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 Beilke, 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?

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, The Idea People. Mike is a prolific writer and story-teller whose interests intersect with birding in his online journal Two-Fisted Bird Watcher. 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!

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 Birding 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. 

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!