page 4, the male says "What is... Is that wildfire smoke?" And the female says "I don't think so." They book look alarmed. He says "Should we fly faster? Try to get away?" and she says "No, now it's in our flight path, too!" The aurora has spread and dances through the sky. Some of it becomes pink. He says "It's everywhere!" and she says "I... I don't understand."
November 12, 2025 at 6:12 PM
rosemarymosco.com
Baby pigeon mystery.
My pigeon book is here: www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/rosem...
A six-panel comic. In panel 1, text says "People often wonder, why don't I see baby pigeons? Here's where they're hiding:" and there's an egg with an arrow pointing to a question mark, then an arrow pointing to an adult pigeon. Panel 2 says "Pigeons don't nest in trees. They nest in sheltered spaces on or in buildings. This keeps their babies safe from weather and predators." There's a pigeon nesting in a sheltered cavity in the side of a building. Panel 3 says "The hidden babies look like this: like moldy potatoes, but cute" and there are two baby pigeons looking, well, like moldy pink and gray potatoes with yellow fuzz. Panel 4 says "Older baby pigeons hide in plain sight. When they leave the nest, they're adult-sized, but they're still young and learning" and a fledgling pigeon is flying out of a building saying "aaaaaa". Panel 5 says "Here's how to identify these young pigeons" and shows a fledgling pigeon with arrows pointing to these features: eyes may be gray-brown, pale-edged feathers, smaller "nose" (cere), subdued hues, and looks worried. Panel 6 says "Scientifically speaking, though, all pigeons are sweet babies" and there are three very cute round pigeons, a gray, white, and red one, with arrows pointing to them to make things look scientific.
November 11, 2025 at 3:10 PM
rosemarymosco.com
Boston area folks, FYI: www.instagram.com/p/DQuXRookYJ...
Community Vigil, support our neighbors detained by ICE at Allston carwash, today at 6 pm, Intersection of Cambridge St. and Brighton Ave. Please wear white in solidarity. @LUCE_hotline, 617-370-5023, lucemass.org
November 6, 2025 at 8:32 PM
rosemarymosco.com
I've got some events coming up! Come say hi.

Lincoln MA, Nov 1: www.massaudubon.org/programs/dru...

Keene NH, Nov 15: harriscenter.org/conservation...

