BirdNote Daily

The Royal Pigeons

13 Jun 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Despite their modern reputation, pigeons were once beloved by royalty. Akbar the Great, ruler of the Mughal Empire in the 16th Century, kept over 20,0...

Juan Fernandez Firecrown

12 Jun 2026

Contributed by Lukas

The Juan Fernandez Firecrown is a critically endangered hummingbird that is only found on Robinson Crusoe Island, near Chile. Measuring more than 4 in...

Legislating is for the Birds

11 Jun 2026

Contributed by Lukas

In American democracy, elected officials work for the people. That means you can be a voice for birds by reaching out to your representatives at every...

Olive-sided Flycatcher

10 Jun 2026

Contributed by Lukas

What a comfort it would be if every bird song were as easy to recognize — and remember — as that of this Olive-sided Flycatcher. Some people think...

Sagebrush Sparrow

09 Jun 2026

Contributed by Lukas

A chill wind ruffles the feathers of a male Sagebrush Sparrow (formerly known as the Sage Sparrow), as he sings atop a tall sagebrush. It is late Febr...

The Link Between Whales, Seabirds, and a Tiny Fish

08 Jun 2026

Contributed by Lukas

In shallow waters off the coast of Massachusetts, ocean predators come from far and wide to hunt. Humpback whales join Great Shearwaters and many othe...

Spider Silk — Duct Tape for Bird Nests

07 Jun 2026

Contributed by Lukas

The spider’s web is an intricate piece of precision engineering. Made from large proteins, it’s sticky, stretchy, and tough. So it’s no surprise...

Baby Birds — Leave Them Alone

06 Jun 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Just because a young bird appears to be alone – whether on the ground or squawking loudly from a bush or tree – doesn't necessarily mean it is sic...

Cover Open Pipes To Protect Birds

05 Jun 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Open, vertical pipes are commonly used to build fences, anchor gates, and post signs. Inquisitive birds often inspect these cavities in their search f...

American Kestrel

04 Jun 2026

Contributed by Lukas

The American Kestrel is the smallest, most numerous, and most widespread North American falcon. This bird is built for speed, its long pointed wings o...

From Fishing to Conservation With Alex Troutman

03 Jun 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Wildlife biologist Alex Troutman jokes that he was always destined to be a fisherman. But Troutman family fishing trips taught Alex to appreciate bird...

Music of a City Lake

02 Jun 2026

Contributed by Lukas

A city lake is one of the most prized places in a fast, growing environment. It’s also often difficult to distinguish all of the bird calls from eac...

Rachel Carson and the Veery

01 Jun 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Rachel Carson, author of Silent Spring, and her beloved friend Dorothy Freeman shared a love of nature, and especially of one bird: the Veery, a type ...

Snake-Eagles Are Awesome

31 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

When a soaring Short-toed Snake-Eagle spots a delicious snake, it swoops down, grabs it with its talons, then tears off the snake’s head. Still on t...

Binoculars 101

30 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

A decent pair of binoculars can considerably enhance your enjoyment of birds. In this episode, birder and naturalist Dara Miles Wilson shares a crash ...

Little Birders, Big Lessons

29 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Brianna Amingwa, is an environmental educator, co-organizer of Black Birders Week and mom of two little bird-loving boys. For Black Birders Week, Bria...

Freedom Song: Harriet Tubman’s Barred Owl Call

28 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Harriet Tubman was a heroic abolitionist in the cause to end chattel slavery. She was also an excellent astronomer and naturalist — and an expert bi...

How the Woodcock’s Journeys Connect Us

27 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode, Marcus Rosten shares his involvement in a study of the American Woodcock with the New York State Department of Environmental Conserva...

Banding Birds in South Baltimore

26 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Masonville Cove in South Baltimore is a special place to study birds. Once a dumping ground for sediment dredged from the Baltimore Harbor, the Cove i...

Finding Belonging with Buffalo’s Gulls

25 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Birder and naturalist Marcus Rosten loves to watch the American Herring Gulls that flock to Freedom Park in Buffalo, New York. Once a final stop for f...

Urban Birding with Deja Perkins

24 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode, urban ecologist Deja Perkins talks about how many bird species live right within bustling cities. Whether you’re on your porch, at ...

Tennessee Warbler, Nectar Thief

23 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Tennessee Warblers love drinking nectar, but they do it without helping to pollinate flowers. By tapping a hole into the base of a flower, these warbl...

Birding for a Better World

22 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Molly Adams co-founded the Feminist Bird Club to try to make birding safer and more inclusive. Along with co-author Sydney Golden Anderson, Molly wrot...

