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The American Birding Podcast

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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Now displaying: 2021
Dec 23, 2021

We’re at the end of the month and the end of 2021. So it's time for the This Month in Birding panel. We bring back some of our birding friends from the year that was in the form of The Birdist Nick Lund, Bird Sh*t's Mo Stych, and Portland Audubon's Brodie Cass Talbott. We talk about the brand new ABA Bird of the Year, Burrowing Owls and rats, cursing crows, and our best and worst birding holiday gifts. 

Links to articles discussed in this episode:

Burrowing Owl is the 2022 ABA Bird of the Year!

Farallon Islands Mouse Eradication Plan Splits Community

Foul-mouth Crow Befriends Elementary School

Good Bird Conservation News from Audubon

Colorado Ranch saves farm by betting on rare birds

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Dec 16, 2021

It is one of the great dreams of many birders, to be part of the discovery and description of a bird species that is brand new to science. But it is a process that can be long and involved. Ryan Terrill, an ornithologist at the Moore Lab of Zoology at Occidental College, was in the middle of it with the recent formal recognition of the Inti Tanager, a stunning South American bird known for years as the "Kill Bill" Tanager. Ryan's work surveying the bird's breeding territory in western Bolivia was a big part of that work, and he joins us to talk about the process, and why Inti Tanager is certainly not the last new species to come from this part of the world. 

Join us this weekend for the 2022 Bird of the Year reveal party!

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Dec 9, 2021

It is amazing how many people combine the two interests of birding and music, though few as professionals. Stephanie Seymour manages, however, to do it. As a birder she explores the birds around her home in northern New Jersey and as a musician she has had a long career as a drummer and singer in a number of bands. In 2019 she combined those worlds with her self-produced album There are Birds. She’ll also be featured in an upcoming issue of the ABA’s Birding magazine early next year.

Don't forget to join us at our 2022 ABA Bird of the Year reveal in Philadelphia!

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Dec 2, 2021

Hawk-watchers are easily the most established sub-groups within the birding community, and the hawk-watching community in North America is close-knit and passionate. One of its undisputed authorities is Jerry Liguori of Salt Lake City, Utah, the author of Hawks at a Distance and Hawks from Every Angle, two of the most influential family-specific field guides in North America. He is the 2017 recipient of the ABA’s Robert Ridgway Award for publications in field ornithology and his articles have appeared many times in ABA’s Birding magazine. Jerry joins host Nate Swick to talk about the magic of watching hawks, his diagnosis with ALS, and what birders need to know about hawk-watching.

Also, the last of our Pileated Woodpecker stories from Gaspard Tanguay-Labrosse of Montreal, Quebec, and a fascinating study that suggests that chickadees segregate by species using smell.

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Nov 25, 2021

The last Thursday of the month means it’s time for This Month in Birding, a very special This Month in Birding for a couple reasons. First, it is Thanksgiving in the United States, the birdiest of our national holidays. And second, it’s a special all Galbatross panel of This Month in Birding, featuring a whole 60% of the Galbatrosses. We're joined by Senior Manager of Conservation Science at Audubon Great Lakes, Stephanie Beilke, Audubon Network Content Editor Martha Harbison, and Popular Science writer and editor Purbita Saha, to talk condor virgin births, shrinking amazon birds, and why the Kill Bill Tanager should have been the Bruce Lee Tanager.

Don't forget to join us in Philly next month to reveal the 2022 ABA Bird of the Year!

Links to articles mentioned in this episode:

Parthenogenisis in California Condors

Climate Change Causing Amazon Birds to Shrink

Evolution of Egg Colors linked to Nest Shapes

"Kill Bill" Tanager formally named Inti Tanager

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Nov 18, 2021

It is time once more for the most anticipated Birding Book Club of the year, our annual Best Bird Books of the Year episode for 2021. And while it is still November, holiday gift-giving season is right around the corner so we want to get this conversation out there for our listeners' sake. We are joined by 10,000 Birds book reviewer Donna Schulman and Birding magazine media and book review editor Frank Izaguirre to talk about what we loved this year in bird books. 

