The Field Guides

Love ‘em or hate ‘em, we wager you’ll enjoy this dive into the shiny (not slimy) world of rattlesnakes. This episode, the guys take a close look (but not too close) at the Timber Rattlesnake ( Crotalus horridus), trying to show how it’s not out to kill you and also finding out how it ended up on the “Don’t Tread On Me” flag. Plus, they introduce the newest field guide, Daniel! The episode was reco...

This month, Bill and Steve visit Floating Fen , although some might call it a bog, or is it a swamp? Thankfully, they’re joined by Erik Danielson, Stewardship Coordinator of the Western NY Land Conservancy (WNYLC), who schools them on the difference between these wetlands. Erik and the WNYLC are trying to preserve Floating Fen, a property home to a unique wetland, extraordinary life, and a diverse...

The Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) is a rare example of a species humans managed to pull back from the brink of extinction by getting off our collective asses and doing some stuff. Already decimated by hunting and habitat loss, the post WWII enthusiasm for spraying the chemical DDT on just about everything sent Bald Eagle populations into freefall. That is, until Rachel Carson published Sil...

They’re hard-working, tail-slapping, tree-cutting machines, and they’re one of the greatest wildlife recovery stories in North America: Castor canadensis, the North American beaver. And, as if all that weren’t enough, apparently their rear ends produce an oil that’s vanilla-scented. Join the guys as they keep their puns and innuendos in check and dive into beavers! This episode was recorded on Jan...

Our six-legged celebration continues! In this second part, the guys wrap up their behind-the-scenes tour of the Cornell University Insect Collection with Jason Dombroskie, collection manager and director of the insect diagnostic lab, and THEN, Jason provides the guys with some eye protection and takes them out into the woods for some nighttime mothing! This episode was recorded on July 2-3, 2022 a...

This month, Bill and Steve geek out over insects! And it’s because they were lucky enough to have an even bigger insect geek invite them on a field trip. Jason Dombroskie is the collection manager and director of the insect diagnostic lab at Cornell University. His invite to take the guys mothing in July of 2022 turned into a marvelous, day-long adventure: In part one, you’ll hear the guys meet up...

Have you ever heard a mockingbird imitate a blue jay? How about a seal imitating a Maine fisherman? This month, the guys explore what happens when animals make sounds they’re not supposed to: the wild world of vocal mimicry. Birds imitate chainsaws and car alarms, elephants speak Korean; what’s going on? With a special focus on one of the bird world’s best known mimics - the northern mockingbird (...

Black Walnut (Juglans nigra) is a tree well-known for its ability to negatively affect other plants growing nearby, a phenomenon known as allelopathy. But is Black Walnut really as allelopathic as the Internet would have you believe? In this episode, the guys go nuts: delving into this question and many other facets of the fascinating (and tasty?) Black Walnut, including an on-air tasting of Black...

What’s dark and slimy and over two feet long? It’s an Eastern Hellbender! This aquatic giant salamander, endemic to the eastern and central US, is the largest amphibian in North America, often weighing in at over 4 lbs.! The hellbender (Cryptobranchus alleganiensis) is, not unlike Steve, secretive and slimy but also fascinating. Join the guys for one hell of an episode learning about this rare and...

Jewelweed. Spotted touch-me-not. Orange Balsam. It’s a plant known by many names, and, even if you don’t recognize any of them, you’ve probably popped one of its exploding seed pods. A favorite of hummingbirds and nature-lovers young and old, it’s a species with many stories to share. Listen in as the guys dive deep into the jewelweed patch, eating some seeds, trying to find the source of the “jew...

This month, Bill and Steve look into the fall and (potential) rise of the American chestnut (Castanea dentata), and they’re joined by Erik Danielson, Stewardship Coordinator of the Western NY Land Conservancy. The Conservancy recently embarked on an effort to acquire the Allegany Wildlands, a unique piece of property that harbors, among its many abundant ecological treasures, remnant American ches...

This month, Bill and Steve look into the fall and (potential) rise of the American chestnut (Castanea dentata), and they’re joined by Erik Danielson, Stewardship Coordinator of the Western NY Land Conservancy. The Conservancy recently embarked on an effort to acquire the Allegany Wildlands, a unique piece of property that harbors, among its many abundant ecological treasures, remnant American ches...