Spark Bird: Rickie Lee Jones and the Mourning Dove

21 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Grammy-winning musician Rickie Lee Jones says her earliest memories are of sounds: running water, a bouncing ball, and the soft coos of Mourning Doves...

Voices and Vocabularies – Eastern Bluebirds

20 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

A male Eastern Bluebird stands on a wooden nestbox attached to a fence post. The bluebird’s song – and his alert presence - assert his claim to th...

What’s a Beak Made Of?

19 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Bird beaks, or bills, come in many shapes and sizes. And birds use them for just about everything: to collect food, preen, fight, court, and more. In ...

How an Ornithologist with a Microphone Made History

18 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

With today’s mobile apps and sound libraries, it’s never been easier to listen to birds on demand. But that wasn’t always the case – not until...

Reddish Egret – Lagoon Dancer

17 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

The Reddish Egret, a particularly glamorous heron, is best known for its startling antics in capturing fish. When fishing, the egret sprints across th...

Hovering is Hard Work

16 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Hummingbirds are built for hovering flight, with flexible wrists that rotate their wings in a rapid figure-eight motion that generates almost constant...

Golden-Cheeked Warbler

15 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

The Golden-cheeked Warbler is an endangered species and the only bird that nests exclusively in central Texas. Males arrive in March to stake out a te...

Keeping Cats Indoors

14 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

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 ...

The Nasally Fish Crow

13 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

The harsh caws of American Crows are one of the most familiar bird calls in North America. Fish Crows sometimes join flocks of American Crows as they ...

Singer's Brain Changes with the Seasons

12 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

In higher animals, the brain is like a Lamborghini — amazing engineering, but expensive to run. In a human, the brain uses about 10 times more energ...

World of Warblers

11 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

May is the prime month across much of North America to celebrate the return of migratory birds from the tropics. Of all those coming back, it is the w...

Hornbill – the Lockdown Bird

10 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Does staying cooped up inside with your kids sometimes drive you up the wall? Take comfort in the bird that does it year after year — the hornbill. ...

Capuchinbirds

09 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

The peace of the vast Guyanan jungle is abruptly broken with the dawn chorus of male Capuchinbirds, one of the most bizarre birds in South America. Th...

Wood Thrush Thrive In Health Forests

08 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

The fluting song of the Wood Thrush is an ethereal sound of summer in North America. During the breeding season, these robin-sized songsters serenade ...

How Noise Pollution Affects Birds

07 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Dr. Clinton Francis is a sensory ecologist who studies how noise pollution affects birds, like this Black-headed Grosbeak. On the Bring Birds Back pod...

House Wrens and Dummy Nests

06 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

There may be no busier bird during the nesting season than a male House Wren. Just a day or so after completing his spring migration from the tropics,...

Birding 101: Songs and Calls

05 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Birds make all kinds of sounds — and they can have different meanings too. In this episode of BirdNote’s Birding 101 series, learn about the many ...

Spark Bird: Dara Wilson and the Blue-gray Tanager

04 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

While Dara Wilson was working at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo in D.C., she introduced visitors to the Amazonia exhibit. She would describe the son...

The Color of Birds' Eyes

03 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Peer into the world of birds, and eyes of many different colors peer back. While eye color isn’t tied to one group of birds or another, a common pat...

Recognizing a Stranded Loon

02 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Loons are built for life in the water – so much so that their legs don’t work well on land. During migration, loons sometimes mistake wet pavement...

BirdNoir: Nestboxes and Snake Skins

01 May 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Private Eye Michael Stein investigates a possible break in when a kindly neighbor fears a snake has attacked a nestbox occupied by nesting Great Crest...

An App That Helps You Hear High-Pitched Bird Songs

30 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

For years, nature recordist Lang Elliott came up with clever ways to hear high-pitched bird songs despite his high-frequency hearing loss. Lang teamed...

Parrots Using Video Chat to Keep in Touch

29 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Knowing how clever parrots are, researchers wanted to see how they’d respond to another parrot saying hi on a tablet or phone. After being trained h...

Milkweed: A Whole Ecosystem on a Plant

28 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Milkweed plants are important to Monarch butterflies, which depend on milkweed to raise their caterpillars. But Monarchs aren’t the only ones who be...

J. Drew Lanham’s Sparrow Envy

27 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

It’s National Poetry Month in the U.S., and each year we like to celebrate by sharing our favorite contemporary writers’ work about birds. Ornitho...

Songbirds Migrate Across the Gulf of Mexico

26 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

In spring, millions of songbirds — like the Orchard Oriole — migrate north across the Gulf of Mexico, from the Yucatan to the southeastern U.S. Wh...