Also, the New Zealand Bird of the Year is a bat for some reason. 

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Nov 11, 2021

The annual Winter Finch Forecast is easily one of the highlights of the birding year for many, and a perfect combination of birding science and birding art. When Ron Pittaway retired in early 2020, birders worried that the forecast would be retired as well, but that was happily not the case. Tyler Hoar stepped in and with the help of the Finch Research Network, brought the forecast into the 21st Century. He  joins us to talk about how it all works and what it was like filling the shoes of a birding giant. 

Plus, come join us as we reveal the 2022 Bird of the Year at a party in Philadelphia!

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Nov 4, 2021

Perhaps more than any bird in North America, Rock Pigeons suffer for their omnipresence and familiarity. But there is more to the humble and ubiquitous species than meets the eye. They are a great opportunity to learn not just about the wonders of birds, but about the interconnectedness of humans and nature. Naturalist and creator of Bird and Moon comics, Rosemary Mosco dives into the weird world of pigeons in her new book, A Pocket Guide to Pigeon Watching: Getting to know the World’s Most Misunderstood Bird, and joins the American Birding Podcast to talk all about it.

Also, some good new for a lovely birding site in South Texas.

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Oct 28, 2021

The last Thursday of the month is This Month in Birding with a panel of Jennie Duberstein, Nicole Jackson, and Sean Milnes. We have a wide range of stories to discuss, from escaped birds to birding by ear to landfills to domestic carrowaries.

Links to topics discussed this month:

Steller's Sea Eagle and Eurasian Eagle Owl escape from captivity.

Blind Uruguayan birder creates sound may of Uruguay.

Bird diversity at landfills.

Hummingbirds smell their way our of danger.

Papuans might have domesticated cassowaries.

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Oct 21, 2021

The second half of 2021 has been an exciting half-year for the ABA, not least of which because we got to welcome two new colleagues. Katinka Domen and Laura Guerard are the Coordinators of our Travel and Events program and our Young Birder programs respectively. Both come to their positions having worked extensively in their field and with big ideas about how to make these two pillars of American Birding Association bigger, better, and more fun for birders of every age and station. We're excited to introduce them to you. 

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Oct 14, 2021

There's no place on Earth like Colombia. One of the world's only "megadiverse" nations, Colombia boasts friendly people, stunning landscapes, and absolutely mind-blowing birds. Join host Nate Swick and Colombian birders Diego Calderón (The Birders Show) and Eliana Ardila (Birding by Bus) as we travel through the Colombian Central Andes and explore what makes this place so amazing for birders, and how nature tourism is making a positive impact on the lives of so many people there. 

Check out some of the birds we talk about here!

Thanks to Diego, Eliana, Roger Rodriguez, Nature Colombia, ProColombia, Dale Forbes, and Swarovski Optik with their new NL Pure binoculars

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Oct 7, 2021

When Jonathan Slaght’s Owls of the Eastern Ice came out last year, it was met with high praise. Slaght’s search for the enigmatic Blakiston’s Fish-Owl is a part of natural history, part adventure, and part character study set in a part of the world that very few of us know at all, except, perhaps, as the place many of our rare birds come from. It is out now in paperback, and Slaght joins host Nate Swick to talk about owls, writing, and conservation work in the Russian Far East.

Also, Nate considers the official extinction of the Ivory-billed Woodpecker.

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Sep 30, 2021

It's the last episode of September 2021, and to add to this fall birding bounty comes a super panel featuring Birds Canada's Jody Allair, the Finch Research Network's Ryan Mandelbaum, and Jordan Rutter of the American Birding Conservancy. We're excited to chat about this winter's finch forecast, cutthroat birding, and some analysis of the Covid pandemic pause on birds in urban areas.

Links to topics discussed this month:

Last Week Tonight satirizes the Duck Stamp Contest (language warning)

Birding is a Cutthroat Test of Skill, Strategy, and Endurance

The 2021-22 Winter Finch Forecast is out!

