BirdNote Daily

Protecting Rivers and Eagles from Invasive Plants

17 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

In the 1990s, eagles in the Southeastern U.S. began dying of a mysterious brain disease. Many years of research identified the culprit: a cyanobacteri...

The Heart of a Bird

16 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Birds’ four-chambered hearts run larger than those of mammals, relative to body size, and they are coupled with extremely efficient cardiovascular s...

The Majestic Gyrfalcon

15 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Gyrfalcons are the largest falcons in the world, with a wingspan of almost four feet and weighing almost five pounds. The name “Gyrfalcon” derives...

A Murder, a Party, a Stare or a Siege

14 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Collective nouns are a mixture of poetry, alliteration, and description. Victorians often made up creative names for groups of birds, as a parlor game...

A Tool-Using Nuthatch

13 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

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 ...

Find a Volunteer Opportunity that Works for You

12 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Consider finding a local conservation group that’s doing work that matters to you — beach cleanups, volunteer bird surveys, keeping local parks be...

Keeping Cats Indoors

11 Jan 2024

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 ...

Nest Boxes for All Sorts of Birds

10 Jan 2024

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...

eBird: Contribute to Science While Birding

09 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

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 goin...

One Million People Taking Action for Birds

08 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

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...

Common Murre, Underwater Flyer

07 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

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 ...

Kinglets in Winter

06 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

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...

Frigatebirds' Kleptoparasitism

05 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

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 ...

The Secret Stash of Eggshells

04 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Developing eggshells requires a key ingredient — calcium — in larger quantities than the female typically has in her bloodstream. Just how diff...

Day Scott on Recovering with Help from Birds

03 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

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 kitche...

A Hummingbird Hospital in a Mexico City Apartment

02 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

Catia Lattouf cares for dozens of hummingbirds from her home!In Mexico City, 73-year-old Catia Lattouf started a hummingbird hospital — in her apart...

Winter Romance - Common Goldeneyes

01 Jan 2024

Contributed by Lukas

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 i...

Ptarmigan in Winter

31 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Both the Willow Ptarmigan and these White-tailed Ptarmigan, feathered mostly brown in summer, are utterly transfigured by an autumn molt. As snow begi...

Dove or Pigeon?

30 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

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 ci...

Treeswifts: Exquisite Minimalists

29 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The treeswifts of India, Southeast Asia, New Guinea, and beyond make their nests out of bits of plants and feathers and hold it all together with some...

Pinpointing a Bird in a Forest by Ear

28 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Juan Pablo Culasso is a nature recordist based in Colombia. Here, he describes how he uses a parabolic microphone to record a singing bird. Juan Pablo...

Why Some Birds Sing in the Winter

27 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

By late January, some resident birds, such as the Northern Mockingbird, are beginning their spring singing. When you step outside on a particularly su...

How Did Bobwhites Get to Cuba?

26 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Cuba is home to a unique population of Northern Bobwhites, with plumage patterns and short bills that set them apart from bobwhites on mainland North ...

Why Birds Eat Snow

25 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In the depths of winter, when open water is frozen over, it can be challenging for birds to stay hydrated. Some birds eat the frozen water all around ...

Graylag Goose

24 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The goose of today’s farmyards was domesticated about 3,000 years ago from the Graylag Goose, the wild species found today throughout much of Europe...

How Feathers Insulate

23 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

A single Canada Goose has between 20 and 25 thousand feathers. Some are designed to help the bird fly or shed water. Many are the short, fluffy kind, ...

Birding 101: The Fear of Getting Started

22 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

For folks looking to try birding for the first time, getting started can be daunting. Should you learn every species’ call, every subtle feather pat...

Building Birds with LEGO

21 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Thomas Poulsom is a hobbyist LEGO builder best known for his models of birds. But making birds out of bricks isn't easy. That’s why he uses special ...

The Laughing Goose

20 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The hoots of the Greater White-fronted Goose inspired a nickname, the “Laughing Goose.”  A little smaller than Canada Geese, these gray-brown bir...

