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Legends of the Jackdaw
The catchy name “Jackdaw” belongs to a European bird that looks like a compact crow drawn in shades of light and dark gray. They are comfortable arou…
3 months, 2 weeks ago
Some Birds Have Two Voices
The amazing vocal organ found in most birds, the syrinx, has two sides, with different sets of muscles and nerves controlling each side. That lets s…
3 months, 2 weeks ago
Hollywood Has Gone To The Birds
Some of Hollywood’s most iconic beasts owe their signature sounds to the squawks, tweets, and even hisses of birds.
More info and transcript at BirdN…
3 months, 2 weeks ago
Telling Apart Two Cheery Bird Songs
The American Robin and the Baltimore Oriole both have cheery, upbeat songs. At first, you might think there’s no way to tell these two singers apart.…
3 months, 3 weeks ago
Rapid Evolution in the Galápagos Islands
Scientists have long thought that new species took a very long time to emerge. This thinking has now changed dramatically. On an island in the Galápa…
3 months, 3 weeks ago
Ducks That Whistle
Whistling as they fly, Black-bellied Whistling-Ducks are gorgeous waterfowl with bright pink bills and legs, chestnut necks and backs, and black unde…
3 months, 3 weeks ago
The Delightfully Round Bearded Reedling
The Bearded Reedling is a wetland songbird that’s enjoying a boom in both population and popularity. Barely larger than a chickadee, the male reedlin…
3 months, 3 weeks ago
Birding 101: Bird Vocab Basics
Any hobby or special interest has its own jargon. You’ll pick up on the silly slang that birders use as you go – like calling the Yellow-rumped Warbl…
3 months, 4 weeks ago
The Gull and the Garbage Truck
Gulls are notorious for snatching french fries from waste bins and flocking to landfills. But one Western Gull’s devotion to trash reached a new leve…
3 months, 4 weeks ago
BONUS EPISODE: Words in Flight
Birds have always been a source of inspiration for writers. Edgar Allen Poe, Maya Angelou, and William Shakespeare, to name a few, have all written a…
3 months, 4 weeks ago