My sister (self-taught) has done about a dozen birds so far. I think she did a really great job on them.
If you enjoy very meticulous, detailed work, you might like taxidermy.
For birds, you basically have to skin out the entire animal, leaving the wing and leg bones intact (this means skinning out the face and cutting all tissue off the wing and leg bones). The "pelt" is then cured and degreased using special chemicals. Then you reassemble the skin on the premade (or hand made) form, stitch the cuts, paint the face, etc.
When mounting a bird, at most you will be able to use the breast meat. The rest will be cut out in tiny pieces. Keep this in mind.
And it will take a LONG time for you to do your first couple mounts!
According to my sister, birds are better for beginners because you can rearrange the feathers to cover up the seams/stitching. And birds tend to be more uniform within one species than mammals (so you won't have to adjust your form).
Here's a good place to start (there is a forum as well):
Taxidermy.net
Order supplies and books from
WASCO.