Scissor-tailed Flycatcher

25 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

The Scissor-tailed Flycatcher nests in the open country of Texas, Oklahoma, and the south-central region. It's an elegant bird with a slender, deeply ...

American Tree Sparrow

24 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

The American Tree Sparrow is a common winter visitor in the northern U.S. Despite their name, these sparrows stay close to the ground. When foraging, ...

Pigeons Make Milk

23 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Pigeons, one of the most ancient of domesticated animals, feed their nestlings a peculiar, milky substance, straight from the adult’s beak to the ba...

Planting Oaks for Birds

22 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Oak trees are an important resource for birds finding insects to feed their young. It takes thousands of caterpillars from an oak tree to raise a sing...

Traci Brimhall: Intimacy and the Everyday

21 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

April is National Poetry Month in the U.S., so we are featuring some of our favorite poets who write about our feathered friends. Traci Brimhall is an...

Finding the Links Between Plants and Birds

20 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

There are many great tools for identifying birds, some of them right on your phone. If you’re stumped on an unfamiliar plant species, iNaturalist is...

Cuckoos - Tent Caterpillar Birds

19 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

The Yellow-billed Cuckoo, one of two species of cuckoos in North America, lives in broadleaf forests throughout the East and riparian stands in the So...

Let The Birds Do The Talking

18 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

BirdNote is an independent nonprofit organization, and this week, we’re asking you to support BirdNote with a donation at birdnote.org. But today, r...

Contribute a Twig

17 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

This week is fundraising week at BirdNote. Today, we’re asking you to support the show by making a gift of any amount. A donation to BirdNote is lik...

Listener Support Keeps BirdNote On The Air

16 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

You’ve probably heard the expression “light as a feather.” But bird feathers aren’t just amazingly light — they’re also resilient. Somethi...

BirdNote Helps Kids Learn Their Birds

15 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

It's fundraising week at BirdNote. We hear from lots of people about how much they learn from listening to BirdNote shows. In this episode, Kim Bradmo...

Little Things Add Up

14 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

This week is fundraising week at BirdNote. The vast majority of BirdNote’s funding comes from listeners like you. It only takes a few minutes to sup...

Rachel Carson’s Muse

13 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Rachel Carson found inspiration in the work of 19th-century writer Richard Jefferies, whose work helped  Carson develop her deep sense of connection...

Who, or What, Was Mother Goose?

12 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Mother Goose was sometimes illustrated as an old country woman wearing a tall hat and riding on the back of a goose. Or sometimes as just a big, mothe...

Northern Flicker, Drummer

11 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Springtime brings the sound of a woodpecker, like the Northern Flicker, drumming on a hollow surface. Members of the woodpecker percussion band announ...

Sibelius and the Swans

10 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

In April 1915, Finnish composer Jean Sibelius wrote in his diary about seeing 16 Whooper Swans overhead. He was entranced by both the sight and the so...

Rosalie Edge And The First Hawk Sanctuary

09 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Rosalie Barrow Edge (1877-1962) was one of the 20th century’s most outspoken advocates for birds and a prominent figure in the modern American conse...

Nest Boxes For All Sorts Of Birds

08 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

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 s...

Sidney Wade – Blue

07 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

April is National Poetry Month in the United States, and to celebrate, we're featuring some of our favorite poets who write about our feathered friend...

Creating Bird Habitat at Home

06 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

One of the biggest threats to birds is the decline in biodiversity due to habitat loss — and the traditional, manicured lawn isn’t helping. Growin...

The Red Warbler: Mexico’s Little Red Queen

05 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Red Warblers only sing on sunny mornings during the breeding season — so hearing their song is as good as checking the weather forecast. Weighing le...

Probing with Sandpipers

04 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

The variety of bill sizes and shapes among the sandpipers is astounding! Many sandpipers have sensitive nerve receptors in their bill tips, so they ca...

Wonder and Awe with Aimee Nezhukumatathil

03 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

It’s National Poetry Month in the U.S., and each year we like to celebrate by sharing our favorite contemporary writers’ work about birds. Aimee N...

Marbled Godwits

02 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Marbled Godwits stand a foot and a half tall, on slender, dark legs. Their exquisitely long bills are pink, tipped in black, and just slightly up-curv...

Let BirdNote Immerse You In Soothing Birdsong

01 Apr 2026

Contributed by Lukas

BirdNote prides itself on creating a sound-rich, immersive experience for listeners every day. Today’s episode, featuring the Tufted Puffin, the Gre...

Black Kites and Wildfires

31 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

The savanna country of northern Australia is one of the most fire-prone natural habitats in the world, and its plants have evolved to thrive with freq...

