The human health and well-being benefits of birds: a systematic scoping review of interaction patterns

Interactions with birds may contribute meaningfully to mental health and well-being, particularly in everyday settings where access to other forms of nature is limited. Recent reviews suggest that birdwatching, birding, companion birds, and other human-bird interactions have measurable benefits for health and well-being. We conducted a systematic scoping review mapping how specific interaction patterns with birds have been studied in relation to human health and well-being. We aimed to identify and map how human-bird interaction patterns were associated with human health or well-being; highlight which pairings of interaction pattern-benefits are most and least studied; recommend needs for future research; and ultimately to expand and inform Ecological Medicine practices involving birds that support reciprocity, relationality, and connectedness. Across 196 studies published by November 2025, we found 10 or more studies each supporting the following conclusions. Listening to birdsong is linked to better cognitive functioning, mental health and well-being and physiological markers of health; birds in the media or in artwork, as well as companion or captive birds, are linked with better mental health and well-being; incidental contact with birds (i.e., living in nature-rich areas with birds) as well as birding or birdwatching are linked with better mental health and well-being as well as pro-environmental attitudes, behaviors, or nature connectedness. While half of these findings are derived from studies without a control/comparison group, the evidence is suggestive and supportive of human-bird interventions in nature-based therapy. However, we note that our search terms did not target adverse outcomes as a result of interacting with birds; therefore, these findings may reflect a biased perspective on this topic based on the included literature, warranting additional research into any potential adverse consequences of human-bird interactions as well.