Birdnote

Groove-billed Anis gather in loose groups. And with good reason. They nest communally. As many as four or five pairs of birds may use one nest, a bulky cup of twigs lined with fresh leaves. When the dominant female ani begins to lay her own eggs, the other females lay simultaneously. Up to 20 chalky white eggs have been found in one nest. All parents share the duties of incubating and raising the young. World Birding Centers and the Rio Grande Joint Venture are striving to protect and restore their habitat.More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible.  

In the 1990s, eagles in the Southeastern U.S. began dying of a mysterious brain disease. Many years of research identified the culprit: a cyanobacteria that grows on an invasive aquatic plant called Hydrilla — also known as waterthyme. Fish ingested the cyanobacteria, and eagles ate the affected fish. Biologists are now working to contain Hydrilla to prevent more harm to ecosystems. Learn more about invasive plants and their effect on birds, waterways and more on this special season of the Bring Birds Back podcast.More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible.  

Birds’ four-chambered hearts run larger than those of mammals, relative to body size, and they are coupled with extremely efficient cardiovascular systems. The energy demands of flight require these adaptations. An exercising human has a heart rate around 150 beats per minute. In contrast, an active hummingbird’s heart pumps at 1,200 beats per minute; a flying pigeon’s heart beats at 600.More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible.  

Gyrfalcons are the largest falcons in the world, with a wingspan of almost four feet and weighing almost five pounds. The name “Gyrfalcon” derives from an Old Norse word for “spear.” During the summer, you’ll find Gyrfalcons on the tundra, where they feed on arctic birds. But in the winter, some will fly as far south as the northern U.S.More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible. 

Collective nouns are a mixture of poetry, alliteration, and description. Victorians often made up creative names for groups of birds, as a parlor game. Many names bring a vision of the birds instantly to mind. How about this spring of teal? These are Green-winged Teal.More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible.

The nuthatch’s beak is all business. Long, slender, sharp: it can pluck a tiny spider from a crevice in the bark or carve a nest hole right through the outer hide of a tree. And the Brown-headed Nuthatch is even known to use tools! Picking up a flake of pine bark in its beak, the bird uses it as a lever to pry up the bark scales on a tree and get to the insects below. A resourceful bird, the nuthatch.More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible.

Consider finding a local conservation group that’s doing work that matters to you — beach cleanups, volunteer bird surveys, keeping local parks beautiful, or educating young people. If you’re short on time, donations, sharing posts on social media, and letting friends and family know about the good work a conservation group is doing all help advance their mission.  And many crowd-sourced science projects depend on people working online and identifying species in photos.More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible.  

Outdoor cats are one of the biggest threats to birds, killing over a billion a year in North America. And indoor-outdoor cats live much shorter lives than indoor-only cats. So keeping a cat indoors helps protect birds. And there are plenty of ways to make the “great indoors” more exciting for your cat. In this episode, BirdNote producer Mark Bramhill shares his experience with his cat, Pigeon, who enjoys a ‘catio’ — cat-patio — and walks on a leash.More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible.  

Birds that historically nested in the cavities of dead trees are finding natural nest holes harder to come by — but people can help. Many of these species will make use of a nest box in parks or near people’s homes. Learn how to build nest boxes tailored to a species of your choice at NestWatch. More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible.

eBird, a project of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, lets you log the bird species you observe on a smartphone app or on the web. Whether you’re going on a birding trip or enjoying birds near home, you can list the species you found on eBird. Millions of people all over the world help eBird create a detailed picture of bird populations. Data from eBird has helped guide many conservation efforts, from planning new wind farms away from where eagles fly to guiding habitat protection for declining species.More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible.

Climate change, habitat destruction, and invasive species have taken a toll on bird populations. It’s a difficult reality to face — but it’s not the end of the story. There are many things people can do to protect birds. Some actions may start small, like planting a native wildflower or taking a trip without a car. But when you combine the efforts of many people working to help birds, the effects are multiplied. BirdNote is launching a three-year campaign to inspire a million people to take action to help birds.More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible.

The Common Murre is among the few species of birds that can "fly" under water. When above the water, the 18"-long murre must flap frantically to stay aloft. But beneath the waves, with its flipper-like wings partly extended, it is a streamlined, masterful swimmer. Common Murres, black and white torpedoes with feathers, chase down fish even several hundred feet below the surface. Cornell's Macaulay Library offers audio and video of Common Murres.More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible.

The Golden-crowned Kinglet weighs six grams, about the same as two pennies, yet winters as far north as Alaska and Nova Scotia. The birds move through the forest in small flocks and feed constantly, taking in enough tiny caterpillars to maintain their internal furnace at 110°F. And their insulation keeps them warm. Their feathers make up 8% of their body weight, equivalent to the weight of the clothing of an arctic explorer.More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible.  

In the warmer regions of the world’s oceans, large seabirds called boobies plunge headfirst into the water, snatching up fish. But as a booby flies up from the waves with a fish now in its gullet, there may be another big seabird — a frigatebird — with its eye on the booby’s fresh catch. Now begins one of nature’s great chase scenes. Fortunately for boobies, frigatebirds don’t steal all their meals. Most of the time, they hunt their own seafood — perhaps a squid snapped from the ocean surface or a flying fish as it skims across the waves.More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible.

Developing eggshells requires a key ingredient — calcium — in larger quantities than the female typically has in her bloodstream. Just how different bird species supply or store calcium for egg-laying isn’t fully known. While some species seek out extra calcium from their environment, many species simply "borrow" calcium directly from their leg bones! The eggs seen here are those of an Anna's Hummingbird.More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible.

Day Scott’s interest in birds grew following a car accident that resulted in a traumatic brain injury. As she recovered, she would sit in the kitchen and watch birds at the feeder through the window. She began noticing bird behavior, like how members of the same species competed for space at the feeder. Watching the birds became a source of joy for her. Day eventually began writing stories about the birds and shared them with people along with her photos on Instagram.More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible. 

Catia Lattouf cares for dozens of hummingbirds from her home!In Mexico City, 73-year-old Catia Lattouf started a hummingbird hospital — in her apartment! She hosts dozens of hummingbirds as they recover from injuries. Catia, who once ran a French high-fashion boutique, began caring for hummingbirds in 2012, after she survived cancer that was considered terminal. She received her first injured hummingbird, and named him Gucci.More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible. 

Most duck species court and form pair bonds in winter. In the icy waters of Vermont’s Lake Champlain, Common Goldeneyes are getting hot! This male is displaying his signature move, the “head-throw-kick,” to attract a mate. Goldeneye pairs now bonding throughout the US will migrate in early spring toward breeding waters across Canada and Alaska. But the males are ramblers. After the female lays her eggs, the goldeneye male abandons his mate and parental duties. It’s common conduct among ducks!More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible.

Both the Willow Ptarmigan and these White-tailed Ptarmigan, feathered mostly brown in summer, are utterly transfigured by an autumn molt. As snow begins to mantle their world, both species, now all white, blend in superbly. But the ptarmigan pulls another trick. It adds dense white feathering on both the tops and bottoms of its feet. And its claws grow longer. The bird grows snowshoes!More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible.

The word “dove” might make you think of an elegant bird symbolizing peace, while the word “pigeon” might bring up images of rowdy flocks of city birds. But there’s no formal distinction between doves and pigeons, only a linguistic one. In many languages, the birds are one and the same. The dove and pigeon family includes some of the most beautiful birds in the world.More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible.