Each row must be composed of 3 different Birds. If the same Bird is present multiple times on a given row, discard the extra Birds and place new cards until each row contains 3 Birds from different species. According to BirdLife International, which has designated 28 Important Bird Areas (IBAs) in Cuba, “Over 370 bird species have been recorded in Cuba, including 27 which are endemic to the island and 29 considered globally threatened. Due to its large land area and geographical position within the Caribbean, Cuba represents one of the most important countries for Neotropical migratory birds – both birds passing through on their way south (75 species) and those spending the winter on the island (86 species).“

They lay these birds, each one next to the other on the left or on the right side of one of the 4 rows at the center of the table. They can choose their cards independently of the species of the Birds already present in the rows. After taking the surrounded cards, the remaining birds are moved together and new cards are added (placed on the left or the right) from the draw pile to this row until there are two different species in it. Of the 368 bird species reported for Cuba about 42% breed on the island, and 70% are migratory (c.114 species are regular winter residents). Of the breeding species, 135 are resident (including eight introduced birds) and 14 arrive from South America to breed on the island in the summer. The island is home to six endemic genera (namely Cyanolimnus, Starnoenas, Xiphidiopicus, Ferminia, Teretistris and Torreornis), 28 endemic birds (including the world’s smallest bird, the Bee Hummingbird Mellisuga helenae) and 60 endemic subspecies.lays it on the right side. This means drawing 4 cards in total. If this would enclose Birds, RobinBird takes those in hand and completes the rows according to the normal rules. All of the remaining cards are shuffled to form a facedown draw pile b. This draw pile is placed near to the center of the table, accessible to all players. The dealer gives 8 facedown Bird cards from the draw pile to each player: this is their starting hand.

Playing birds from your hand into the central tableau is mandatory but players have a lot of choices of what and how to play, even with one major restriction: they always have to put down all cards of the same species they have in their hand. The player who just ended the round becomes the new dealer and gives 8 cards from the draw pile to each player. The dealer then shuffles the 110 Bird cards and lays out 4 rows with three cards faceup at the center of the table a. The round ends when a player has no cards in their hand. At this point all other players have to discard their hand of cards and new cards are dealt. Knowing when to play cards to the table and which row, together with choosing the right time to end the round is where the tension and excitement comes from in CuBirds. Undeniably, the most fun part of the game is interacting with the central tableau of birds laid out in the middle of the table. It is constantly changing as the result of players adding extra birds and taking some away. While each round is relatively fast, it encourages players to consider altering available cards and figure out what would be the best move to collect the birds they need, while also not letting the next player benefit too much from their decision.If it is impossible to deal 8 cards to each player (even with the discard pile), the game ends immediately. In this case, the player with the most bird cards in their collection wins the game. So while CuBirds is really uncomplicated mechanically, strategically it gives players a bit to think about. At the same time, the decisions are not complicated enough to invoke analysis paralysis and hinder the flow of the game. For a short, light game, that is a perfect combination. Add to that quirky cubic artwork, and CuBirds makes a great little warm-up game ahead of a heavier longer one later in the night.

The first player to seven species of birds in their collection (or two species with three cards each) wins the game. Most games I have played have come right down to the wire as players can see what species everyone needs to win the game and they deliberately stop placing those birds, making for an exciting conclusion to the game. Who’s A Pretty Bird

Game Play

The player chooses a Bird from their hand and must play all the Birds of this species that they have in their hand. On their turn, a player must lay one or more birds from their hand. All the birds of the chosen species that player has in their hand must be played. The player lays these birds (next to each other) on the left or the right side of one of the 4 rows at the center of the table. When a player places a bird in a row that already has one or more birds of that species, the player must take all the cards between these birds into their hand.