Rainbow-Billed Toucan: The Flying Banana

30 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

The Keel-billed Toucan, also known as the Rainbow-billed Toucan, looks like a bird with a giant banana for a beak. They have a black body, a yellow pa...

The Songs of Desert Wrens

29 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

The Canyon Wren and Cactus Wren share common ancestry — and they’re close neighbors in the desert southwest. Yet their songs evolved along diverge...

The Tui of New Zealand

28 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

The Tui is one of New Zealand’s most remarkable birds, intelligent and with iridescent feathers. Its down-curved beak fits perfectly into native flo...

Bananaquits Love Sweets

27 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Bananaquits are tiny songbirds with a sweet tooth. Their distinctive curved bills are perfect for sipping nectar from woodland flowers and urban hummi...

Letter to a Kentucky Warbler

26 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode, ornithologist J. Drew Lanham reads a letter he has written to a Kentucky Warbler, an “uber-skulky” species that’s hard to find ...

The Stunning King Eider

25 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

The King Eider is one of the most striking sea ducks in the Northern hemisphere. This male King Eider is trying to woo a mate with soft coos and brill...

How a Bird Came to Look Like a Caterpillar

24 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

The Cinereous Mourner is a small, ashy-gray bird that lives in the forest understory of the Amazon Basin. And it’s taking mimicry to the next level:...

Dovekie At Sea

23 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Dovekie are robin-sized seabirds related to auks and puffins. Their compact, black-and-white bodies are perfect for life on the water. In winter, bird...

The Lustrous Purple Gallinule

22 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

What’s the most colorful bird in the U.S.? The Scarlet Tanager? Maybe the Painted Bunting? Well, consider one more lustrous candidate: the Purple Ga...

Chestnut-collared Longspur

21 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

The cheerful-voiced Chestnut-collared Longspur shares their northern prairie breeding range with grazing cattle. Although heavy grazing can have adver...

Flying Dinosaurs: Leaping and Gliding

20 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

For years, scientists debated whether the first flying dinosaurs, the ancestors of modern birds, began by running and making little hops off the groun...

Hilarious Bird Sounds With Becca Rowland

19 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Birds make a lot of sounds — so many that author and illustrator Becca Rowland had a hard time keeping them straight. That was until Becca began pic...

Create Bird Habitat at Home with Native Plants

18 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Birds have lost many habitats they’ve called home for millions of years, but people can help create bird habitats wherever they live. It all begins ...

The Joy of Robins with J. Drew Lanham

17 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

J. Drew Lanham is a poet and ornithologist whose work intertwines his lived experience as a Black man in the American south and his love of wilderness...

Millicent Ficken Studied How Birds Play

16 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Millicent Ficken spent her career studying bird behavior and communication. The first woman to earn a PhD in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology from Cor...

The Vulture's Iron Stomach

15 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Circling silently above the earth on broad, black wings, vultures need little introduction. We know them as nature's clean-up crew, dining on dead and...

Lifer Pie

14 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

In birding lingo, a lifer — or life bird — is any species you see or hear for the first time. Birders get very excited about lifers. Some even mar...

The Eagle, the Cactus, and the City on the Lake

13 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

In one of the most iconic founding legends of the Americas, a Golden Eagle devouring a serpent atop a cactus marked the spot where the Mexicas would b...

Robins Nest On Moving Solar Arrays

12 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Solar panels are a popular source of renewable energy, but large groupings of them — called arrays — can take up a lot of space. Chelse Prather, a...

BirdNoir: That Raptor’s an Impostor!

11 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode of BirdNoir, the Private Eye gets a call from his friend Frank, his eyes and ears in the neighborhood. He’s hearing a Red-shouldered...

The Sword-billed Hummingbird

10 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

To out-sip their competition, Sword-billed Hummingbirds have a distinct adaptation: these birds’ beaks are longer than their bodies. Found in temper...

Feathered Females in Charge

09 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Male birds are often the larger, flashier sex that courts choosy females, who in turn raise their chicks. But not always. Female phalaropes -- like th...

Connecticut Warbler

08 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Connecticut Warblers nest in the northern boreal forests, migrate through the Midwest, and winter in the rainforests of South America. Even with all t...

Baby Birds' Bizarre Beaks

07 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Most baby birds are adorable little floofs — but not all of them. The tongue and palate of estrildid finch chicks are strangely spotted and ringed. ...

Rickie Lee Jones Sings To The Birds

06 Mar 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Grammy-winning musician Rickie Lee Jones has performed on stages around the world. At home in New Orleans, she found a new audience: backyard birds! R...