Birders on their (Expensive) Habit

Lockdowns are for the birds

Peru adds Marvelous Spatuletail to 100 soles denomination

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Sep 23, 2021

Birding editor Ted Floyd returns to join host Nate Swick in another round of "Random Birds", the most fun you can have with a bird list and a random number generator. Ted and Nate talk mergansers, bluebirds, nighthawks, and more as they continue their journey through the combined list of the birds of North Carolina and Colorado. 

Plus, Short-tailed Albatross stunts provide an opportunity to talk about birding ethics

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Sep 16, 2021

Few birders in North American have taken on the mantle of urban birding like Ohio native J.B Brumfield. Their Cuyahoga County big years are the stuff of legend, not only for their high totals but for the passion they throw into birding their hometown of Cleveland and getting others excited about the birdlife and birding opportunities there. Chicago native Greg Neise has his own long history birding in urban areas, and steps in to talk to J.B. about Big Years, favorite local patches, and what to love about birding in the city.

Birding editor Ted Floyd shares a commentary about his favorite urban bird.

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Sep 9, 2021

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, currently studying the migration ecology of American Robins. She joins us to talk about what we don't know about a bird everyone knows.

Plus, a Pileated Woodpecker story from Nancy Archer of Richmond, Virginia, and the great conservation question comes to National Geographic.

Subscribe to the podcast at Apple PodcastsStitcher, and Google Podcasts, and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it!

Sep 2, 2021

The time of year for messy birds is here. It’s molt season, and nearly every bird you encounter in the late summer and fall is replacing something. Even though we are familiar with molt in theory, it’s still a confusing and intimidating process for many birders in practice. Dani Kaschube is the MAPS coordinator and bird banding guru for the Institute for Bird Populations. She has taught banders the ins and outs of molt for decades and she joins us to demystify molt, or at least make our best effort to do so. 

Also, Greg Neise talks to Jason Martinucci of Mendelein, Illinois about his visiting Violetear and what it's like when the rare bird circus comes to town. 

Plus, female hummingbirds in the tropics that look like males to avoid being harassed

Subscribe to the podcast at Apple PodcastsStitcher, and Google Podcasts, and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it!

Aug 26, 2021

It’s the last week of August and that means it’s time for This Month in Birding featuring a panel containing some folks familiar to those who are keeping up with the growing birding podcast scene. It's a fun group with some birdosphere podcast crossover energy.  Mollee Brown from The Birding Co-op and the Life List podcast, Andrés Jiménez of Birds Canada's new podcast The Warblers, and our old friend Nick Lund, The Birdist, join host Nate Swick to talk about birding ethics, trash parrots, fur thieves, and whether we have saved a bird. 

Links to topics discussed this month:

Is birding a lifestyle or a hobby?

Trash Parrots open garbage cans in Australia

Birds stealing hair from unwitting mammals

Farewell to Barry the Barred Owl

Kendall Jenner and Khloe Kardashian save a bird

Subscribe to the podcast at Apple PodcastsStitcher, and Google Podcasts, and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it!

Aug 19, 2021

How would you describe summer birding? Hot? Humid? Buggy? Unbearable? For many birders it has always been the least exciting and most taxing season for getting in the field, but there's a lot to be excited about for those who make the effort.  ABA colleagues Jennie Duberstein and Greg Neise join host Nate Swick to talk about what excites them about the season, from molt to shorebirds to birding camp, and how to be prepared to handle the difficulties. Special granola bars for everyone!

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Aug 12, 2021

Parrots and parakeets are among the most spectacular and diverse birds on the planet, but also among the most adaptable. Urban parrots have made their way into dozens of places around the world and in many cities are a regular feature of city and suburban landscapes. The many ways that dynamic manifests is the subject of a new book, Naturalized Parrots of the World: Distribution, Ecology, and Impacts of the World’s Most Colorful Colonizers, edited by Dr Stephen Pruett-Jones who joins Nate Swick to talk parrots of all kinds. 

