Life List: A Birding Podcast

This is what we do, folks! George and Alvaro are sharing the stories from the field and their yards, discussing scientific and hobbyist news in the birding world, and sharing travel tales. And karaoke dos and don'ts. And a skunk saga that seems to have included. Hang out with us for a spell! Get more Life list by subscribing to our newsletter and joining our Patreon for bonus content. Talk to...

We're all here—Mollee, George, and Alvaro—to catch up on birding and nature stories from home and Alvaro's adventures spanning oceans...and two Great White Norths! Yup, with our usual dose of wildlife weirdness, too.  Highlights include: An incredible polar bear sighting alongside Ivory Gulls and (cue Alvaro's scream) Ross's Gulls Birding in Svalbard, Norway, and Finland Pelagi...

You like splits and lumps? Thinking about the intricacies of global taxonomy? Oh boy, are you in for a treat!  George and Alvaro sat down with Marshall Iliff and Frank Rheindt, two members of the AviList Core Team, to take a deep dive into what’s just been released: AviList, the Global Avian Checklist!  Learn how the process got started, what’s happened in the years it’s been in the making, and ho...

This episode, we're catching up with Tim Appleton: co-founder of Global Birdfair and lifelong conservationist...and who possibly has the UK's best yard list. Highlights of our chat include: How one idea became the world’s largest nature tourism and bird conservation gathering—and what makes it unique 125 species and counting from Tim's Rutland cottage overlooking a reservoir he help...

We caught up with our friend Surya Ramachandran: Indian naturalist, author, big-cat tracker, and awesome guy. Highlights of our chat include: Home patch leopards: Surya’s Nilgiri backyard hosts a multigenerational family of both black and rosetted leopards that he's watched closely for years Snow-leopard obsession: why eight straight winters in Ladakh still haven’t dulled the thrill of the gh...

Our travels have recently taken us across Costa Rica, Cuba, Argentina, Chile, and Tanzania — so it's high time for a catch-up! In this episode, George, Alvaro, and Mollee swap stories from the field, from color-changing marlins to Galápagos rail rediscoveries to grizzly bear rewilding efforts. We also talk about how birds pick up dozens of local names (hello, timberdoodle!) and how birding st...

Our travels have recently spanned Costa Rica, Cuba, Argentina, Chile, and Tanzania, so it's high time for a catch-up! We swap favorite moments from the field, talk birds with many names (hello, timberdoodles), and updates from our homes, too.  Get more Life list by subscribing to our newsletter and joining our Patreon for bonus content. Talk to us and share your topic ideas at lifelistpodcast...

George and Alvaro have an evening chat about the evolution of field guides with notable quirks in a few editions, Alvaro discusses how he used location-based evidence to theorize about gull hybridization, and more.  Get more Life list by subscribing to our newsletter and joining our Patreon for bonus content. Talk to us and share your topic ideas at lifelistpodcast.com .  Thanks to Kowa Optics for...

George and Alvaro took some time during their Subantarctic Islands cruise to chat with Mike Bell, ornithologist for the Chatham Islands Landscape Restoration Trust . Make sure to check out their website for more information on all the conservation work they're doing! Get more Life list by subscribing to our newsletter and joining our Patreon for bonus content. Talk to us and share your topic...

We're catching up on our tales around the world and wondering...how close does birding get to a major sporting event? Join us in our usual banter.  The book that Alvaro thinks of is called Owls of the Eastern Ice: A Quest to Find and Save the World's Largest Owl Have you seen a Nocturnal Curassow ? Get more Life list by subscribing to our newsletter and joining our Patreon for bonus cont...

Welcome to our first episode covering our recent Subantarctic Islands cruise out of New Zealand. We're diving into the islands we visited, including Albatross Island and Pyramid Rock , and all about our travels on this world-class adventure.  Check out the whole trip report here.  Get more Life list by subscribing to our newsletter and joining our Patreon for bonus content. Talk to us and sha...

Hey there, we're back! Listen to us catching up on our recent travels throughout Asia in India, Thailand, and Japan. Are you tempted to join us in India next year?  Get more Life list by subscribing to our newsletter and joining our Patreon for bonus content. Talk to us and share your topic ideas at lifelistpodcast.com .  Thanks to Kowa Optics for sponsoring our podcast! Want to know more abo...