This month, the guys set out to discover if daddy longlegs really are the most poisonous spider in the world, but, along the way, they uncover a fascinating array of arachnids and adaptations in the group known collectively as harvestmen. Join them for some mythbusting and a deep dive into the little-known order of arachnids called Opiliones. Episode Notes Steve referred to the American toad as Bu...

The northern flicker (Colaptes auratus) is a common bird that has some exceptionally uncommon behaviors. Unlike most bird species, male flickers take an equal share of egg incubation and feeding, and, in up to five percent of females, a lady flicker will take up with two mates - an older male and a younger male - raising young in two different nests at the same time. In addition, flickers will som...

Episode Notes Spring is here! So, what better time to talk about winter-active insects? Steve recorded this one in February with entomologist and all-around-great-guy Dr. Wayne Gall, and there was no way we could wait until next winter to share it! Join Steve and Wayne as they head into the winter woods, peeling back the snowy curtain that conceals the ecology of these fascinating invertebrates. T...

This winter (2021) marked the first time a Snowy Owl (Bubo scandiacus) was spotted in New York City’s Central Park in 130 years. Why was it there? Where did it come from? Since 99.9% of the population immediately just thinks of Harry Potter when Snowy Owls are mentioned, the guys wanted to cast the proverbial “ Lumos! ” and shed some light on the subject. Join them and guest Daniel Mlodozeniec (ph...

This winter (2021) marked the first time a Snowy Owl (Bubo scandiacus) was spotted in New York City’s Central Park in 130 years. Why was it there? Where did it come from? Since 99.9% of the population immediately just thinks of Harry Potter when Snowy Owls are mentioned, the guys wanted to cast the proverbial “ Lumos! ” and shed some light on the subject. Join them and guest Daniel Mlodozeniec (ph...

Now that Bill’s done droning on about animals, we can finally talk about PLANTS! and CARNIVOROUS plants at that. Steve reviews carnivorous plants in general and then breaks into examples of carnivorous plants that have evolved to eat poop: Roridula spp . in South Africa, Sarracenia purpurea in North America, & Nepenthes spp . in Southeast Asia. 00:00 - Intro 02:00 - Carnivorous plant review 14...

With the high-end guests we’ve recently had on, we’re concerned that the podcast is getting a bit too classy. So, this month, we’re getting down and dirty, delving into the delightful topic of defecation. Specifically, animals that eat poop. We know, it seems gross. We thought so, too. But once we started exploring this surprisingly common behavior (called coprophagy), we were amazed at what we un...

Welcome to part 2 of our field trip to the Roger Tory Peterson Institute. In this segment, Bill and Steve take a hike with Twan Leenders, Senior Director of Science & Conservation at the Institute. Twan has had a career in conservation that deserves to be made into a movie. From researching wildlife in the treetops of Central American rainforests to corralling ornery spiny softshell turtles in pos...

Visit the Roger Tory Peterson Institute’s website to find out more about the site, events/exhibitions, and the good work they are doing. Steve and Arthur discussed the hellbender head-start program, and the question came up about whether it was connected with the Buffalo Zoo. Here’s what we found: “The “hellbender head-start program” is a collaboration between the Bronx Zoo, the New York State Dep...

Links : Sandy Beach Island State Park (Pulaski, New York) Piping Plover running (video) Piping Plover chick running (video) Piping Plover chick hiding under their mom (video) Rockaway Beach (Queens, New York) An article about Claire and her team (Article) New York State Parks Blog about the Piping Plovers (Article) Report Banded Piping Plovers (or email plover@umn.edu) Great Lakes Piping Plovers o...

During the editing process for this episode, Bill shared some posts about this species via social media. Several listeners commented that, in an effort to acknowledge problematic botanical names, many sources now refer to this plant as Ghost Pipe. So, although it was too late to re-record the episode, Bill altered these notes to reflect the name change. Several times in the episode, Steve and Bill...

This episode is all about those gross jelly blobs that you might see in marinas (AKA Bryozoans!). Bill and Steve are joined by Jajean Rose-Burney, Deputy Executive Director of the Western New York Land Conservancy. Jajean guides Bill and Steve around The College Lodge Forest in Chautauqua County, NY, a wildlife-rich property that the Land Conservancy is seeking to preserve.

Have you ever dreamed of ditching your day job and pursuing a career in the woods? Maybe working with wolves in the desert southwest or conducting plant surveys in the wilds of Alaska? Well, Matt Gaffney did it! Leaving behind a job in digital marketing, he went back to school to get his degree in environmental studies and went on to work a series of seasonal positions with the National Forest Ser...