The American Birding Podcast

American Birding Association

About

The American Birding Podcast brings together staff and friends of the American Birding Association as we talk about birds, birding, travel and conservation in North America and beyond. Join host Nate Swick every Thursday for news and happenings, recent rarities, guests from around the birding world, and features of interest to every birder.

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286 episodes

08-13: This Month in Birding - March 2024

Beware the IDs of March! Shakespeare was no doubt concerned with molting grebes, singing juncos and the various other birding difficulties brought to us in this month when he wrote those words.  Jody Allair, Mikko Jimenez, and Purbita Saha join host Nate Swick this month to talk climate change and birds, skinny bird legs, and more! Links to topics discussed in this episode: The great eBird outage of 2024 To mitigate bird collisions, enforce the Migratory Bird Treaty Act As Spring Shifts Earlier, Many Migrating Birds Are Struggling to Keep Up Why Do Birds Have Such Skinny Legs? Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it! And don’t forget to join the ABA https://aba.app.neoncrm.com/forms/membership to support this podcast and the many things we do for birds and birders! Thanks to HX Expeditions for sponsoring this episode! Change the way you see the world with HX Expeditions.

1h 6m
Mar 28
08-12: More than a Lawn Thrush with Emily Williams

What can we learn from one of the most familiar birds in North America? A bird so well-known that it’s migration is remarked upon by friends and colleagues who might otherwise have no knowledge about birds at all. The American Robin, of course, is ubiquitous but there is a lot left to learn. That is, in part, the work of Emily Williams, an avian ecologist at Georgetown University https://twitter.com/wayfaringwilly, currently studying the migration ecology of American Robins. She joins us to talk about what we don’t know about a bird everyone knows. Also, it's March Madness! Which obviously means we need to consider the bird mascots in the NCAA tournament.  Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it! And don’t forget to join the ABA https://aba.app.neoncrm.com/forms/membership to support this podcast and the many things we do for birds and birders! Thanks to HX Expeditions for sponsoring this episode! Change the way you see the world with HX Expeditions.

34m
Mar 21
08-11: Beat this Big Year Record with Jeff Bouton

Digiscoping is more popular than ever, but bird records involving this practice are few and far between. We needed someone to lay down the gauntlet, and last year that person was Jeff Bouton. Many birders know Jeff as the representative for Kowa Optics https://www.kowaoptic.com/, and he's a familiar face around bird festivals and events, and now, the Digicoping Big Year Champion, a record he set in 2023. He’s here to challenge others to match him.  Also, a rare bird on the Las Vegas strip gets national media exposure, for better or for worse.  * * * Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it! And don’t forget to join the ABA https://aba.app.neoncrm.com/forms/membership to support this podcast and the many things we do for birds and birders! Thanks to HX Expeditions for sponsoring this episode! Change the way you see the world with HX Expeditions.  *   * * * *  

43m
Mar 14
08-10: Protecting Plovers in NYC with Chris Allieri

Beach nesting shorebird conservation is one of the more nuanced issues on the continent because the sorts of places and times of year where they prefer to nest are the sorts of places and times of year that humans prefer to recreate. But opportunities exist to get people to care about and protect these birds that we share space with. Chris Allieri and the NYC Plover Project are doing just that. The volunteer group is one of the most celebrated and successful groups in New York City, and Chris joins us to talk about what works and what doesn't.  Also, it was inevitable that Flaco the celebrity Central Park Owl would meet an untimely end, but what does he mean for future birds and the ways in which we enjoy them? Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it! And don't forget to join the ABA https://aba.app.neoncrm.com/forms/membership to support this podcast and the many things we do for birds and birders!