Sudbury MA, Nov 20: www.svtweb.org/outdoor-voic...
Upcoming events: Lincoln, MA, November 1, 2 pm: Book talk at Drumlin Farm (free!) Keene, NH, November 15: Keynote at Monadnock Region Natural History Conference Sudbury MA, Nov 20, 6:30 pm: Book talk for Sudbury Valley Trustees at Sudbury History Center (and there's an angry canada goose hissing at you)
October 27, 2025 at 3:33 PM
rosemarymosco.com
Halloween costume ideas for birders.
A comic called halloween costume ideas for birders. In panel 1, labeled easy, there's a person labeled northern cardinal wearing a party hat, a beak, and red clothes, and a person labeled roseate spoonbill wearing pink clothes and a wooden spoon on their nose. In panel 2, labeled harder, there's a person labeled merlin sound ID wearing a big green circle with a microphone modeled after the button on the merlin sound ID app, and a person labeled hybrid green x blue jay wearing a complex costume with a mask and robe and hat modeled after a recently discovered hybrid bird. In panel 3, labeled challenging, there's a person labeled baltimore oriole nest wearing an enormous accurate woven oriole nest suspended from their arms and shoulders, and a person labeled african jacana carrying chicks with a hideous costume of long-toed bird feet hanging from their armpits. In panel 4, labeled hot, there's a person labeled high quality spotting scope who is shirtless and is wearing a spotting scope mask on their head, and a person labeled sexy owl pellet wearing an owl pellet top and bottom with a mouse skull on their head.
October 23, 2025 at 12:26 PM
rosemarymosco.com
Spooky bird stories. Last year's Halloween comic.
A comic titled Spooky Bird Stories. In panel 1, a turkey vulture is telling stories to other vultures, and it says, "She walked toward the source of the terrible smell. She got closer and closer, and then, to her horror, she saw... No dead body." A black vulture says "No!" and a turkey vulture says "Did someone already eat it??" In panel 2, a northern cardinal is telling a story to some songbirds. It says "They peered through the windows of the house at the gory scene. Zombies had smashed through the door in the night. The homeowner was dead. But worst of all... He hadn't refilled the feeders." An eastern bluebird says "Aaah!" and an American goldfinch says "It can't be!". In panel 3, a screech owl is telling a story to other owls. It says "And then the ghost fluffed itself up really big to appear scarier." A saw-whet owl gasps, and a long-eared owl says "Horrifying!". In panel 4, a downy woodpecker is telling a story to other woodpeckers, and says "The eerie sound rang through the dark woods. Tap-tap. Tap-tap. It was the distinctive two-part knock of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker. The species had returned from the dead... FOR REVENGE." A red-cockaded woodpecker says "Yesss".
October 14, 2025 at 2:25 PM
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Amber is the color of my energy topatoco.com/collections/...
A screenshot of a shirt preorder with 311 sold
October 12, 2025 at 5:16 PM
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I got this email yesterday and I am genuinely completely baffled
Hey Rosemary, I’m Alex Dwek, Chief Operating Officer at Nas.io. Our CEO, Nas Daily, and I are always on the lookout for standout educational creators - and you’ve got serious potential. Since you focus on bird education comics, we thought of a couple of challenges you could crush – maybe something like 30-Day Birding Vocabulary Challenge or 7-Day Nature Humor Storytelling? Once you have the idea, everything else is handled by our AI CoFounder - it builds your product, landing page, payment system, and even creates high-performing ads in seconds. You’re ready to launch in under a minute - no tech skills needed. We’re sure your audience will love it. Want to hop on a quick call to see what this could look like for you? Best, Alex Dwek COO @ Nas.io
October 9, 2025 at 2:08 PM
rosemarymosco.com
I'm really happy with how the final art came out. I hope you like it.
A metal logo with the word bloodcheep, atop a circle with a bald cardinal inside, surrounded by stylized flames.
October 8, 2025 at 5:36 PM
rosemarymosco.com
Working on a bloödcheëp shirt. I'm proud of those letters.
A black tshirt design with a bald red cardinal in a circle surrounded by flames, with the word bloodcheep in red death metal style letters above it.
October 7, 2025 at 1:15 AM
rosemarymosco.com
Good idea, but I've done it twice!
October 2, 2025 at 5:22 PM
rosemarymosco.com
Did you know I have a store? topatoco.com/collections/...
I sell prints of some of my most popular comics, plus tshirts, mugs, and more.
A flier with a woodcock saying "psst". The text says "Did you know that I have a store? posters, tshirts, mugs & more" and there's an image of the digital storefront on Topatoco for Bird and Moon comics, including posters and a mug and tshirt.
October 2, 2025 at 5:17 PM
rosemarymosco.com
Spooky season approaches, so I'm going to repost some of my Halloween comics from years past.
A four panel comic called Happy Halloween From The Birds. In panel 1, a pileated woodpecker has pecked its huge gaping rectangular holes in a pumpkin. In panel 2, a yellow-bellied sapsucker has pecked a face using its standard rows of small holes. In panel 3, a satin bowerbird has carved a pumpkin into a bower and placed its favorite blue candies all around it. In panel 4, a loggerhead shrike has impaled mini pumpkins on a fence's metal spikes and is saying "fight me."
September 29, 2025 at 3:21 PM
rosemarymosco.com
I do a comic about ornithological vocabulary for every issue of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology's wonderful Living Bird magazine. Here's the latest one, featuring the American Bittern.
A three-panel comic. The first panel is a scrap from a dictionary that says crypsis, noun: patterning or coloration that allows a bird to remain concealed by blending in to its environment. In panel 2, labeled effective crypsis, an american bittern blends in with a marsh full of tall plants. In panel 2, labeled ineffective crypsis, an american bittern fails to blend in among some short plants, next to a wet floor sign, and behind a stop sign.
September 24, 2025 at 3:41 PM
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Irruption.
A four-panel comic. In panel 1, two people are standing outside, facing each other; one is wearing an orange tshirt and one is wearing a green tshirt and a pair of binoculars. The first person says "I heard there's going to be a Red-breasted Nuthatch eruption. Should I be worried?" In panel 2, the second person says "No, it's an irruption - an unusual movement of birds into areas where they aren't usually found. It's great for birders." The first person says "No, I think they said-" In panel 3, both people look alarmed as the ground beneath them begins to rumble. in panel 4, the ground erupts and hundreds of Red-breasted Nuthatches shoot into the sky, lifting the two people into the air.
September 23, 2025 at 1:32 PM
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An illustration from my fun little book The Birding Dictionary, a great gift for birders. IYKYK. www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/rosem...
A tv screen with a screaming bald eagle on it, and the subtitled caption says [Red-tailed hawk screeching].
September 22, 2025 at 4:51 PM