The American Birding Podcast

It's split and lump season again, and that means that we turn to our friend Nick Block, professor of Biology at Stonehill College in Easton, Massachusetts. He's the person we talk to when it comes to predicting the decisions of the American Ornithological Society's North America Classification Committee. It's another busy slate for this summer including a possible Western Flycatcher lump, splits to Northern Goshawk and Hepatic Tanager and more. Also Black Birders Week wraps up another great year. And don't forget to sign up for our ABA Community Weekend in San Francisco, California, next weekend! 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!

On May 19, 2023, the ABA and the Academy of Natural Sciences at Drexel University hosted the For the Love of Birds panel as part of the Academy's Cheryl Beth Silverman lecture series. If you weren't able to join us in Philadelphia, we're excited to share it with you as a podcast. Panelists Holly Merker, Anwar Abdul-Qawi, and American Birding Podcast host Nate Swick talk about birding and the bird community with moderator Maurice Baynard. Also, join Nate in San Francisco the weekend of June 17 for the next ABA Community Weekend. And don't forget to donate to the ABA's Nesting Season Appeal. 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!

It's the last Thursday of the month of May and that means it is time to bring on a panel of birding friends to talk about bird news and goings on on the American Birding Podcast. And it's another excellent panel this month featuring Mollee Brown, Nicole Jackson, and Ryan Mandelbaum talking Lesser Prairie-Chicken delisting, fire loving birds, and bird safe windows among other things. LInks to topics discussed in this episode: House committee votes to delist the Lesser Prairie-Chicken Incorporating pyrodiversity into wildlife habitat assessments for rapid post-fire management: A woodpecker case study 230K birds die annually by smashing into NYC windows. A new bill aims to save them. Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, and Spotify, and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it!

Despite being such a charismatic bird, there are very few books about our 2023 Bird of the Year Belted Kingfisher, but this week's guest Marina Richie has written one. Her 2022 title, Halcyon Journey: In Search of the Belted Kingfisher documents the seven years she spent watching a pair of kingfishers near her home in Missoula, Montana, and her relationship with the birds and with herself. She also writes about it in an upcoming issue of Birding magazine Also, Nate is back from the Biggest Week in American Birding Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, and Spotify, and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it!

In 2016, Arjan Dwarshuis undertook a massive birding year that took him from his home in the Netherlands to 6 continents, 41 countries, and just over 6,800 species of birds. His global big year was a massive feat, breaking the record set, at the time, by Noah Strycker only a year earlier. He wrote about his adventure in a book, and forgive me for this, Een bevlogan jaar, translated this year into Egnlish as The Big Year that Flew By. He joins us to look back on that year. Also, join Nate for a panel discussion in Philadelphia next week! And listeners can support this podcast and the ABA's programs and missions by contributing to our 2023 Nesting Season Appeal. Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, and Spotify, and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it!

2023 ABA Lifetime Achievement Awardee Peter Pyle has probably been one of the most influential American ornithologists of the last few decades. His Identification Guide to North American Birds, informally known as "the Pyle Guides", are widely known as the banding bible, and remain some of the most informative and intimidating bird books on birders' shelves. The much anticipated second edition of which came out this year. But the's also the chair of the ABA Checklist Committee, and was central to the effort to shepherd the birds of the Hawaiian Islands, at long last, onto the ABA Checklist. He joins us to talk about the new books, checklist committees, and Hawaii. Also, join us in Philadelphia next weekend for an event with the Drexel University Academy of Natural Sciences. Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, and Spotify, and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it!

It is the most exciting time of year for birders in the ABA Area so it seems only fitting to celebrate it with an exciting group of panelists for April's This Month in Birding. Host Nate Swick is joined by Jennie Duberstein, Andrés Jimenez, and Jordan Rutter to talk about vulture love, nature TikTok, and Night Parrot skulls. Come for the spring migration talk and stay for the bird personality profiles. Also, don't forget to sign up for our first ABA Community Weekend! Links to articles discussed in this episode: They're Not Pretty, but Turkey Vultures Have Grace TikTok's Falco tinnunculus: Getting to Know Urban Wildlife through Social Media CT scans offer insights on Australia's rare Night Parrot Flamingoes have big personalities—and their friendships prove it Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, and Spotify, and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it!

The sporting world is full of bird mascots. While there are countless eagles, hawks, and cardinals there are no, so far as we know, Belted Kingfishers. But that might change thanks to the efforts of students at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. This flagship university has a mascot vacancy that, according to guest Spencer Wilken, should be filled by our 2023 Bird of the Year. Spencer's story is featured in the April 2023 issue of Birding and she joins us to talk about the peculiar politics of bird mascots. Also, the bird flu pandemic hits California Condors. 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!

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. In this encore episode, host Nate Swick and Colombian birders Diego Calderón (The Birders Show) and Eliana Ardila (Birding by Bus) 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. Also, a throw back to the very first episode and Nate's very first trip to Colombia. 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!

Birders have long considered the tyrant flycatchers, in particular the Empidonax species and Pewees to be one of the most difficult identification concerns in North America. Author Cin-Ty Lee and illustrator Andrew Birch seek to calm the fears of frustrated birders across the ABA Area with their new Field Guide to North American Flycatchers: Empidonax and Pewees, out just in time for spring migration. They join host Nate Swick to talk about what birders need to know about this group of birds. Also, join us for an ABA Community Weekend! Our first one is in Toronto, Ontario later this month! 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!

Spring is in the air in March, at least theoretically across much of the ABA Area. And the last Thursday of the montg means This Month in Birding, our monthy panel discussion the covers all the important and not-so-important bits of birding news from the month that was. This month's panel features Brodie Cass Talbott and Sarah Swanson from Portland Audubon and aeroecologist Mikko Jimenez talking Audubon's name, Bell Bowl Prairie, and what to do about the famous Flaco the Eagle-Owl. Links to stories discussion in this episode: National Audubon Society Announces Decision to Retain Current Name U.S. birds' Eastern, Western behavior patterns are polar opposites Priceless Bell Bowl Prairie Demolished in Rockford Latin American and Caribbean researchers detail colonialism in ornithology Flaco, Central Park Zoo Owl, Tastes Freedom and Isn't Rushing to Return 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!

Birding is booming in Colombia helped, in part, by bird fairs and festivals held throughout the country for Colombian birders in addition to the increased interest shown by visiting birders from around the world. Last month, host Nate Swick got to visit the Colombia Birdfair in Calí, where he met Jose Manuel Martinez, a Colombian birder, and one of a team of birders putting on the event. He's had a front row seat to Colombia's fascinating rise as not only a birding destination, but a birding culture. Interested in traveling to some of the places we talk about? Check out the ABA's trip to Colombia later in 2023! Also, the California Spotted Owl finally gets endangered species protection. 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!

We are in a golden age of bird migration science, and birders can only wonder at the ways in which we learn about bird migration in the 21st Century. Rebecca Heisman's new book, "Flight Paths: How a Passionate and Quirky Group of Pioneering Scientists Solved the Mystery of Bird Migration" tells the story of bird migration research to the present, with all the amazing techniques and entertaining characters involved in figuring so much of it out. Also, the Kowa Scopers are our champions for Champions of the Flyway. 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!

Birding editor Ted Floyd returns to join host Nate Swick for "Birding, Annotated". In the doldrums of early March, both Ted and Nate each took a birding outing to a local spot and return chat about it. Hear their thoughts on the coming spring, junco diversity, counting birds in eBird, the importance of the regular checklist. Check out Ted's checklist from Lafayette, Colorado, and Nate's from Greensboro, North Carolina. Also, the Dusky Tetraka is back! Or perhaps more accurately, no one was really looking for it. 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!

2022 was an exceptional year for rare bird sightings in the ABA Area, with no fewer than three first ABA records and an absolute avian smorgasbord of interesting and unexpected records from all corners of the US and Canada. As difficult as it is to choose the best, North American Birds editor Amy Davis and writer and teacher Tim Healy join host Nate Swick to attempt to do so, or at the very least, have some fun remembering the highlights of last year. Also, Nate is back from a fantastic trip to the Colombia Birdfair. 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!