54m
Mar 07
08-09: This Month in Birding - February 2024

It's Leap Day! It’s not often that we have an extra week in February, but this month’s This Month in Birding marks the first time we’ve ever had an episode on the 29th of February. We are joined by Jennie Duberstein, Nicole Jackson, and Gabriel Foley for a panel that is as unique as this day to talk eBird streaks, landfill condors, brilliant falcons, and more.  Links to articles discussed in this episode: One's trash is another's treasure: How landfills support Andean condors Innovative problem solving by wild falcons Yellow-crested Helmetshrike rediscovered * * * * * * Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it! *   *   * * * *  

54m
Feb 29
08-08: Still Birding to Change the World with Trish O'Kane

Way back in 2019, we first spoke with Trish O’Kane about the Birding to Change the World program she had instituted at the University of Vermont, where she is a lecturer and environmental educator, because of an essay she had written for T. She's back 5 years later to talk about her new memoir, appropriately titled , which recounts her journey from nascent bird obsessive to activist to environmental educator through the effort to protect a much-loved urban park in Madison, Wisconsin. Also, Emperor Penguin colonies are all accounted for in Antarctica, thanks to poop-tracking satellites.  * * * Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it! *   * * * *  

45m
Feb 22
08-07: 2023 Rare Bird Draft with Amy Davis & Tim Healy

2023 was an exceptional year for ABA Rarities, and few can remember a more extraordinary one in terms of both quality and quantity of shocking and spectacular rare birds in the US and Canada. As we do every year, we welcome editor Amy Davis and educator and writer at , Tim Healy https://nemesisbird.com/, to share our favorites and draft the Top 10 (and a few more) ABA Area Rare Birds for 2023. Also, congrats to Peter Kaestner for becoming the first birder to see 10,000 species. Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it!

1h 0m
Feb 15
08-06: The Drama of Shorebird Migration with Randall Wood

The voyages of migratory shorebirds are cinematic in their scope; certainly an attractive subject for a nature documentarian. Randall Wood is the award-winning writer, director, and producer of https://filmfreeway.com/FlywaysFilm, which aired in the United States on the PBS program Nature on February 7, 2024. He joins us to talk about the film, which focuses on the incredible journeys of three long-distance migrants and the researchers racing against time to preserve these birds and this incredible phenomenon. You can find the film at pbs.org/nature, https://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/ YouTube and the PBS App.  Also, the AOS NACC released their first batch of potential splits and lumps, with a lot of potential changes coming to the ABA Area.  Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, and Google Podcasts, and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it!

34m
Feb 08
08-05: eBird Analytics with Harry Stevens

Birders use eBird to log their own personal lists, and to help find birds they would like to see, but the heart of eBird, the dream even of eBird, was to create a massive public database of bird sightings that can turn into opportunities to monitor bird populations. That is, in fact, what Harry Stevens, the Climate Lab columnist for the Washington Post, has done in a new interactive feature at the Washington Post which takes a look at why bird populations are declining.  Also, Artificial Intelligence helps researchers get a bird's eye view. * * * Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it! *  

31m
Feb 01
08-04: This Month in Birding - January 2024

This Month in Birding is back in the new year, with a panel of old friends to talk bird and birding news of the month. This time around, Stephanie Bielke, Jordan Rutter, and Brodie Cass Talbott come by to talk Mallard quasi-domestication, smart binoculars and more! Links to articles discussed in this episode: Silent domestication of wildlife in the Anthropocene: The mallard as a case study Swarovski Optik Launches the World's First Smart Binocular Missed Connections Why do middle-aged people love birds so much? * * * Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it! *   * * * *  

53m
Jan 25
08-03: Two-Fisted Birdwatching with Mike Lubow

A disillusioned adman and casual birder, a mysterious ransom plot, and a conservation program for restoring Peregrine Falcons all combine in Mike Lubow’s irreverent new novel, . Mike is a prolific writer and story-teller whose interests intersect with birding in his online journal Two-Fisted Bird Watcher https://twofistedbirdwatcher.com/. He joins us to talk about why birders make great detectives, even fictional ones.  Also, nature illiteracy strikes again in the form of a bonkers proposed law in Kentucky.  Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it!

