Podcast Episodes
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Why Is My Robin Half White?
A bird with abnormal white feathers, like this American Robin, may have a genetic condition called leucism. Leucism prevents pigments from reaching s…
2 years, 2 months ago
Welcoming Back Common Loons
The call of the Common Loon is a symbol of the far north. But the species once nested as far south as southern New England, Ohio, Iowa, and Californi…
2 years, 2 months ago
Groove-billed Anis, Communal Nesters
Groove-billed Anis gather in loose groups. And with good reason. They nest communally. As many as four or five pairs of birds may use one nest, a bul…
2 years, 2 months ago
Protecting Rivers and Eagles from Invasive Plants
In the 1990s, eagles in the Southeastern U.S. began dying of a mysterious brain disease. Many years of research identified the culprit: a cyanobacter…
2 years, 2 months ago
The Heart of a Bird
Birds’ four-chambered hearts run larger than those of mammals, relative to body size, and they are coupled with extremely efficient cardiovascular sy…
2 years, 2 months ago
The Majestic Gyrfalcon
Gyrfalcons are the largest falcons in the world, with a wingspan of almost four feet and weighing almost five pounds. The name “Gyrfalcon” derives fr…
2 years, 2 months ago
A Murder, a Party, a Stare or a Siege
Collective nouns are a mixture of poetry, alliteration, and description. Victorians often made up creative names for groups of birds, as a parlor gam…
2 years, 2 months ago
A Tool-Using Nuthatch
The nuthatch’s beak is all business. Long, slender, sharp: it can pluck a tiny spider from a crevice in the bark or carve a nest hole right through t…
2 years, 2 months ago
Find a Volunteer Opportunity that Works for You
Consider finding a local conservation group that’s doing work that matters to you — beach cleanups, volunteer bird surveys, keeping local parks beaut…
2 years, 2 months ago
Keeping Cats Indoors
Outdoor cats are one of the biggest threats to birds, killing over a billion a year in North America. And indoor-outdoor cats live much shorter lives…
2 years, 2 months ago