February might be the shortest month, but that doesn't mean it gets the short shrift when it comes to This Month in Birding. We've got a great panel this month that absolutely adores as is appropriate for the season. Jody Allair from Birds Canada, Sarah Bloemers of the Bird Sh*t Podcast, and our friend Nick Lund, the Birdist, join us to talk about Steller's Jay splits, Hawaiian Island Restoration, the possible return of the Dodo, and much more! Links to stories discussed in this episode: eBird Exotic Species Update Steller's Jay Might be Multiple Species Lahua Island Restoration Efforts A "De-Extinction" Company Wants to Bring Back the Dodo 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!

You don't have to be a birder for a long time to appreciate that birds are capable of producing an astonishing array of colors and patterns, even those beyond what our weak human eyes can discern. Hidden in that avian rainbow are clues to bird taxonomy and evolution, which is the work of our guest Whitney Tsai Nakashima, a researcher at Occidental College's Moore Lab of Zoology. Also, can hummingbirds inspire robot drones? 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!

Young birders who have participated in the ABA's Camp Avocet or Maine's well known Hog Island Audubon Camp, are no doubt familiar with Holly Merker. But that only scratches the surface of her contributions to the birding world. A former member of the ABA's Recording Standards and Ethics Committee, and one of the authors of the well-received and timely Ornitherapy, she is the recipient of the ABA's Award for Conservation and Education, formerly the Betty Peterson Award. She joins The American Birding Podcast to talk about mindful birding and applying ethics. Also, the wild story of the Pfeilstorch. 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!

When it was first released in 1983, Peter Harrison's Seabirds: An Identification Guide was immediately hailed as a classic of the birding literature, an accolade it not relinquished in 40 years. And so it was with much excitement that Peter released the New Identification Guide in 2021, practically a different and far more comprehensive book. Peter Harrison is an artist, an author and a conservationist, an MBE, and still perhaps the authority on the birds of the world's largest biome. Plus, an ignoble end to a first ABA Area record. 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!

We have reached the end of the first month of 2023 and it is once again time for This Month in Birding on The American Birding Podcast. For this panel we welcome a fascinating group of birders to geek out a little about birds. Martha Harbison, Dexter Patterson, and Jordan Rutter join us to talk about molt terminology, shushers, bright white woodcock tails and more. Links to topics discussed in this podcast: WhatsApp-ened to bird news? Moult terminology. Let's make it simpler! 'Astonishing' snowy owl spotted in Southern California neighborhood Eurasian Woodcock has the brightest feathers ever measured A lyrebird at Taronga Zoo has been mimicking the "evacuate now" alarm 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!

Birding magazine editor and all-around bird-knower Ted Floyd is back for another bout of Random Birds. He joins host Nate Swick, a big bird list, and a random number generator to create podcast magic. This session includes a number of holarctic species, a pair of warblers and one of Ted's 10 favorite bird species. Well, maybe… Plus, some thoughts and the most gull rich metro in 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!

Much of North America is gripped in the depths of winter. It's cold. It's snowy. It's frequently unpleasant. But for those that push through, the birding can be oh so rewarding. This is especially true in places where the winter hits hardest. Diehard Minnesota birder Erik Bruhnke is guide for Victor Emanuel Nature Tours and a stalwart at birding festivals. He joins Nate to talk about winter birding, leading bird tours and cool bird facts. Also, Nate talks Costa Rica birding and a frustrating anti-feeder law. 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!

Happy New Year List! It's finally time to celebrate our 2023 Bird of the Year, the Belted Kingfisher! And to help jumpstart a year of kingfisher content, we're excited to welcome this year's artist, Liz Clayton Fuller. Host Nate Swick chatted with Liz about kingfishers, her 2023 cover art "Queenfisher", and her work streaming art on Twitch. I think you'll agree that she is a delight. Also, Nate shares his first Belted Kingfisher experience and invites listeners to send theirs to [email protected]. 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!

Thanks to all our listeners and supporters for another exceptional year. To wrap up 2022, we welcome back some insightful and entertaining birder friends to the last This Month in Birding for the year. We're joined by Popular Science's Purbita Saha, science writer Ryan Mandelbaum, and The Birdist, Nick Lund to talk about the biggest birding trends of 2022 and our best birding experiences of the year. Links to article discussed in this episode: New Shazam for Birds will Identify that Chipping For You Female Blue Tits Sing Frequently Old Bones Suggest Presence of Thick-billed Parrots in the Southwest 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!