29m
Jan 18
08-02: 2024 Bird of the Year Artist Natasza Fontaine

The 2024 Bird of the Year is Golden-winged Warbler--the first of the charismatic and colorful wood-warbler family to be so honored. This gorgeous Parulid has it all, stunning colors, an important conservation story, and a unique taxonomic conundrum with its sister species, Blue-winged Warbler. A lovely illustration of a pair of Golden-winged Warblers on their nonbreeding tarritory in Costa Rica graces the cover of the January 2024 issue of magazine. The creator of this year's cover is artist and field researcher Natasza Fontaine! She joins us to talk about her Golden-winged Warbler memories and the ins and outs of this year's BotY art.  Do you have a Golden-winged Warbler story? Share it with us! Record it in the voice recorded app on your phone and send it to podcast@aba.org.  * * * Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, and Google Podcasts, and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it! *   * * * *  

31m
Jan 11
08-01: Inside the Bird Name Committee

The decision by the American Ornithological Society last year to begin the process of renaming birds currently named after humans has been one of the more animating debates in the birding and ornithological communities in recent memory. The recommendations for these changes were made by an ad hoc English Bird Name committee created by the AOS specifically to explore this issue. Irene Liu, Steve Hampton, and Alvaro Jaramillo served on that committee, and join the podcast to talk about their time on the committee, the discussion they had, and to dispell some of the misinformation that has sprung up in the wake of this big news.  Also, welcome to the the 2024 ABA Bird of the Year, Golden-winged Warbler! * * * * Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it! *   * * * *      

1h 10m
Jan 04
07-51: This Month in Birding - December 2023

This Month in Birding is The American Birding Podcast’s monthly round table discussion on all things birds and birding. This month features Nick Lund, Sarah Swanson, and Mo Stych talking AI and birding, light pollution, a tragic macaw love story and more. Links to article’s discussed in this episode: Artificial light at night is a top predictor of bird migration stopover density https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-023-43046-z Researchers developing new technology to understand bird migrations A lovers’ tale of romance, fidelity and the aviary netting keeping them apart Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it!

47m
Dec 21, 2023
07-50: Random Birds X with Ted Floyd

It’s a holiday miracle! The podcast feature that was supposed to last one episode, lasted significantly more than that! editor Ted Floyd is back to talk Random Birds. He and Nate cover lots of passerines and two different hummingbirds and ponder the mysteries of the random number generator that knows all.  The ABA wishes all of you participating in the 124th CBC a Merry Christmas Bird Count! * Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it! * * * *  

58m
Dec 14, 2023
07-49: Birding Book Club - Best of 2023

The Birding Book Club is back again to do our annual Best Bird Books of the Year episode for 2023. With the holiday gift-giving season is right around the corner there’s no better time to give the gift of bird books to the birder in your life. And why not something for yourself while you're at it? We are joined by 10,000 Birds book reviewer Donna Schulman https://www.10000birds.com/author/donna and  magazine media and book review editor Rebecca Minardi https://www.aba.org/book-reviews/ to talk about what we loved this year in bird books. Find links to all our choices at the ABA Podcast website https://wp.me/p8iY2g-gr2! Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it!

1h 2m
Dec 07, 2023
07-48: Secrets of Slow Birding with Bridget Butler

If there’s one thing that 2020 taught birders, its how to appreciate your immediate surroundings. The cancellation of festivals, international trips, and even many local bird walks and meetings encouraged us to be more present and local. It’s something that Vermont naturalist Bridget Butler has been pushing for a long time as part of her “Slow Birding” initiative. She joins host Nate Swick to talk about how birding can create a connection to yourself and the place where you live. Also, cicadas have unseen impacts on eastern forests and birds are to blame.  * * * Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it! *   * * * *  

