BirdNote Daily

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. Ornithologist and poet J. Drew Lanham often writes about racial justice, and his experience as a Black man in the outdoors — both the joy of being in nature and the racism he faces in the field. Sometimes that's led him to birding spots that others might pass b...

In spring, millions of songbirds — like the Orchard Oriole — migrate north across the Gulf of Mexico, from the Yucatan to the southeastern U.S. When birds encounter storms or headwinds, many may die. Why risk such an end, when they could migrate north along the length of Mexico? It's likely that many birds evolved to take the potentially perilous trans-Gulf route because it is direct and considera...

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 forked tail longer than its body. Agile in flight, it can spread and fold its tail, altering the surface area, like an extra pair of wings. When displaying to a female, the male dives again and again, opening and closing his tail. He may even perform...

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, they’ll kick through leaf litter with their powerful feet, beat seedheads open with their wings or grab a bite from a backyard feeder. Sadly, American Tree Sparrow populations have steeply declined since the 1970s. You can welcome these birds to your...

Pigeons, one of the most ancient of domesticated animals, feed their nestlings a peculiar, milky substance, straight from the adult’s beak to the baby’s throat. It’s called pigeon milk, a fat-rich substance loaded with antioxidants and immunity factors that enhance the survival of newborns — much like mammals’ milk does. This episode is brought to you by Wild Delight Bird Food, which aims to suppo...

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 single nest of baby birds. By planting an oak species native to your area, you can help ensure that birds are able to raise their young successfully. Homegrown National Park® is a grassroots call-to-action to regenerate diversity and ecosystem function b...

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 associate professor of poetry at Kansas State University. Her first published collection, from 2013, is called Rookery and features many poems about birds. But Brimhall didn't grow up birding — her interest came later in life. More info and transcri...

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 a great resource. When you upload a photo to iNaturalist’s website or mobile app, it uses AI to make an educated guess on the species ID. A community of online naturalists then helps confirm the ID. Finding the links between plants and birds can show...

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 Southwest. Cuckoos were common breeding birds in the Pacific Northwest as late as the 1920s, but then they disappeared. The Black-billed Cuckoo is a more northerly species that lives in dense woodland, even conifer forests. Cuckoos perch quietly and sc...

BirdNote is an independent nonprofit organization, and this week, we’re asking you to support BirdNote with a donation at birdnote.org. But today, rather than tell you all the great things about BirdNote, we’re going to let our feathered friends do the talking. In this show, enjoy a minute of uninterrupted birdsong. Please support BirdNote with a tax-deductible donation today — every gift helps us...

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 like a twig in a nest. Birds can’t lay their eggs on a twig, but when hundreds of twigs are weaved together, you have a safe and cozy place for baby birds to hatch and fledge. So think about contributing a twig to the nest that will fledge our next episod...

You’ve probably heard the expression “light as a feather.” But bird feathers aren’t just amazingly light — they’re also resilient. Something that BirdNote and bird feathers share in common! Bird feathers are sturdy thanks to the cumulative strength of many tiny structures called barbules. In a similar fashion, BirdNote is only possible thanks to individual donations from listeners like you. Today,...

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 Bradmon and her son Ben share their stories. 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 gi...

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 support the show and make a big difference for birds. Make a donation of any amount today to help us share the wonder of birds with listeners around the world. Thank you for listening, and thank you for making BirdNote possible! More info and transcript a...

Rachel Carson found inspiration in the work of 19th-century writer Richard Jefferies, whose work helped  Carson develop her deep sense of connection with the natural world. Jefferies wrote, "Consider the grasses and the oaks, the swallows, the sweet blue butterfly — they are one and all a sign and token, showing before our eyes earth made into life." More info and transcript at BirdNote.org . Want...

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, motherly goose wearing reading glasses and a bonnet, a friendly figure children could trust. Support comes from Wild Delight Bird Food, offering a variety of blends designed to mimic the natural resources wild birds crave, available at Chewy . More info a...

Springtime brings the sound of a woodpecker, like the Northern Flicker, drumming on a hollow surface. Members of the woodpecker percussion band announce their territory and attract mates, as they pound away on metal roofs or gutters. Drilling holes in tree trunks calls for some specialized tools, and the North Flicker has them: big claws, two toes pointing forward and two backward, and a stiff tai...

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 sound of the swans. He watched them depart, “like a gleaming silver ribbon,” and declared the image one of the great experiences of his life. He then transformed that breathtaking, natural moment into music. More info and transcript at BirdNote.org . W...

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 conservation movement. She famously preached that, "The time to protect a species is while it is still common." And while her conviction fell short of moving mountains in a literal sense, she once bought a mountain to protect birds of prey from bounty hunte...

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. BirdNote has inspired millions of people to take action for birds. Find out more about BirdNote's From...

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 friends. Today, in this extended podcast, we're sharing the work of poet Sidney Wade, professor emeritus at the University of Florida. Her collection of poems is called Bird Book and is all about birds. More info and transcript at BirdNote.org . Want more...

One of the biggest threats to birds is the decline in biodiversity due to habitat loss — and the traditional, manicured lawn isn’t helping. Growing native plants in your yard allows you to protect birds at home, says ecologist Douglas Tallamy, who co-founded an organization called Homegrown National Park® to help people transform their lawns into havens for wildlife. Homegrown National Park® is a...

Red Warblers only sing on sunny mornings during the breeding season — so hearing their song is as good as checking the weather forecast. Weighing less than a AAA battery, Red Warblers are endemic to the highlands of Mexico and live in humid forests of pine, oak, and fir. ¡Escuche este episodio en BirdNote en Español ! More info and transcript at BirdNote.org . Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our...

The variety of bill sizes and shapes among the sandpipers is astounding! Many sandpipers have sensitive nerve receptors in their bill tips, so they can find unseen prey through touch, odor, and pressure changes. Those sandpipers with long, straight bills — like the Long-billed Dowitcher — are often described as "stitching." As the bird probes for food, its beak moves rapidly up and down, like the...

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 Nezhukumatathil is known for writing about nature, but more than that, wonder at the natural world. In this episode, Aimee describes precious moments she’s shared with birds, plants, and her teenage son. More info and transcript at BirdNote.org . Want mor...