The Science of Birds
Episodes
Vagrancy: Why Some Birds End Up Far From Home
17 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
👕 Bird Merch — Get yourself some bird shirts!~~~In this episode—which is number 130—Ivan Phillipsen explores the fascinating phenomenon of ...
Random Bird Thursday: A Large Fat-eater from Patagonia
05 Mar 2026
Contributed by Lukas
In each Random Bird Thursday (RBT) episode, the goal is to highlight a bird species that probably isn't going to get featured in a full-length po...
Cuckoos
25 Feb 2026
Contributed by Lukas
👕 Bird Merch — Get yourself some bird shirts!~~~In this episode, host Ivan Phillipsen dives into the diverse and sometimes mysterious world of ...
Random Bird Thursday: An Antisocial Bottom-Feeder from the Antipodes
29 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
In each Random Bird Thursday (RBT) episode, the goal is to highlight a bird species that probably isn't going to get featured in a full-length po...
Avian Navigation: How Birds Find Their Way
18 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
👕 Bird Merch — Get yourself some bird shirts!~~~This is Episode 128. How does a bird travel thousands of miles across the globe only to return ...
Random Bird Thursday: A Fire-Loving Songbird Adorned with Black Oil Drops
08 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
In each Random Bird Thursday (RBT) episode, the goal is to highlight a bird species that probably isn't going to get featured in a full-length po...
What We Learned About Birds in 2025
03 Jan 2026
Contributed by Lukas
👕 Bird Merch — Get yourself some bird shirts!~~~Episode 127 of The Science of Birds is Ivan Phillipsen’s annual review of fascinating ornitho...
Random Bird Thursday: A Worm-slurping Mud-runner From Siberia
12 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In each Random Bird Thursday (RBT) episode, the goal is to highlight a bird species that probably isn't going to get featured in a full-length po...
Herring Gulls
04 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
👕 Bird Merch — Get yourself some bird shirts!~~~In this episode—which is number 126—Ivan Phillipsen heads to the seashore to explore the ic...
Random Bird Thursday: A Species with an Executioner’s Axe for a Face
28 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In each Random Bird Thursday (RBT) episode, the goal is to highlight a bird species that probably isn't going to get featured in a full-length po...
How Birds Breathe: The Avian Respiratory System
18 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
👕 Bird Merch — Get yourself some bird shirts!~~~This is Episode 125. Host Ivan Phillipsen takes listeners inside the amazing respiratory system...
Random Bird Thursday: A Sparrow-sized Drummer from the Neotropics
06 Nov 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In each Random Bird Thursday (RBT) episode, the goal is to highlight a bird species that probably isn't going to get featured in a full-length po...
Mockingbirds and Thrashers
31 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
👕 Bird Merch — Get yourself some bird shirts!~~~This is Episode 124. Host Ivan Phillipsen takes you on a tour of Mimidae—the New World family...
Random Bird Thursday: A Fatally Fearless Bird That Seems to Swallow Basketballs
09 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In each Random Bird Thursday (RBT) episode, the goal is to highlight a bird species that probably isn't going to get featured in a full-length po...
Bird Subspecies: Another Layer of Diversity
02 Oct 2025
Contributed by Lukas
👕 Bird Merch — Get yourself some bird shirts!~~~In Episode 123 Ivan Phillipsen explores the fascinating world of subspecies—the diversity tha...
Random Bird Thursday: A Master of the Sky That Flies Fast and Far
11 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In each Random Bird Thursday (RBT) episode, the goal is to highlight a bird species that probably isn't going to get featured in a full-length po...
Sage Grouse
02 Sep 2025
Contributed by Lukas
👕 Bird Merch — Get yourself some bird shirts!~~~This is Episode 122. Host Ivan Phillipsen takes listeners into the vast sagebrush steppe of wes...
Random Bird Thursday: An Orange and Black Species With Females That Like to Sing
22 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In each Random Bird Thursday (RBT) episode, the goal is to highlight a bird species that probably isn't going to get featured in a full-length po...
From the Field: Japan
15 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
👕 Bird Merch — Get yourself some bird shirts!~~~This is Episode 121. In this unscripted “From the Field” episode, host Ivan Phillipsen take...
Random Bird Thursday: A Mostly Motionless Bird with Walrus Tusks
07 Aug 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In each Random Bird Thursday (RBT) episode, the idea is to highlight a bird species that probably isn't going to get featured in a full-length po...
Ask Me Anything About Birds - Summer 2025
29 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
👕 Bird Merch — Get yourself some bird shirts!~~~In this episode—which is Number 120—Ivan answers questions sent in by listeners. So this is...