39m
Nov 30, 2023
07-47: This Month in Birding - November 2023

This Month in Birding is The American Birding Podcast’s monthly round table discussion on all things birds and birding. This month features Jennie Duberstein, Tim Healy, and Ryan Mandelbaum covering bird name changes, universal alarm calls, what makes a bird attractive to humans, and more.   Links to article’s discussed in this episode: North American Birds Will No Longer Be Named After People Improving the language of migratory bird science in North America What's the rumpus? Resident temperate forest birds approach an unfamiliar neotropical alarm call across three continents What drives our aesthetic attraction to birds? https://www.nature.com/articles/s44185-023-00026-2 * * * * * * Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it! *   * * * *  

1h 3m
Nov 23, 2023
07-46: Random Birds, Vol 9, with Ted Floyd

Host Nate Swick is on the road, but that doesn't mean you won't get new content! editor Ted Floyd is back again for another edition of Random Birds, the most fun you can have with a bird list and a random numbr generator. This time around Nate and Ted take discuss ducks, tanagers, sparrows and much more!  Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it! *  

56m
Nov 16, 2023
07-45: Talking Lumps - Western Flycatchers with Alec Hopping

One of the biggest taxonomic changes of this year was the long-anticipated lump of the species formerly known as Pacific-slope and Cordilleran Flycatcher back into Western Flycatcher. It’s a story with all the taxonomic highs and lows packed into a slightly confusing and cryptic package. Alec Hopping is a birder and researcher whose article in called played a large role in making the case to the relavant authorities. He joins us to talk about how to get a species lumped.  Also, the AOS makes a huge announcement regarding birds named specifically for people.  Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it! * * * *    

42m
Nov 09, 2023
07-44: Meet Wayne Klockner, the ABA's New Executive Director

This past summer, the ABA brought on our new Executive Director. Wayne Klockner comes to us after a long career with The Nature Conservancy in Maryland and beyond, with efforts that have led to the conservation of thousands of acres of natural areas, the restoration of commercial and shell fisheries and the establishment of TNC’s climate strategy. He lives and birds in Ocean City, Maryland, and it is our pleasure to welcome him to the podcast. Also, amazing new science suggests that albatrosses use infrasonic ocean noise to orient themselves.  Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it!

36m
Nov 02, 2023
07-43: This Month in Birding - October 2023

This Month in Birding is The American Birding Podcast's monthly round table discussion on all things birds and birding. This month features Martha Harbison, Mikko Jimenez, and Dexter Patterson covering the USFWS's recent extinction news, Takahe reintroductions, birding at night, and the panel's spookiest birds.  Links to article's discussed in this episode: 21 Species Delisted from the Endangered Species Act due to Extinction As city heat rises, bird diversity declines How L.A.’s bird population is shaped by historic redlining and racist loan practices Prehistoric bird once thought extinct returns to New Zealand wild Here's How You Go Birding in the Middle of the Night\ A Southern Giant Petrel to haunt your nightmares * * * Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it! *   * * * *      

54m
Oct 26, 2023
07-42: The Wingsnappers with Barney Schlinger

Manakins are among the most unique and fascinating neotropical bird families with displays that run the gamut from group line-dancing to bizarre percussive feather snaps. One species, in particularly, has long fascinated UCLA researcher Barney Schlinger, the Golden-collared Manakin of Panama and western Colombia. It is the subject of his book and he joins host Nate Swick to talk about it.  Also, the eBird taxonomy update is coming https://ebird.org/news/2023-taxonomy-update! What does it mean for our ABA lists? Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it!

36m
Oct 19, 2023
07-41: Birding Under the Influence with Dorian Anderson

In 2014, Dorian Anderson pushed pause on his life, which at the time included a career in neuroscience research, a burgeoning relationship, and the ongoing struggles with drug and alcohol addiction, for an ABA Area Big Year. But not just any Big Year, one that was entirely self-propelled. His Big Year plus cross-country trek by bike is recounted in a new memoire out this fall . Also, a huge migration day in Chicago https://ebird.org/checklist/S151504865 leads to an inevitable and frustrating bird window strike incident.  Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it!

