The Egg War is the rather bizarre story of how a colony of Common Murres on the Farallon Islands off the coast of San Francisco sparked conflict during the American Gold Rush in the 1850-60s.  It is a wild tale of murder, piracy, lighthouse keepers with delusions of grandeur and an awful lot of people wearing hats. Join me for a silly story.

To support Bird of the Week and gain access to our second podcast, What's up with that's Bird's Name? click on through to Patreon: www.patreon.com/birdoftheweek

Want birds in your inbox? Drop me a line at [email protected] and I'll hook you up with a free weekly bird.

Notes:

California Gold Rush: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/California_Gold_Rush
Farallon Islands: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Farallon_Islands
Common Murre: https://ebird.org/species/commur?siteLanguage=en_AU
Auks: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auk
Murre eggs: https://americanornithology.org/distinctive-egg-color-variations-in-common-murres/
The Egg War: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/when-california-went-war-over-eggs-180971960/
Penguin eggs: https://www.capetownetc.com/news/penguin-egg-whites-may-turn-clear-when-boiled-but-this-is-not-a-breakfast-idea/ 

Eggs may be an every day mundane thing. Something that lives in your fridge and that you see all the time. And yet, they are little marvels of nature. So join me today as we learn everything there is to know about eggs.

To support Bird of the Week and gain access to our second podcast, What's up with that's Bird's Name? click on through to Patreon: www.patreon.com/birdoftheweek

Want birds in your inbox? Drop me a line at [email protected] and I'll hook you up with a free weekly bird.

Notes:

• Hummingbird eggs: https://abcbirds.org/blog21/hummingbird-eggs/
• Ostrich eggs: https://www.americanostrichfarms.com/blogs/news/all-about-ostrich-eggs-and-what-you-can-do-with-them
• Emu eggs: https://hmnh.harvard.edu/emu-eggs
• Tinamou eggs: https://www.birdsoutsidemywindow.org/2022/01/19/high-gloss-eggs/
• Calcium in eggs: https://nurturing-nature.co.uk/gardening-for-wildlife/birds-need-calcium-to-lay-their-eggs-where-do-they-get-it-from/
• Blue eggs: https://www.thespruce.com/why-robin-eggs-are-blue-4161031
• Anatomy of an egg: https://www.scienceofcooking.com/eggs/anatomy-of-a-chicken-egg.html
• Brood patch: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brood_patch
• Common Murre eggs: https://www.audubon.org/news/why-are-murre-eggs-so-pointy-new-research-debunks-prevailing-theory

This is Part II of our story on the Chicken. In this episode we will find out how the Chicken was domesticated, and how we changed them to suit our needs and transitioned them from Junglefowl to industrialised factory production line.

To support Bird of the Week and gain access to our second podcast, What's up with that's Bird's Name? click on through to Patreon: www.patreon.com/birdoftheweek

Want birds in your inbox? Drop me a line at [email protected] and I'll hook you up with a free weekly bird.

Notes:

• Cockfighting in The Philippines: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXK6uog-f6g&ab_channel=VICEAsia 
• World Slasher Cup: https://www.worldslashercup.ph/
• Egyptian Egg Oven: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egyptian_egg_oven#:~:text=An%20Egyptian%20egg%20oven%20or,other%20techniques%20of%20the%20time. 
• Sacred Chickens of Rome: https://www.anecdotesfromantiquity.com/the-sacred-chickens-of-rome/
• Gallic Rooster: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gallic_rooster
• Chicken gene mutation: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26873630/#:~:text=Our%20study%20indicates%20that%20the,been%20important%20for%20chicken%20domestication.
• The Chicken-of-Tomorrow: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/article/poultry-food-production-agriculture-mckenna
• Hen Fever: https://www.nationalgeographic.com/environment/article/poultry-food-production-agriculture-mckenna
• Ayam Cemani: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ayam_Cemani
• Dong Tao: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dong_Tao_chicken
• Bird Flu: https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2023/03/h5n1-bird-flu-avian-influenza-what-can-be-done/
• RSPCA standards: https://rspcaapproved.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/2020_08_MEATCHICKENS_Standard_v1.1.pdf
• Hilltop Eggs: https://www.hilltopsfreerange.com/

In the world today there are some 20 billion chickens. They are the most abundant bird in the world, and almost all of them exist to feed us people. They are the world's  most delicious bird, but where did they come from and what makes them special? Good news, I have the answers to these questions. So join me for Part 1 of our exploration on the domesticated chicken.