It's our final episode...but only for this season, don't worry 😉 We're chatting about birding festivals near and far, the multinational process of declaring a species extinct, and (literal) nightmares about birding tours. Don't miss out on:  Alvaro's upcoming tours Hillstar's newest tours and pelagics  Tours and articles on Nighthawk  All the great content on the Lad...

Jocotoco Conservation works in the field throughout Ecuador and the Galapagos to conserve birds, wildlife, and habitats. Today, George is digging into their efforts and goals. Learn more about Jocotoco Conservation here.  Topics in this episode include: Discovery of the Jocotoco Antpitta: Jocotoco Conservation's origin story Saving Spectacled Bears: Jocotoco's efforts to protect spectacl...

Welcome to our 100th episode! We're celebrating by chatting about some listener favorites - and ours! - as well as all that's changed in the birding world since we started Life List.  Thanks for being a part of our podcast family! Get more Life list by subscribing to our newsletter and joining our Patreon for bonus content. Talk to us and share your topic ideas at lifelistpodcast.com . ...

This week, we're not just talking about Amar's highly anticipated book, The Gull Guide —we're chatting about the discoveries and controversies that led to what we currently know about gulls, the unknowns that still exist, and how to fall in love with these mysteries birds along the way.  Get more Life list by subscribing to our newsletter and joining our Patreon for bonus content. T...

Alright, we're back! George and Alvaro talk about unusual sightings and behaviors they've seen so far this fall along with takeaways from afar from the AOS conference. If you haven't already, be sure to read The trials of John P. McCown by Steve Hampton.  Get more Life list by subscribing to our newsletter and joining our Patreon for bonus content. Talk to us and share your topic id...

We're continuing conversations with our listeners on the air as we share updates from our home fronts. We have lots of links to share this week! Check out Ed Yong's account of his recent pelagic experience with Alvaro's Adventures in his newsletter While you're at it, make sure to read An Immense World by Ed Yong We get tons of questions about thermal scopes. This article by on...

George is just back from the Pantanal, and today, we're chatting about that. But first... The oldest photo in eBird? Looks like it's this (now extinct) Laughing Owl ! And check out this illustration of the species on Birds of the Worl d ( sign-in required ).  George has two trip reports from Brazil. Check out Safari Brazil: The Pantanal and Brazil's Atlantic Forest: Itatiaia Nationa...

We're back with a listener question episode!  We mention Project Phoenix—check out the details here .  Subscribe to our newsletter and send us your questions below ⬇️⬇️ Get more Life list by subscribing to our newsletter and joining our Patreon for bonus content. Talk to us and share your topic ideas at lifelistpodcast.com .  Thanks to Kowa Optics for sponsoring our podcast! Want to know more...

This week, we're joined by Lillian Stokes and Matt Young to share in the laughs, research, and stories behind their jam-packed new book, The Stokes Guide to Finches of the United States and Canada.  Learn more and preorder it here before the book is published on September 17! Get more Life list by subscribing to our newsletter and joining our Patreon for bonus content. Talk to us and share yo...

We're three busy birders this week with tales ranging from the backyard to the wonders of the deep oceans. Grab a drink and enjoy this classic Life List chat with us—tangents and all. Get more Life list by subscribing to our newsletter and joining our Patreon for bonus content. Talk to us and share your topic ideas at lifelistpodcast.com .  Thanks to Kowa Optics for sponsoring our podcast! Wa...

Phil's been there, done that, and has the stories to prove it. This week we chat about his recent oceanic expeditions and upcoming book. Have a taste of western Australia and the Lesser Sundas via Phil's recent eBird trip report Get notifications for Habitats of North America , coming out this winter Order Habitats of the World: A Field Guide for Birders, Naturalists, and Ecologists Get...

Holly and Billi have spanned continents in their incredible career feats. Today, we're chatting about the challenges and adventures that they've had along the way. Meet Holly via Birds Caribbean and Instagram Meet Billi via Biodiversity Research Institute and Instagram Check out the beautiful Black Bee-eater that we talk about in the episode And yes, The Birding Co-op has announced its 2...

Here's a story with some drama, discovery, and mysteries yet unsolved! Hear all about the background of discovering the Andean Storm-Petrel (Oceanites barrosi), straight from the source! Here's the paper that was published: Resolving the conflictive phylogenetic relationships of Oceanites (Oceanitidae: Procellariiformes) with the description of a new species Get more Life list by subscri...