57m
Oct 12, 2023
07-40: The Public Lives of Birds with David Welch

Birds are one of the most commonly encountered elements of human culture across time and across peoples in all parts of the world. Perhaps nowhere is that quite as evident as Las Vegas, Nevada, where humanity of every possible description comes together in a city that exists on the edge of habitability. Those fascinating and often odd relationships between birds and humans are the subject of the documentary , whose director and producer David Welch is the process of completing with the help of a kickstarter campaign. He joins us this week to talk about it. Also, the 2023 Winter Finch Report is out! What does it mean for your feeders this winter? Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it!

30m
Oct 05, 2023
07-39: This Month in Birding - September 2023

It’s the end of the month which means its time for This Month in Birding, and we’ve got a panel of ABA friends and staff here to talk about the beautiful fall season, every birder’s favorite time of year. In this episode Jennie Duberstein, Nick Lund, and Greg Neise join host Nate Swick to talk lost flamingos, eagles, both welcome and not, the incredible movement of rare North American vagrants to the British Isles, and more! Also, the ABA is going to be at the Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival this fall. Come join us! Links to articles discussed in this episode: Flamingo visiting central Pa. injured in attack: Will its mate abandon it? Mega fallout of American birds in UK/Ireland Stella, the Steller's sea eagle making an economic impact on bird tourism Eagle effects on seabird productivity: Effects of a natural experiment Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it!

1h 0m
Sep 28, 2023
07-38: Birding for a Better World with Sydney Golden Anderson & Meghadeepa Maity

The Feminist Bird Club https://www.feministbirdclub.org/ has been one of the more interesting and inspiring movements in the birding world over the last few years. They champion inclusivity, social justice, and an approach that is comfortable for novices and other folks who had perhaps not felt seen in birding before. Some of the leaders of that organization have collaborated on a new book, . One of its authors, Sydney Golden Anderson, along with FBC co-chair Meghadeepa Maity, joins us to talk about the book and the what the club means to its members.  Also, an act of bravery in Hawaii might have saved the futures of two critically endangered birds.  Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it!

47m
Sep 21, 2023
07-37: Random Birds, Vol. 8, with Ted Floyd

It's a random time for Random Birds, the American Birding Podcast segment with editor Ted Floyd that involves host Nate Swick, a big bird list, and a random number generator.  We never know exactly what we're going to get, but you'll always get a lot of great bird facts, stories, and appreciation. This session includes a smorgasbord of birds, with ducks, terns, thrushes, and more all making an appearance. Also, we're excited to announce another ABA webinar featuring author and former podcast guest Rebecca Heisman! ABA members can join us on ABA Community. Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it!

55m
Sep 14, 2023
07-36: Lifer Momos and Monals with Anuj Ghimire

Moving to Nepal to North Dakota offers quite the ornithological whiplash, but birder and graduate student Anuj Ghimire takes it all in good stride. He joins guest host and magazine editor Frank Izaguirre to talk Himalayan pheasants, North Dakota nemeses, and where to find Nepali food in Fargo.  * * * * * * Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it! *   * * * *  

45m
Sep 07, 2023
07-35: This Month in Birding - August 2023

It's This Month in Birding for August 2023, our monthly round table discussion featuring voices from around the birding world. This month, we welcome back our friends Jody Allair of Birds Canada, Jordan Rutter of the American Bird Conservancy, and Brodie Cass Talbott of Portland Audubon to talk about American Kestrels, Canada Jay siblings, 50 years of Project Puffin and more.  Links to topics discussed in this episode: The Mystery of the Vanishing Kestrels: What’s Happening to This Flashy Falcon? Sibling Rivalry Pays Off for Canada Jays, U of G Research Finds 50 years of Project Puffin * * * Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it! *   * * * *  

1h 2m
Aug 31, 2023