To support Bird of the Week and gain access to our second podcast, What's up with that's Bird's Name? click on through to Patreon: www.patreon.com/birdoftheweek

Want birds in your inbox? Drop me a line at [email protected] and I'll hook you up with a free weekly bird.

Notes:

• Red-billed Quelea: https://ebird.org/species/rebque1?siteLanguage=en_AU
• Red Junglefowl: https://ebird.org/species/redjun?siteLanguage=en_AU
• Where the word rooster came from: https://www.etymonline.com/word/rooster
• Chicken purring: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kOkqOPfMQj4&ab_channel=mercyforanimals
• Tidbitting: https://www.fresheggsdaily.blog/2017/07/tidbitting-what-it-is-and-why-chickens.html

Long time listeners may remember our episode on pigeons, where I tried to convince two friends that pigeons are amazing. But that episode only looked at the Rock Dove, and the world of pigeons is so much bigger than that. So in this episode we will take a proper tour of the family and learn some reasons to love pigeons.

To support Bird of the Week and gain access to our second podcast, What's up with that's Bird's Name? click on through to Patreon: www.patreon.com/birdoftheweek

Want birds in your inbox? Drop me a line at [email protected] and I'll hook you up with a free weekly bird.

Notes:

• Pigeons Volume 1: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1733312/9684204-pigeons-are-disgusting-change-my-mind
• Rock Dove: https://ebird.org/species/rocpig/
• Diamond Dove: https://ebird.org/species/diadov1
• Victoria Crowned Pigeon: https://ebird.org/species/vicpig1
• Pigeon Milk: https://www.australiangeographic.com.au/news/2011/09/mysteries-of-pigeon-milk-explained/
• Pigeons and magnets: https://www.audubon.org/magazine/september-october-2012/how-do-pigeons-find-their-way-home
• Golden Dove: https://ebird.org/species/goldov1
• Orange Dove: https://ebird.org/species/oradov1/
• Crested Pigeon: https://ebird.org/species/crepig1/
• Nicobar Pigeon: https://ebird.org/species/nicpig1/
• Luzon Bleeding-heart: https://ebird.org/species/lubhea1/
• Tooth-billed Pigeon: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tooth-billed_pigeon
• A Tale of Two Islands: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1733312/9071817-a-tale-of-two-islands
• Passenger Pigeon: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Passenger_pigeon
• Blue-eyed Ground Dove: https://ebird.org/species/begdov2?siteLanguage=en_AU

You know me, I love me a good island, and Norfolk Island is a good island. I recently did a short talk on the birds of Norfolk Island, and I thought, hey, why not share it with anyone who has a care to listen. So please enjoy this slightly shorter episode about the birds that call Norfolk home.

To support Bird of the Week and gain access to our second podcast, What's up with that's Bird's Name? click on through to Patreon: www.patreon.com/birdoftheweek

Want birds in your inbox? Drop me a line at [email protected] and I'll hook you up with a free weekly bird.

Notes:

• Norfolk Island: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norfolk_Island
• Slender-billed White-eye: https://ebird.org/species/sbweye1
• Norfolk Morepork Owl: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norfolk_boobook
• Green Parrot: https://ebird.org/species/noipar1
• Crimson Rosella: https://ebird.org/species/criros2?siteLanguage=en_AU
• How Many Birds are There?: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1733312/9413157-how-many-birds-are-there

Because sleep is something we all do it is understandable that we might think the experience would be similar for other animals. And birds have developed a whole range of unique sleep tactics to help them get through their day.

In this special episode I am joined by a guest, clinical psychologist Lucienne Shenfield. Join us on a discussion about how people sleep, how birds sleep, and the difference and similarities between the two.

To support Bird of the Week and gain access to our second podcast, What's up with that's Bird's Name? click on through to Patreon: www.patreon.com/birdoftheweek

Want birds in your inbox? Drop me a line at [email protected] and I'll hook you up with a free weekly bird.