Long-eared Owl - You Don’t See Me!

19 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Long-eared Owls aren’t rare, and they don’t live in remote locations. But their plumage and habits make them incredibly elusive. The mixture of wa...

The Andean Cock-of-the-Rock

18 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The Andean-Cock-of-the-Rock sounds like a cross between a chainsaw and a squealing pig. The national bird of Peru, male birds of this species sport a ...

Museum Eggs Help Solve Mysteries

17 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

There are five million bird eggs stowed away in museums across the world — and the study of eggs, called oology, can give us great insight into bird...

How Much Do Birds Eat?

16 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

There used to be a saying about somebody who doesn’t eat much — “she eats like a bird.” But how much does a bird typically eat? As a rule of t...

In Winter, Puffins Lead Very Different Lives

15 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Every summer, puffins — like this Horned Puffin — grow blazingly colorful layers over the bases of their huge beaks. But in the winter, puffins le...

Dwain Vaughns, II, on Seeing Plane Physics in Birds

14 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Dwain Vaughns, II, worked as a pilot for 11 years until he developed a rare chronic pain condition called complex regional pain syndrome after an acci...

Winter - Nature’s Cold Storage

13 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

For birds and other animals with good natural insulation, winter provides a striking benefit as they scavenge. Bacteria function very slowly or not at...

The Sword-billed Hummingbird

12 Dec 2023

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

11 Dec 2023

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...

Great Black-backed Gull, North Atlantic Predator

10 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Great Black-backed Gulls have a reputation as serious predators of other birds. During the nesting season, they’ll prey on eggs and nestlings of oth...

Sanderlings

09 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Here and there along winter shorelines, little flocks of pale, silvery shorebirds probe at the water's edge, keeping pace with each wave's ebb and flo...

How Birds Fly

08 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The secret to birds’ flight starts with the shape of their wings. They’re curved in a way that causes air to flow more slowly under the wing than ...

Seabirds, Trees and Coral

07 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Palmyra Atoll is a ring-shaped island encircling a lagoon in the South Pacific. The atoll lost many native trees due to U.S. military activity during ...

Christine Okon on Accessible Bird Events

06 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

After Christine Okon was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2012, she found herself falling behind on birding walks when the group trudged across hi...

Great Horned Owl Duet

05 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The 22-inch Great Horned Owl has two tufts of feathers that stick up from the top of its head. This owl is difficult to see, but it's often heard duri...

Kererū: Pigeons That Get Tipsy

04 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Kererū, green-blue pigeons native to New Zealand, like to sun themselves after dining on fruit. But in warm summer months, the bird’s sunbathing ha...

Listening to Nuthatches

03 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Nuthatches rank high on the list of favorite backyard birds. Compact and stub-tailed, they climb down tree trunks and along the underside of branches ...

Why Penguin Feathers Don't Freeze

02 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Gentoo Penguins live in the frigid waters of the Atlantic. Only recently have scientists begun to unravel why penguin feathers don’t freeze. An elec...

Ontario’s Birdhouse City

01 Dec 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Driving down a country road in eastern Ontario, there’s a surprising sight by the roadside: dozens of vibrantly coloured, eclectic birdhouses sittin...

Building Nature Trails Accessible to Blind People

30 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

When Juan Pablo Culasso spends time outside, he often encounters people thinking he doesn’t belong out there as a blind person – despite the fact ...

Swans Come Calling

29 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Trumpeter Swans land in a plowed field to forage for remnant potatoes, grain, and other waste crops. This swan is among the largest of all waterfowl; ...

Giant Owls of Cuba

28 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The Cuban Giant Owl, now extinct, was 3½ feet tall and weighed 20 pounds — the largest of all known owls. It had very small wings, running after it...

A Library of Feathers

27 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Esha Munshi co-founded the Feather Library, a digital library that collects and documents the feathers of Indian birds. Launched in 2021, the library ...

A Pigeon-eyed View of the World

26 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Pigeons — and other birds with eyes on the sides of their heads — have a different view of the world from that of creatures with forward-facing ey...

