The American Birding Podcast

Host Nate Swick is on the road, but that doesn't mean you won't get new content! Birding 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!

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 North American Birds called Unraveling Western Flycatchers; A Case Against the Split 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!

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!

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!

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 The Wingsnappers: Lessons from an Exuberant Tropical Bird and he joins host Nate Swick to talk about it. Also, the eBird taxonomy update is coming! 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!

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 Birding Under the Influence: Cycling across America in search of Birds and Recovery. Also, a huge migration day in Chicago 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!

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 The Public Lives of Birds, 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!

Birding enthusiasts discuss topics such as rare bird sightings, rehabilitation of injured flamingos, the fallout from increased birding crowds, contrasting behaviors of eagles, wildlife adapting to urban areas, overrated and underrated fall warblers, challenges of bird identification, and a sponsorship message from the American Birding Association.

The Feminist Bird Club 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, Birding for a Better World: A Guide to Finding Joy and Community in Nature. 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!

It's a random time for Random Birds, the American Birding Podcast segment with Birding 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!