Random Bird Thursday: A Naughty Yet Agreeable Seabird
18 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This is the first ever Random Bird Thursday! Ivan is experimenting with publishing these shorter, unscripted episodes. In each Random Bird Thursday ep...
From the Field: Mongolia
11 Jul 2025
Contributed by Lukas
This is Episode 119. In this unscripted “From the Field” episode, host Ivan Phillipsen takes you on a journey through the grasslands, forests, and...
Three of the World's Weirdest Bird Species
18 Jun 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Ivan was a recent guest on Just the Zoo of Us, a fun podcast about animals. The full conversation between Ivan and Host Ellen Weatherford is included ...
How to Identify Birds in the Field
31 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this practical episode about birding skills, Ivan Phillipsen dives into the process of bird identification. Listeners are introduced to a five-step...
Nightjars, Nighthawks, and Other Goatsuckers
12 May 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, Ivan Phillipsen takes listeners on an immersive journey into the strange and secretive world of birds in the family Caprimulgidae. Th...
How to Find Birds
22 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode—which is number 115—Ivan Phillipsen guides listeners through the art and science of finding birds—a skill that even seasoned bir...
The Osprey
07 Apr 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode—which is Number 114—host Ivan Phillipsen dives into the world of the Osprey (Pandion haliaetus)—a bird that’s all about fish. ...
Traditional Field Guides vs. Mobile Apps: A Birder's Dilemma
21 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode—which is number 113—host Ivan Phillipsen explores the fascinating crossroads of tradition and technology in the world of birding. ...
From the Field: Patagonia
14 Mar 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this "From the Field" episode, which is number 112, host Ivan Phillipsen shares his recent experiences birding in Patagonia while leading...
Crossbills
16 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, which is number 111, Ivan Phillipsen explores the fascinating world of crossbills, a unique group of finches with an extraordinary be...
Cooperative Breeding in Birds
01 Feb 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode—which is number 110—Ivan explores the fascinating world of cooperative breeding in birds, a system in which multiple adults help r...
From the Field: Birding Nepal and Bhutan
11 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
The final installment of "From the Field" episodes from Ivan's 2.5-month journey through Asia. In this episode he describes his experie...
From the Field: Birding in China
26 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Ivan shares his birding experiences and impressions from an amazing 3-week adventure through the provinces of Sichuan and Yunnan in China. ~~ Leave m...
From the Field: Birds and Birding in Vietnam and Cambodia
02 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Recorded in a hotel room in China, Ivan shares his recent birding and travel experiences in the countries of Vietnam and Cambodia. ~~ Leave me a revi...
From the Field: How My Life Became All About Birds
14 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
From a hotel in Vietnam, Ivan tells the tale of how he created a career centered on birds and birding. ~~ Leave me a review using Podchaser ~~Link to...
Mergansers
17 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This is Episode 105. It’s all about a small group of birds called mergansers. These are diving ducks known for their skill at catching fish. They ha...
Bird Habitat: Rocky Shores and Sandy Beaches
25 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This episode—which is Number 104—is all about rocky shores and sandy beaches as bird habitat. These environments offer birds very different resour...
New World and African Parrots
08 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode—which is Number 103—we enter the fascinating world of parrots, focusing on species in the family Psittacidae, which includes New W...
The Common Kingfisher
21 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode—which is Number 102—we dive into the fascinating world of the Common Kingfisher (Alcedo atthis), a small but mighty bird known for...
The Evolution of Feathers
01 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This is Episode 101. Today, we trace the origins of feathers back millions of years, exploring how they evolved from simple filaments to the complex s...
100th Episode Celebration!
18 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to the 100th episode of The Science of Birds Podcast! I'm thrilled to celebrate this milestone with you. In this special episode, I refle...
Cormorants and Shags
03 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode—which is Number 99—we dive into the fascinating world of cormorants and shags, members of the avian family Phalacrocoracidae. Thes...
Bird Brains
18 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This episode—which is Number 98—delves into the fascinating world of the avian brain. Despite the long-standing misconception that "bird brai...
Bluebirds
03 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This is Episode 97. It’s all about bluebirds: the three North American species in the genus Sialia: The Eastern Bluebird, Western Bluebird, and Moun...
Answers to Your Questions About Birds - AMA - Vol 4
15 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode—which is Number 96—I’ll be answering questions sent by my listeners. So this is what we call an “Ask Me Anything” (AMA) epis...
Spoonbills
30 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This episode—which is number 95—is all about spoonbills. There are six spoonbill species in the world, all of which belong to the genus Platalea. ...