Common Redpoll

25 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The tiny Common Redpoll, one of the smallest members of the finch family, weighs only as much as four pennies, yet it survives the cold and darkness o...

Female Birds Sing in the Tropics

24 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In temperate climates like North America, it’s often male songbirds that sing the most. Typically the males migrate north before females and establi...

What's with the Wattles?

23 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Birds like male turkeys or barnyard roosters have a wrinkly, bumpy flap of red skin called a wattle. But what are wattles for? Birds can’t sweat, so...

The Jay Game

22 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Many jays, including this California Scrub-Jay, store food for sustenance in harsher seasons. An individual bird may cache nuts, insects, and even wor...

The Red Warbler: Mexico’s Little Red Queen

21 Nov 2023

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...

Bill Shape Equals Food Source

20 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

A fine woodworker has a chest full of tools, each designed for a specific task. Birds also have highly refined tools-their bills. The size and shape o...

Fairy-Wrens - To Duel or Duet?

19 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The Red-backed Fairy-Wren, a tiny songbird living the Australian scrublands, is highly territorial and promiscuous. The male can’t be sure the eggs ...

How Long Does a Robin Live?

18 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

If a young American Robin survives its first winter, its chances of survival go up. But robins still don’t live very long. The oldest robins in your...

The Love of Birds is Contagious

17 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

When BirdNote’s Executive Director Nick Bayard joined BirdNote, he knew it would involve sharing the joy and wonder of birds with our listeners, but...

BirdNote’s Chirpy Cheerful Theme Song

16 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Listeners are always curious about the origin of BirdNote's theme song. In this show, learn how Grammy-Award winning artist Nancy Rumbel and the BirdN...

Let the Birds do the Talking

15 Nov 2023

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...

Behind the Scenes

14 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

It takes a lot to bring you the rich sounds of birds yodeling, cooing, and screeching to you each day. It's a meticulous process of researching, writi...

Join the Flock

13 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Songbirds in winter flocks benefit from having other birds nearby. They can recognize warning signals from other species and follow them to sources of...

Loggerhead Shrike

12 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Loggerhead Shrikes are found across much of the United States in open country, like pasture and sagebrush. Male shrikes are well known for impaling th...

Migrations: Veeries Predict Hurricanes

11 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In some years, tawny-colored thrushes called Veeries cut their breeding season short. Researchers discovered that Veeries tend to stop breeding early ...

Decibels Per Gram

10 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Some of the tiniest birds in the world have impressively loud voices. The Ruby-crowned Kinglet — that bright-headed sprite of the treetops — would...

Common Potoo: Branch or Bird?

09 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Common Potoos are champions of camouflage. In the daytime these nocturnal creatures perch perfectly still on branches: heads pointed upward, bodies ou...

Providing Water for Birds

08 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

From chickadees to Cooper’s Hawks, most birds love a good bath. Some birds get the fluids they need from their food, but many birds need a drink at ...

The Striped Owl: A Yelling Owl

07 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Striped Owls are known for their diverse vocalizations. Their repertoire includes deep hoots, eerie screeches, and a range of calls that help give an ...

Using Machine Learning to Forecast Bird Migration

06 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

PhD student Mikko Jimenez and his colleagues are using machine learning to improve our ability to forecast bird migration. Machine learning is a type ...

What the Pacific Wren Hears

05 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

What does the Pacific Wren hear in a song? It's a long story. What we hear as a blur of sound, the bird hears as a precise sequence of sounds, the vis...

Urban Cooper’s Hawks

04 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Next time you’re in the city, look up. When pigeons are wheeling, you might just see a different bird in pursuit. The Cooper’s Hawk, once known as...

Birding for a Better World

03 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Molly Adams founded the Feminist Bird Club to try to make birding safer and more inclusive. Along with coauthor Sydney Golden Anderson, Molly wrote a ...

Roadrunner

02 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

The Greater Roadrunner is a common species in the desert and brush country of the Southwest, but its full range reaches from California to western Lou...

