Birdbrain Q&A

Special guest host Paula Barros helps Lauryn tackle a hodgepodge of truly weird and random questions for our final episode of season 1. 2:12: There is a famous line in the movie Napoleon Dynamite where Napoleon asks a farmer: "Do the chickens have large talons?" The farmer does NOT answer the question. So, my question is: Do chickens have large talons?! And if they do, why?!4:10: Why doe...

This episode is a feast for the ears, with bird sounds from warbling to weird.  0:52: What is happening with all the noisy birds in the morning? 3:20: What are the top five bird songs a backyard gardener should recognize? 10:05: How easy is it to tell individual birds apart by their sounds? 11:55: I love birds with “weird” calls: Yellow-headed Blackbird; the mechanical sounding Tui bird from New Z...

Birds have superpowers that we can barely imagine. We tackle several of those in this episode: eyes, eggs, magnetic sensing, bowerbird bowers, and duck penises.  1:33: What colors can birds see? 5:30: How does an eagle see its prey from so far away? Do they see differently from birds like sparrows?  8:20: Do birds really use magnetic fields to navigate? How do they do that? 11:40:How long does it...

In this episode we explore why birds do what they do in any given moment. Do they make decisions? 0:40 - Do animals have the capacity to plan? And what is the difference between instinct and intuition? 3:49 - Why do quail run away instead of fly away? 6:48 - When they fly in V formation, how does the flock decide which bird to follow? Do they have a pecking order or take turns in the lead? 9:01 -...

Questions about birds and humans that maybe you should ask your therapist. How do we feel about birds? How do they feel about each other? Will they really abandon their babies? Who the heck are the Kansas City Blue Jays? 1:33 - Why am I so afraid of birds? 4:00 - What can you do if you are afraid of birds but don’t want to be anymore? 5:30 - Are Blue Jays mean birds? 8:00 - What bird is the bigges...

In this episode we explore questions about African birds inspired by Lauryn’s recent trip to Tanzania with Homeward Bound (https://homewardboundprojects.com.au/). 3:45 - What are some special things about African birds? Why should we stop the jeep to look at sandgrouse? 7:45 - What are ostrich mating and parenting behaviors? 10:30 - Do turkeys live in Africa? 11:45 - What bird has the funniest nam...

In this episode we discuss a hodgepodge of questions about birds and food. Plus, we answer a follow-up question about penguin feathers. 1:20 - How do shorebirds find food in the sand on a noisy beach? 5:35 - How do I get birds to find my backyard feeder? 7:25 - Do certain species prefer one kind of tree over another? 8:35 - Why do males and females forage differently? Is it social or physiological...

You asked for it, you got it: an episode all about bird poop. Yes, this one is totally full of shit. 1:20 - Why is bird poop white? 3:35 - Can birds poop in their sleep? 5:25 - Why do Turkey Vultures poop and pee on themselves? 8:30 - How do birds feel when they poop on you? 10:50 - What’s your favorite book about bird poop? with *Jill Dugan* 12:25 - Have you been pooped on by a bird? Like and sub...

In this episode we talk about the way birds look: questions about legs and feathers, plus a really big question about Big Bird. 0:45 - Is Pam a black-capped chickadee? 2:40 - Is Big Bird a bird? 4:55 - Why do birds’ knees bend backwards? 6:10 - Why are the birds in Australia and South America more colorful than the ones in Chicago? 11:30 - What is a lek? Is it bird Tinder? 12:15 - Does being super...

Our first episode of Birdbrain Q&A! We kick off the series by discussing what we're doing here.0:55 - Why did we create Birdbrain Q&A? 2:20 - What are the most common bird questions you get? 4:50 - Who are the people asking bird questions? 7:45 - How do you start identifying birds? 9:00 - Is it fair to say that there’s a huge overlap between birders and crime detectives? 11:00 - What i...