ABA staffers Katinka Domen and Ted Floyd recently accompanied an ABA excursion to the land of penguins and albatrosses. They join host Nate Swick to talk about what it's like to visit the southernmost continent on Earth, and what ecotourism looks like in this unique place. Also, the ABA Bird of the Year 2023 is Belted Kingfisher! 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!

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 2022. 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. Or yourself, we don't judge. We are joined by 10,000 Birds book reviewer Donna Schulman and Birding magazine editor Frank Izaguirre to talk about what we loved this year in bird books. For a full list of the books discussed, please see the ABA Podcast website. 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!

One of the issues that the birding community has been reckoning with for the last several years is how we can encourage a broader coalition of nature enthusiasts to join us and to share the joy of birding. It's an issue that Dr. Drew Lanham has given a great deal of thought. Lanham is a distinguished professor of wildlife ecology at Clemson University, a recent MacArthur Genius Grant recipient, and his memoir, The Home Place: Memoirs of a Colored Man's Love Affair With Nature was published in 2017. In this encore episode from 2018, he joins host Nate Swick to talk about his experiences as a black man who loves what he calls one of "the whitest things you can do". Also, a small adjustment in our winter finch expectations. 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!

Happy Thanksgiving to those celebrating! How about a fun bird discussion to go along with our one and only bird-related holiday? Nate Swick is joined by Bird Sh*t's Mo Stych, aeroecologist Mikko Jimenez, and the ABA's own Greg Neise to talk about eBird status and trends, hybrid chickadees, bird rediscoveries, and our avian zodiac signs. Links to topics discussed in this episode: Smartphone-based Study Reveals Mental Health Benefits of Birding Evaluating crowdsourced data to Quantify Inequitable Access to Urban Biodiversity. Hybrid Birds in Human-altered Landscapes Researchers Rediscover the Black-naped Pheasant-Pigeon What is Your Birth Month Bird? 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!

The ABA is gearing up to announce its 2023 Bird of the Year but we're not ready to say good-bye to the year of the Burrowing Owl just yet. With that in mind, we welcome Colleen Wisinski and Susanne Marczak of the San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance's Burrowing Owl Recovery Program to talk about their efforts to protect the local population of Burrowing Owls and what they've learned about the species in doing so. Also, Nate is back from a great Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival. 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!

A warmer and drier world means, unfortunately, a world in which wildfire becomes a greater risk. We know, all too well, the risk these fires pose to wild places, but there is surprisingly little we know about the risk to wildlife. That is the work of Dr. Olivia Sanderfoot, a researcher at UCLA looking at the impacts of wildfire smoke on wild birds and trying to answer a few of those increasingly relevant questions. Also, a new bird endurance record! 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!

If the English language is an amalgamation of words from thousands of other languages and cultures, then English common bird names are that writ small. They're a hodgepodge of from every possible source and an endless supply of amazing bird history and trivia. WINGS guide Susan Myers's new work, called The Bird Name Book, is a fascinating combination of etymology and ornithology, and she joins us to talk about it. Also, a really cool new study about convergent evolution. 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!

It's the end of October and time for our monthly This Month in Birding panel. This week features a fun crew with MD/DC Bird Atlas coordinator Gabriel Foley, Birding magazine editor Frank Izaguirre, and Sarah Swanson, author of the new Best Little Book of Birds: Oregon Coast. The panel geeks out over woodpecker brains, commiserates over the sobering State of the Birds, and suggests exciting bird costume ideas for Halloween, among other things. Links to topics discussed in this episode: 2022 State of the Birds Reveals Widespread Losses of Birds in all Habitats Never Before Seen Colorful Bird Hybrid Surprises Scientists Even a Small Amount of Spilled Oil Damages Seabird Feathers Woodpecker Brains Process Their Own Tree-Drumming as if its Birdsong 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!

Every spring, thousands of Red Knots congregate on the Delaware Bay to take advantage of the horseshoe crab spawn. Fueled by crab eggs they finish a migration that spans from the southern tip of South America to the northern reaches of North America. That essential link in this migratory chain is, once again, under threat, which concerns the environmental law group Earthjustice and partners. Tim Preso of the Biodiversity Defense Program is here to talk about what birders need to know about this new threat. Also, check out the new ABA Community! 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!

