The American Birding Podcast

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

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

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 Podcasts, Stitcher, and Google Podcasts, and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it!

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 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 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 Podcasts, Stitcher, and Google Podcasts, and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it!

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! 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!