Notes:

• Bar-tailed Godwits: https://ebird.org/species/batgod?siteLanguage=en_AU
• Greater Frigatebirds: https://ebird.org/species/grefri
• Pectoral Sandpiper: https://ebird.org/species/pecsan?siteLanguage=en_AU

Nowhere in the avian kingdom is there another bird that makes a structure as amazing as the Bowerbirds. But why do they do it? Why, to impress the ladies of course. But as always, there is a lot to unpack, so join me today to find out everything is to know about the Bowerbirds and the bowers they make.

To support Bird of the Week and gain access to our second podcast, What's up with that's Bird's Name? click on through to Patreon: www.patreon.com/birdoftheweek

Want birds in your inbox? Drop me a line at [email protected] and I'll hook you up with a free weekly bird.

Notes:

• Catbirds - https://ebird.org/species/grecat1?siteLanguage=en_AU
• Australasian Biogeographic Realm - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australasian_realm
• Tooth-billed Bowerbird - https://ebird.org/species/tobcat2?siteLanguage=en_AU
• The Birds-of-Paradise - https://www.buzzsprout.com/1733312/9146983-the-birds-of-paradise
• Golden Bowerbird - https://ebird.org/species/golbow1?siteLanguage=en_AU
• MacGregor's Bowerbird - https://ebird.org/species/macbow2
• Vogelkop Bowerbird - https://ebird.org/species/vogbow2
• Satin Bowerbird - https://ebird.org/species/satbow1/
• Greater Bowerbird - https://ebird.org/species/grebow1/
• Spotted Bowerbird - https://ebird.org/species/spobow1/

Who are the Owls? They are the ninjas of the night, swooping on silent wings to snatch their preys. They have a range of unique attributes that allows them to hunt totally blind, and without making a sound. They are unlike any other family of birds, and today we're going to learn all about them.

To support Bird of the Week and gain access to our second podcast, What's up with that's Bird's Name? click on through to Patreon: www.patreon.com/birdoftheweek

Want birds in your inbox? Drop me a line at [email protected] and I'll hook you up with a free weekly bird.

Would you like some bird art in your life? Then visit Seni Illustration for some bespoke bird art: https://www.seniillustrations.com/

Notes:

• Snowy Owl: https://ebird.org/species/snoowl1
• Barn Owl: https://ebird.org/species/brnowl?siteLanguage=en_AU
• Blakiston's Fish-Owl: https://ebird.org/species/blfowl1
• Elf Owl: https://ebird.org/species/elfowl?siteLanguage=en_AU
• Northern Pygmy-Owl: https://ebird.org/species/norpyo1?siteLanguage=en_AU
• Bay Owls: https://ebird.org/species/orbowl1?siteLanguage=en_AU
• Burrowing Owl: https://ebird.org/species/burowl
• Owls' silent flight: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_FEaFgJyfA&ab_channel=BBCEarth

Our two week late Halloween special. Join me for a quick romp to meet five birds with some creepy vibes.
 
To support Bird of the Week and gain access to our second podcast, What's up with that's Bird's Name? click on through to Patreon: www.patreon.com/birdoftheweek

Want birds in your inbox? Drop me a line at [email protected] and I'll hook you up with a free weekly bird.

Would you like some bird art in your life? Then visit Seni Illustration for some bespoke bird art: https://www.seniillustrations.com/

Notes:

• Genus Corvus: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corvus
• The Heck's Intelligence: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1733312/8718335-the-heck-s-intelligence
• New Caledonian Crow: https://ebird.org/species/neccro1?siteLanguage=en_AU
• The Raven: https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poems/48860/the-raven
• The Magic Circle: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Magic_Circle_(Waterhouse_paintings)
• Great Tit: https://ebird.org/species/gretit1
• Paracitic Birds: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1733312/11093471-parasite-bird
• Common Loon: https://ebird.org/species/comloo?siteLanguage=en_AU
• Marabou Stork: https://ebird.org/species/marsto1?siteLanguage=en_AU
• Where'd all my Vultures go?: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1733312/11013993-where-d-all-my-vultures-go
• Shoebill: https://ebird.org/species/shoebi1