Baby birds are arguably one of the great identification frontiers of birding. Try to identify a gangly, fluffy mess of a bird and you immediately recognize the need for a real resource to help you out. Artist and bird rehabilitator Linda Tuttle-Adams is the author of a new book, Baby Bird Iidentification: A North American Guide, to set us right. She joins the American Birding Podcast to talk about identification of baby birds and why bird rehabilitation matters. Also, the winter finch report is out! 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!

We're certainly in the golden age of bird science, with more birders, more researchers, and more tools available to both of them to solve many of the great ornithological mysteries and to marvel at the capabilities of birds. National Audubon and a few bird science partners have put a lot of this modern science in a sleek simple package called the Bird Migration Explorer, a guide to the annual journeys of 450 birds in the Americas. Audubon scientists Melanie Smith and Chad Witko join us to talk the explorer and the wonders of bird migration. Plus, a Duck Stamp art winner with a familiar name. 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!

It's time for This Month in Birding with Jody Allair, Jennie Duberstein, and Sean Milnes. The panel joins host Nate Swick to talk about the biggest bird news of the month with a wide-ranging discussion that covers a last gasp for the 'Akikiki, how vultures reduce carbon emissions, the state of the exotic bird trade and the answer to the question birders know all too well, "What's your favorite bird?" Links to topics discussed in this episode: Important Changes to Exotic Birds in eBird 'Akikiki Rescued Amidst Extinction Crisis Vultures Prevent Tens of Millions of Carbon Emissions Every Year Could Songbirds Be Traded to Extinction? 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! Thanks to Visit Tallahassee for sponsoring this episode!

There is nothing like birding the American tropics, among iconic families like toucans, motmots, antbirds, tanagers, and more! Both Birding editor Ted Floyd and podcast host Nate Swick were fortunate enough to take part in this birding splendor in recent weeks, Ted in Colombia and Nate in Panama, and they share their experiences through their eBird checklists in another edition of the "eBird Annotated" series. Links to the checklists discussed: Valle Bonito, Panama Finca Candalaria, Panama Playa Rico, Colombia 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!

Several years ago, birding dads Ted Floyd and Nate Swick recorded their first Birding Without Tears episode, but they told only half the story. What about birding moms?? To help tell the rest of the story, I'm joined by Seattle-based writer Bryony Angell, who draws on her experience as a birding mom and her past as a birding kid to offer insight into a topic that many birders deal with at some point–"how do I get my kids to go birding and all of us have a good experience?" Also, Nate talks Panama. Wanna travel with the ABA? Check out our 2023 lineup. 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!

ABA Birders overlook Mexican birding at their own peril. The nation just to the south of the ABA Area hosts amazing culture, friendly people, and fantastic birds. Guest host Frank Izaguirre welcomes Mexican birder, artist, and photographer Jesús Antonio "Chucho" Moo Yam, who brings tales of birding adventure and community involvement, and reports on the the growth of ecotourism in Mexico. Also, check out the new Codebreakers feature in Birding magazine! 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!

The first week of September is the official start of fall, meteorologically at least, though ornithologically it's been on for weeks. It's a wonderful season for birding and general naturing, but it does require a certain mindset and certain strategies. Who better, then, to talk about it than two legends of the fall, Greg Neise and Amy Davis. They join host Nate Swick to talk about what to expect as birds start moving south. Also, we're hosting our 2023 Bird of the Year party in Nashville, Tennessee! More information to come. 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!

At the end of every month, we host a roundup of recent bird news on the American Birding Podcast. For August we're thrilled to welcome Stephanie Beilke, Jordan Rutter, and Brodie Cass Talbott to the panel to talk about homogenization of bird species, bird habitats in urban landscapes, wild Rock Pigeons, and how birding has changed in our lifetimes. Link to articles discussed in this episode: As more bird species go extinct, those left may be more alike The strange reason migrating birds are flocking to cities Rare wild ancestors of domestic pigeon found on Scottish islands Here's How Drastically Birding Has Changed Over the Past 50 Years 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!

One of the most iconic and beloved birds of the North American west is the Clark's Nutcracker, the highlight of anyone's trip to the high country. It will come as no surprise to anyone that the bird's relationship to the ecosystem goes beyond begging for trail mix from hikers, a fascinating symbiosis that was recently the topic of Glacier National Park's Headwaters podcast, whose host, Peri Sasnett, joins us to talk nutcrackers and conservation. Also, changes to the ABA Checklist are here, with more potentially on the way. 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!