Also, Ed Yong has some fascinating things to say about how birds taste the world

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Aug 5, 2021

The Hawaiian Island of Kaua'i is known as the Garden Isle for its lush scenery and dramatic landscapes, but that beauty hides worrying biodiversity loss and an uncertain future for the island’s native birds. Decline driven primarily by mosquito borne avian malaria have decimated populations of Hawaii's honeycreepers, but there is some hope in the form of an effort to control mosquito populations that was recently approved for use in Hawaii. Dr. Lisa Crampton is the Project Leader of the Kaua'i Forest Bird Recovery Project and  she has been in the middle of a lot of conservation and research efforts around these birds. She joins host Nate Swick to talk about the ups and downs of working with species on the brink. 

Also, a fantastic story of a long thought dead Kiwikiu (Maui Parrotbill) that shows the resilience of Hawaiian birds

Subscribe to the podcast at Apple PodcastsStitcher, and Google Podcasts, and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it!

Jul 29, 2021

The last episode of the month means This Month in Birding, with a panel of Orietta Estrada, Gabriel Foley, and Mikko Jimenez. We have some interesting topics to chat about this week including that mystery bird illness and a possible connection to cicadas, a historical perspective on bird names in a major ornithological journal, how bird science is furthered by indigenous languages, Piping Plover movies and birds in the Olympics.

Also, want to win some stuff from the ABA? Get information here!

Links to topics discussed include:

Thoughts on the mystery bird illness in the east.

The Ibis paper on redressing common bird names

Local Legends About Birds Help to Preserve Language and Culture

Monty and Rose Documentary to Debut on Labor Day in Chicago

Subscribe to the podcast at Apple PodcastsStitcher, and Google Podcasts, and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it!

Photo Credit for Jimenez: Claudine Williams
Jul 22, 2021

Birding editor Ted Floyd joins host Nate Swick to once again chat about recent birding experiences in eBird Annotated. This time Ted and Nate have been on the road, birding in places that meant something to them in the past. For Ted, this is Pittsburgh's Frick Park, and for Nate, Sannibel Island in south Florida. 

As promised, enjoy their eBird checklists yourself!

From Pennsylvania

https://ebird.org/checklist/S91550753

https://ebird.org/checklist/S91550757

https://ebird.org/checklist/S91496800

https://ebird.org/checklist/S91565994

From Florida:

https://ebird.org/checklist/S91433356

https://ebird.org/checklist/S91461785

https://ebird.org/checklist/S91229868

Plus, Nate is happy to report that the Duck Stamp will no longer require a hunting element

Subscribe to the podcast at Apple PodcastsStitcher, and Google Podcasts, and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it!

Jul 15, 2021

We at the ABA are big fans of the growing birding podcast scene and one of the more interesting ones out now is Your Bird Story, which focuses on everyday people’s experiences with birds in cities. The host of Your Bird Story, Dr. Georgia Silvera Seamans, is, among other things, the director of Washington Square Park Eco Projects, an urban and community forester, and of one the co-organizers of Black Botanists Week. She joins us to talk about collecting bird stories from everyone and the importance of wild places in urban spaces. 

Also, Nate is back from Florida wowed by Swallow-tailed Kites and Pileated Woodpeckers. 

Help support the ABA and the American Birding Podcast by contributing to our Nesting Season Appeal.

Subscribe to the podcast at Apple PodcastsStitcher, and Google Podcasts, and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it!

Jul 8, 2021

In demand actor, 7 time winner of the Teen Choice Award, and avid birder?

Ian Harding is best known for his work on the Freeform network’s teen-drama Pretty Little Liars, but in his new memoir Odd Birds he talks about how birds and birding have provided him with opportunities to find peace and focus in a life in the public eye. Ian joins host Nate Swick to share some stories from his new book and thoughts on what it could mean for birding to have such a high-profile advocate. This interview originally ran on June 29, 2017. 

Also, Birding editor Ted Floyd shares a commentary about the magic of birding in the mundaneness of regular life. This commentary originally ran on September 7, 2017. 

Help support the ABA and the American Birding Podcast by contributing to our Nesting Season Appeal.

Subscribe to the podcast at Apple PodcastsStitcher, and Google Podcasts, and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it!

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