The Music of Birds Migrating in the Night

01 Nov 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Ornithologist Bill Evans has helped us better understand the sounds that birds make as they migrate at night. Known as nocturnal flight calls, many sp...

The Vampire Finch

31 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Vampire Ground-Finches menace their victims in broad daylight, stabbing holes in their flesh, then devouring the blood. During the dry season, when th...

There’s More Than One Way to Climb a Tree

30 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

No bird is better adapted for climbing up a tree trunk than a woodpecker. The foot of this Pileated Woodpecker is ideal for clinging, and its relative...

How a Bird Came to Look Like a Caterpillar

29 Oct 2023

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:...

What Makes an Efficient Flying Bird?

28 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Every bird species uses its wings a little differently, and some are specialized for highly efficient flight. But that means going without other abili...

Surfing with Scoters

27 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Surf Scoters are perfectly at home in the element they’re named for. They swim smack in the middle of what surfers call the impact zone: Just where ...

The Birds of Yoga

26 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Pigeon Pose. Crow Pose. Eagle pose. Bird of paradise. Writer Trisha Mukherjee, who is also a yoga teacher, discusses the connections these bird-inspir...

The Sociable Weaver’s Colonial Nest

25 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

When it comes to nests, common sense suggests that large birds build large nests, and small birds build small nests. But in fact, some species of smal...

Ornate Hawk-Eagle: the Elegant Eagle

24 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Ornate Hawk-Eagles stand out from other raptors with their impressive crest that looks like an elegant crown in adults, and a punk hairdo over the whi...

Altitudinal Migration

23 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Yellow-eyed Juncos sometimes make a migration of sorts — not from north to south, but from the high mountains to the lowlands or the other way aroun...

Strange Sounds

22 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

What an amazing array of sounds birds have to offer! The call of a male Yellow Rail sounds like someone tapping two small stones together. And Turkey ...

The Crows’ Night Roost

21 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Crow experts think big communal roosts provide warmth, protection from predators, shared knowledge about food sources, and a chance to find a mate. Fo...

Letter to a Kentucky Warbler

20 Oct 2023

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 ...

Hummingbirds - To Feed or Not to Feed?

19 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Have you wondered about the right time to remove your hummingbird feeders during fall? Consider leaving your feeders hanging for a week or two after y...

Spark Bird: Thomas Poulsom and the LEGO Robin

18 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

As he trained to be an arborist, Thomas Poulsom started developing two new interests: birds and building with LEGO bricks. After first building a Euro...

The Return of the Extinct Little Blue Macaw

17 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Even if the name Spix's Macaw doesn’t ring a bell, you might recognize this bird. It’s Blu, from Rio, the animated film! Also known as the Little ...

Preserving John Edmonstone

16 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

John Edmonstone was born on a timber plantation in British Guiana, and enslaved by Scotsman Charles Edmonstone. He learned taxidermy techniques by acc...

Sungrebe: Baby on Board

15 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Birds have developed many strategies for protecting their young. But only one species can tuck its chicks into pouches under its wings, then fly the y...

From Alaska to Omaha, Then on to Brazil

14 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Blackpoll Warblers make one of the longest migrations taken by a songbird in the world. Blackpoll Warblers that breed in Alaska fly southeast in the f...

Letter to an Olive-sided Flycatcher

13 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode, ornithologist J. Drew Lanham reads a letter he has written to an Olive-sided Flycatcher, a beloved bird that he pleads with to visit ...

Canada Geese - Migratory or Not

12 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

It's the time of year that geese migrate south for the winter. Isn't it? So why are there so many geese still hanging around, setting up housekeeping ...

The Ballet of the Grebes

11 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

When a pair of Western Grebes decides it’s time to mate, they call loudly and approach one another. Each bird curves, then straightens, its long nec...

Ornithographies

10 Oct 2023

Contributed by Lukas

Photographer Xavi Bou creates incredible images of birds and their movements by combining his love of photography and technology with his love for bir...