Earlier this year the ABA was delighted to award our Lifetime Achievement Award to a pair of birders who have made a very big impact not only on the places where they live, but on the birding community across the continent. J. Drew Lanham is a birder, poet, academic, award-winning memoirist, and JB Brunfield is an environmental educator, artist, and the undefeated Big Year champion of Cuyahoga County, Ohio. We welcome them both to talk about the state of birding, mentorship, and whether Ohio or South Carolina are better for birds. 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!

Close observers of the ABA might remember when we launched a new publication completely produced by a team of teen birders from all over the ABA Area. It's called The Fledgling, and after two issues it is well on its way to being something special. Hannes Leonard and Adrianna Nelson and members of The Fledgling team and they join Nate Swick to talk about this publication and the needs of young birder more generally. Also, why do field guides to the US and Canada call themselves field guides to "North America"? 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!

July is awfully hot across most of the ABA Area, and we've got a panel with no shortage of hot takes for the July 2022 This Month in Birding. Martha Harbison, Nicole Jackson, and Nick Lund join host Nate Swick to talk about national birds, woodpecker myths, ravens, macaws, and how your brain works when you bird. Don't forget to join the ABA for FREE coffee or join Nate in Panama in September! Links to topics discussed: Study Upends Theory that Woodpeckers have Shock-absorbant heads Common Ravens Repopulating the Eastern US Spix's Macaws Return to the Wild Study Examines Memory in Birdwatchers 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!

Back in May of this year, the American Birding Association announced the hiring of Nikki Belmonte as the organization's newest Executive Director. She comes to us with a background in non-profit management, environmental education, and as a hobby birder. We're excited to welcome her to the podcast to talk about birding community, CBCs, and the best flannel to cover up your nerdy bird shirt. Also, hoat is the deal with the Hoatzin? 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!

Birding magazine editor and all-around bird-knower Ted Floyd is back for another bout of Random Birds. He joins host Nate Swick, a big bird list, and a random number generator to create podcast magic. They talk Eared Grebes, Black Vultures, and whatever other birds the magic number tells us to talk about. Also, the Duck Stamp is back and you can get yours at the ABA! Join the ABA and get a FREE bag of Song Bird Coffee! 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!

Birders love bird books, and we at the American Birding Podcast love to get together to discuss bird books in the Birding Book Club segment. Donna Schulman from the website 10,000 Birds and Birding magazine's Frank Izaguirre join Nate Swick to talk about our favorite Bird and Birding Reference guides. It's a broad topic, but if you're looking for books to fill out your bird library, we're here to help. For links to the books discussed on this episode, head to the ABA website. 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!

It's the last episode of the month and that means it's time for This Month in Birding, featuring a fun panel of ABA friends discussing the biggest birding news of the month and more. On our panel this month, Sarah Bloemers from the hilarious Bird Sh*t podcast, Frank Izaguirre of the ABA's Birding magazine, and aeroecologist and birder Mikko Jimenez. They join host Nate Swick to talk Grasshopper Sparrow success, a new invasive bird in the UK, and the features you'd want in your ultimate birding vehicle. Links to articles discussed: Recovery of one of North America's Most Endangered BirIt'sds Reaches Historic Milestone Scientists Develop New Methods to Improve Mapping of Bird Migrations Britain's Birds At Risk from Asian Songbird And also a link to the Twitchers documentary Frank mentions 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!

Mention Panama to a bunch of birders and typically only one place comes to mind - beautiful Canopy Tower. A former radar station and military installation west of Panama Cit, Canopy Tower has, over the last couple decades, transformed into one of the most well-regarded ecolodges in the Americas. And when you talk about Canopy Tower you cannot help but talk about Carlos Betancourt, whose work as a guide and mentor has helped to put Canopy Tower on the map and help establish a community of guides throughout Latin America. He joins us to talk about his own journey into birding, and his favorite things about showing Panama to eager birders. Want to see it for yourself? Join Nate and the ABA in Panama this fall! Also, bird flu hit Northern Gannet colonies on both sides of the Atlantic. 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!