The Avian Digestive System
10 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This episode—which is Number 94— is all about the Avian Digestive System. That’s right, kids, we’re looking at bird guts today!If you’ve eve...
House Sparrow
21 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This episode—which is number 93—is all about the the House Sparrow (Passer domesticus), one of the world’s best known and most abundant birds. I...
Bird Habitat: Deserts
29 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This episode—which is Number 92—is all about the value of desert ecosystems as habitats for birds.Deserts are important for the birds that are ada...
Chickadees, Tits, and Titmice
15 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This is Episode 91. It’s all about birds in the family Paridae. These are the chickadees, tits, and titmice—cute little forest-dwelling songbirds ...
Flowers and Feathers: The Importance of Birds as Pollinators
19 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This is Episode 90 and it’s all about the importance of birds as plant pollinators.If I had to use only one word for the topic of this episode, it w...
Fascinating Things We Learned About Birds Last Year
06 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
This is Episode 89. I’m publishing it right at the beginning of 2024, and it's a review of some fascinating things that happened in the world o...
Owls
16 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This episode—which is number 88—is all about owls. Owls are fascinating birds that have captured our imaginations since the dawn of humankind. The...
Avian Rebrand: New Names for Many North American Birds
26 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This episode—which is Number 87—is all about some big news in the birding world. The common names for about 150 North American bird species are go...
Bird Beaks: The Right Tool for the Job
10 Nov 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This episode—which is Number 86—is all about bird beaks.This will be an overview of beak anatomy, function, evolution, and diversity.The head of e...
Meadowlarks
19 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This episode—which is Number 85—is about the Meadowlarks of the world.And it’s not just those three North American species: the Western, Eastern...
Saving Bird Species From the Brink of Extinction
09 Oct 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This is Episode 84. Our topic today is the challenge of saving bird species that are very close to extinction. Species like the Spix’s Macaw, which ...
Quails of the New World
25 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This is Episode 83. It’s all about birds in the family Odontophoridae. These are the New World quails.Why is this the family of "New World"...
Tracking Methods: How We Know Where Birds Go
14 Sep 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This is Episode 82. It's all about the ways that scientists track the movements of individual birds.The focus of today’s episode is not so much...
Sunbirds and Spiderhunters
17 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This is Episode 81. It’s all about birds in the family Nectariniidae. These are the sunbirds and the spiderhunters.If you live in or have gone birdi...
Earthbound: How Birds Become Flightless
03 Aug 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This is Episode 80. It's all about flightless birds, and about the evolutionary processes that lead to flightlessness.Flightlessness in birds is,...
Red-tailed Hawk
18 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This is Episode 79. It's all about the Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis).This is one of North America’s most common raptors. We find these bi...
Parental Care: How Birds Raise Their Young
22 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This is Episode 78 and today we’re doing an overview of parental care in birds. How do birds raise their babies?Parent birds feeding their chicks in...
Seabirds
09 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This is Episode 77. It's an overview of seabirds. Some might call them Oceanic birds or Marine Birds.How do we define what is or isn’t a sea bi...
Answers to Your Questions About Birds - Vol 3
17 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode—which is Number 76—I’ll be answering some interesting questions sent to me by my listeners. Questions about birds, of course.The...
Shrikes
08 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This is Episode 75. It’s all about shrikes—birds in the family Laniidae.These are true songbirds—members of the avian suborder Passeri within th...
Where Does Bird's Nest Soup Come From?
14 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This episode—which is Number 74—is all about edible bird’s nests and Bird’s Nest Soup.Edible bird nests are a traditional delicacy in east Asi...
Cranes
26 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This is Episode 73. It’s all about birds in the avian family Gruidae… the cranes.These tall birds are charismatic and super interesting. It’s go...
Hurricanes and Heatwaves: How Does Extreme Weather Affect Birds?
13 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This episode—which is Number 72—is about what happens to birds, not just in bad weather, but in really bad weather. We’re talking hurricanes, fl...
What's the Deal With Birds?
23 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This episode—which is Number 71—is about one particular scientific article. An article that’s near and dear to my heart.This study was publish...
Great Blue Heron
13 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This episode—which is Number 70—is all about the Great Blue Heron. The scientific name for the Great Blue Heron is Ardea herodias.This species is ...
Bird Bones: The Avian Skeleton
30 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This episode—which is Number 69—is all about the avian skeleton. Bird bones.So this is an episode about some basic anatomy of birds.Bird bones and...
Hornbills
16 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today’s episode is number 68. It’s all about the family of birds called Bucerotidae. These are the hornbills.Maybe you’ve heard about hornbills ...
