The Field Guides

We hope you're ready to learn all about Cooper's Hawks in cities. Steve leads the discussion on cooper's hawk biology, hunting strategies, and nest predation habits. Also, keep your cats indoors. We teamed up with The Urban Wildlife Podcast for this episode's topic, so make sure that you go check them out. We also announce an artsy relationship with Always Wondering Art, as well as a tasty relatio...

This episode is all about the Hemlock Woolly Adelgid (HWA)! Steve and Bill explain this insect's history, biology, and it's negative effects on Eastern and Carolina Hemlock. The guys dive into what damage has already been done, what damage is still projected to happen, and what we're currently doing to stop the spread of this destructive asian hemipteran! We hope you enjoy!

Eastern Hemlocks are a staple of northeastern US forests. During this bonus episode, Steve and Bill make some tea and dive into what makes this tree so special. Historically, Hemlock has experienced 3 major declines, with the most recent happening right now. The culprit is an introduced hemipteran from Asia. Later this month, the guys will release a regular episode on that insect. But for now, enj...

This episode is nuts! Like peanut butter and jelly, Blue Jays and oak trees go together - they have a fascinating relationship that plays out in our forests every fall. Jays (and many of their corvid relatives) collect boatloads of acorns and engage in a caching behavior called scatter hoarding. The extent to which oaks have evolved to rely on this behavior is startling, and in this episode, Bill...

What's better than a regular episode about ticks? That's right, a bonus episode featuring someone who actually spent their career as an entomologist specifically studying ticks. Enter entomologist, Dr. Wayne Gall. The first half of this episode follows Steve and Wayne sampling for ticks at Stiglmeier Park in Cheektowaga, NY. The second half takes place at the Julia Boyer Reinstein Library where Wa...

Grasslands birds and the habitats they depend on are some of the most threatened components of our North American landscape. But take heart! Because people like this month's guest co-host, Kyle Webster, are working to restore and maintain grasslands for the birds (and other organisms) that require them. As a member of New York State Parks's environmental field team, Kyle works to use the latest re...

So, how do you feel about deer? Over the past 100 years, populations of the White-tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus) have gone from scarce to ubiquitous. There’s a significant body of research pointing to the detrimental impacts of deer overbrowsing on our forests. Here at The Field Guides, we don’t like to exclude anyone, but we are interested in learning about deer exclosures – structures desi...

This episode is all about ticks! Bill and Steve describe the difference between Ixodidae (hard ticks), Argasidae (soft ticks), and Nuttalliellidae (a single extant African species with ancestral tick traits). They also discuss the right way to remove a tick, Lyme disease, and how ticks may be partly responsible for humans being “naked apes.” We hope you enjoy!

During this episode, Steve talks about EVERY SINGLE extant non-human animal that drinks xylem or phloem sap. Join the guys as they explore the paradox of phloem sap, the barriers to eating it, how squirrels tap maple trees, hemipterans (true bugs), yellow-bellied sapsuckers, and much, much more. This episode stands alone, but we highly recommend listening to episode 17, "The Sappiest Podcast Ever....

During this episode, Bill and Steve talk about nature's junk food - sap! Join the guys as they cover how sap moves through Maple trees, as well as how climate change will affect Maples and the sap collecting season. They also interview two volunteers at the Beaver Meadow Audubon Center about turning Maple sap into syrup, cream, and sugar. Enjoy the episode!

Our 2nd bonus episode has arrived! This episode, Steve is joined by Matt from ‘In Defense of Plants’ & Sara from ‘Midwest Explorer’ for a hike at Hunter’s Creek Park. They talk about tree bark, bird poop, and American Sycamore Trees. Steve also ventures into Buffalo, NY to see the oldest American Sycamore in the world… allegedly (but probably not). Enjoy!

This episode, Bill and Steve discuss whether or not we should be feeding birds. Do filled bird feeders stop birds from migrating? Do bird feeds help birds survive the winter? Do bird feeds spread disease throughout bird populations? All this and more - enjoy!

For this bonus episode, Bill, Steve, Chris, and Dave participate in the Christmas Bird Count. They count birds, talk about the history and findings of the count, and tell their own birding stories. Enjoy!

Winter is often perceived as a time of dormancy and inactivity, but underneath the snow, in the subnivean zone, a complex and fascinating world of plant and animal interactions exists. Weasels hunt through snow-roofed tunnels, rodents graze on grasses, bark, and seeds, and occasionally the taloned feet of an owl punch through the roof, searching for a meal. In this episode, Steve and Bill pull bac...

This week Steve leads the discussion on "ice spikes." This is a rare winter phenomenon that Bill and Steve stumbled across at Stiglmeier Park (Cheektowaga, NY) during January, 2016. Join the guys as they run through two (presumably) incorrect hypotheses on how ice spikes form, and one well-documented method for their formation within freezers. We also explore the conditions that increase the chanc...

What the flock is up with murmurations? And what's the difference between a swarm, a herd, a school, and a flock? In this first of a two-part episode, Bill and Steve explore the world of collective behavior, and take a specific look at murmurations of the European Starling (Sturnus vulgaris). This species gathers in large flocks (sometimes numbering into the tens of thousands!) that dive and swoop...

This month's episode features Pokeweed (Phytolacca americana). This is a fascinating plant with some surprising tie-ins with American history. Join Steve and Bill as they tell you about pokeweed's uncommon red pigment, its use in phytoremediation, and the various ways in which it demonstrates toxicity. Enjoy!

Have you ever heard of a Fool's Hen? It’s just one of the many nicknames of the Spruce Grouse (Falcipennis canadensis), a bird of extremes and paradoxical behaviors. It often allows people to come within just a few feet before taking flight (hence the “fool” part of its nickname), but it can also be notoriously difficult to find. In addition, this species is adapted to survive on food that few oth...

Exploding seed pods?!? Flowers in the winter?! Many species have evolved unusual strategies for reproduction, and this month’s target species is no exception. Witch Hazel (Hamemelis virginiana) is a small tree of the eastern forest understory that is easy to miss. It’s small and unassuming, but closer inspection reveals an array of fascinating adaptations that make it unique among our woodland spe...

Have you ever heard of Valcour Island? Bill and Steve heard tantalizing rumors about it and journeyed to Lake Champlain to check it out. Champlain borders both New York and Vermont, and one of its largest islands is Valcour, home to a number of rare plants and the largest Great Blue Heron rookery in New York. Bill and Steve camped out on this special place, exploring, botanizing, and demonstrating...

Ok, Field Guides listeners - *Bill and Steve crack their knuckles* - this one's a touchy subject for some people, but it's an important one. Just how much DO our food choices impact the environment? There's ample rhetoric on both sides, but what does the research say? In this Steve and Bill will tell you what they discovered while delving into the topic, all while trying their best not to get too...

This episode takes place at the Kenneglenn Scenic and Nature Preserve in Wales, NY. The preserve is owned and managed by the Western NY Land Conservancy.

Episode 6 of The Field Guides is here! SPOILER ALERT!!!  This episode Bill and Steve talk about Staghorn Sumac (Rhus typhina). 

This month we talk about the hippest plant we know, Multiflora Rose (Rosa multiflora). Let us know what you think, enjoy!

Ep. 04 - Brrrrrds in Winter The Field Guides Download Episode notes: At one point we wonder if a bird we see is a grebe. We know that there aren't any grebes that have winter ranges in Western New York, but this has been a strange winter and less likely things have happened. Questions that came up during the episode: Although it was cut during editing, Bill and Steve wondered during recording, “Wh...