Awesome Things We Learned About Birds in 2022
31 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This is Episode Number 67. It’s the last episode of 2022, so that means it’s the Annual Review!We’re going to look back at 2022, at some of the ...
15 Simple (and Several Complicated) Ways You Can Help Birds
15 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This episode—which is Number 66—is all about the ways you can help birds. How you can make a difference in their conservation.It’s one thing to ...
Waxwings
04 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This is Episode 65, and it’s all about waxwings—birds in the family Bombycillidae. The Cedar Waxwing is one species, and there are two others that...
Bird Habitat: Temperate Grasslands and Prairies
22 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This episode—which is Number 64—is all about the importance of temperate grasslands as habitat for birds.When we say “temperate grasslands,” w...
The Common Raven
07 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This episode—which is Number 63—is about the Common Raven, Corvus corax. This species is also known as the Northern Raven.Few bird species in the ...
Biogeographic Realms and Their Unique Birds
13 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This episode—which is Number 62—is all about the major geographic divisions among birds across the planet.Why are bowerbirds found only in Austral...
Ostriches
29 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This is Episode 61, and it’s all about Ostriches. These are the birds in the avian family Struthionidae.Ostriches are among the most recognizable an...
Feeding Wild Birds: Pros and Cons
15 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This episode—which is Number 60—is about Feeding Wild Birds. As in, humans providing supplemental food for wild birds.This typically involves a co...
Ask Me Anything About Birds - Aug 2022
01 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This episode—which is Number 59—is a bit different. Today, I’m going to be answering questions from my listeners. More specifically, these quest...
Wrens (Family: Troglodytidae)
18 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today’s episode—which is Episode 58—is all about birds in the family Troglodytidae. These are the wrens.Wrens are small, perky songbirds, most o...
Flocking Behavior in Birds
07 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This episode—which is Number 57— is all about the flocking behavior of birds.Birds of many species spend at least part of their yearly cycle hangi...
How Bird Feathers Get Their Colors
21 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This episode—which is Number 56— is all about the colors of birds.The diversity of color in bird plumages is one of the things we love most about ...
Flamingos
08 Jul 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This is Episode 55. It’s all about birds in the avian family Phoenicopteridae. These are the flamingos.No doubt you already know a fun fact or two a...
Eggs: Incredible and Commendable
24 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This episode—which is Number 54—is all about bird eggs. This is an important topic. Eggs are a fundamental aspect of bird biology. Recently, in Ep...
Avian Flu
12 Jun 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This episode—which is Number 53—is all about Avian Influenza. Or colloquially what we call the Avian Flu or Bird Flu.Depending on where you live, ...
Giant Birds: Go Big or Go Home
26 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This is Episode 52. Today, we’re talking about bird species that are way, way bigger than your average chickadee or finch.Our focus will be on evolu...
The Northern Cardinal
06 May 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This is Episode 51. Our bird of interest today is the Northern Cardinal, Cardinalis cardinalis.This species is widespread across the eastern and south...
Female Birdsong
19 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This episode—which is Number 50— is all about Female Birdsong. Songs are one of the things we love most about birds. They define the soundscapes o...
Nests: Types, Construction, and Challenges
06 Apr 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This episode—which is Number 49—is all about bird nests. There are tons of fun facts fun facts here, since nests are one of the more impressive as...
The Pecking Order: Dominance Hierarchies in Birds
25 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This episode—which is Number 48—is about the “Pecking Order” in birds. Or, to use the more technical term, dominance hierarchy. Our focus will...
Gulls, Terns, and Skimmers (Family: Laridae)
10 Mar 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This is Episode 47. It’s all about birds in the family Laridae. This is an ancient evolutionary lineage that originated over 70 million years ago, w...
Wallace's Line: Where Two Bird Worlds Collide
18 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This episode—which is Number 46—is about a special place in the Malay Archipelago where two bird worlds collide. This region lies between Southe...
Solving Bird Mysteries with Forensic Ornithology
11 Feb 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This episode is all about forensic ornithology. This is a field where specialists use scientific techniques to identify bird species from trace eviden...
Coffee and Bird Conservation
20 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This episode—which is Number 44—is about the relationship between coffee production and bird conservation. We'll get into how do different t...
The Common Loon
13 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This episode—which is Number 43—is all about the Common Loon, Gavia immer. People in Europe may know it as the Great Northern Diver.This bird is a...
Awesome Things We Learned About Birds in 2021
30 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
2021 is over, yo! So it's time for the Annual Review Episode! We’ll be looking back at some highlights of bird science in the year 2021. What ...