Bird Sh*t Podcast

Spring is upon us and the birds are gettin' busy. And what does that mean? That's right: lots of little baby birds will soon be entering the world.

Not all nests are created equal. Some birds lay eggs in giant piles of composting garbage that they continuously turn to keep the eggs at the perfect incubating temperature. Some birds nest in hanging woven nest sacks in massive colonies. Some birds build saliva nests that are considered rare edible delicacies.

The same goes for bird eggs, which range not only in color but also in size and shape. Yes, that's right: SHAPE. As in, not a normal round sphere egg. WEIRD!

We cover our favorite weird nests and eggs in this week's episode. Thanks for listening!

USEFUL RESOURCES

• From now until June 14, all Bird Shi*t Podcast shirt proceeds will go to Black Lives Matter. Get your shirt here. 
• Sarah is a big fan of Tim Birkhead’s book, “Bird Sense”

BIRDS WE MENTION (in order)

• Herring Gull
• White Tern
• Hamerkop
• Barn Owl
• White-nest Swiftlet
• European Bee-eater
• Common Tailorbird
• Malleefowl
• Montezuma Oropendola
• House Sparrow
• Northern Flicker
• Common Murre
• Hoopoe
• American Robin
• Kiwi
• Common Ostrich
• Cassowary

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Bird Sh*t Podcast is officially one year old! Sarah and Mo have been talkin' birds, interviewing amazing birders, and sharing badass bird facts for 365 days. Thank you so much for listening and being a part of this adventure!

To celebrate our "bird day," we're revisiting some of our favorite moments on the podcast from the last year. Plus, get behind-the-scenes insights into how we started Bird Sh*t and got to where we are today.

Got a favorite Bird Sh*t moment not featured in this episode? Tell us about it! You can reach us at [email protected] or find us on social media (@birdshitpodcast on Instagram or @birdshitpod on Twitter).

EPISODES FEATURED IN THIS EPISODE

• #2: How to plan a birding trip (complete with blow-up dolls)
• #7: Amazing Bald Eagle facts to celebrate America's f*cking birthday (Independence Day)
• #11: The Birding World of Harry Potter with Laura Erickson
• #14: Mean Birds - Deadly Birds of DEATH
• #18: Learn spooky, creepy bird calls (and omens) for Halloween

BIRDS WE MENTION (in order)

• Mourning Dove
• Rock Pigeon
• American Goldfinch
• House Sparrow
• Gray Catbird
• Northern Flicker
• Common Grackle
• Blue Jay
• Bald Eagle
• Common Raven
• Southern Cassowary
• Emu
• Corn Crake

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Stephanie Seymour has been a musician her whole life and an avid birder for the last 15 years. Her latest album, There Are Birds, brings together her love of birds and vast musical talents.

Don't be fooled by the album's name: this is not an album of bird calls. It's an eclectic mix of pop and rock-and-roll, blended with lyrical birding stories from Stephanie's adventures. 

Tune in to learn the stories behind Stephanie's bird-named songs, her inspiration for the album, and her work for the Hawk Migration Association of America. Plus, we share snippets of Stephanie's favorite songs during the episode!

Got somethin' you wanna say to Sarah and Mo? Find us on Instagram and Twitter, or send us an email at [email protected]!

BIRD SHIT WE DISCUSSED

USEFUL RESOURCES

• Listen to Stephanie's awesome album, There Are Birds
• HMANA: Hawk Migration Association of North America. Check it out!
• The Monterey Bay Birding Festival, Rio Grande Valley Birding Festival, and Acadia Birding Festival are among Stephanie’s favorites

BIRDS WE MENTION (in order)

• House Sparrow
• Ruby-crowned Kinglet
• American Robin
• Common Loon
• Bald Eagle
• Yellow-headed Blackbird
• Blue Jay
• Northern Mockingbird
• Black-throated Blue Warbler
• Red-billed Tropicbird
• Tufted Titmouse
• Carolina Wren
• Red-tailed Hawk
• Pileated Woodpecker
• Rose-breasted Grosbeak
• Scarlet Tanager
• Black-footed Albatross
• Long-eared Owl

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When we first recorded this Spring Break episode, we didn't anticipate half the world being on COVID-19 lockdown. But now seems like as good of a time as any to take a mental vacation to the sunny regions of Mexico, Central America, and South America for some incredible birding!

Learn about some of the coolest birds from the sunny south, including a "bat bird" that lives in caves and navigates via echolocation, the most un-heron-like-heron ever, and the largest, most powerful raptor in the Americas. Plus, Sarah and Mo discuss how they would've fared at MTV's TRL Spring Break back in the day. 

AAAAAND we release our first-ever Listener Droppings section of the podcast, featuring birding stories from listeners! WOO! This episode is definitely worth staying at home and listen to. 

P.S. - Shout out to Andrés Jiménez for recommending most of these birds to us! Muchas gracias! You can hear our interview with Andrés in episode 16.


BIRD SHIT WE DISCUSSED

USEFUL RESOURCES

• The Peregrine Fund is doing great conservation work for birds of prey all around the world

BIRDS WE MENTION (in order)

• Franklin’s Gull
• Snow Goose
• Boat-billed Heron
• Harpy Eagle
• Golden Eagle
• Ocellated Antbird
• White-tipped Sicklebill
• Whooping Motmot
• Blue-throated Motmot
• Oilbird

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Corina Newsome grew up in Philadelphia and has always had a desire to participate in, and advocate for, the protection of wildlife and natural spaces, and encourage people of color in the U.S. to explore the great outdoors. These days, you’ll catch her in Georgia marshes doing important conservation research for the MacGillivray's Seaside Sparrow. We were so psyched to talk with her and learn about all the incredible ways she walks the walk for environmental equality and access to wildlife opportunities for underrepresented demographics. 

Ask Corina about her own incredible array of accomplishments and she’ll refocus attention to the peers, communities, and institutions that support her vision. Ask about her own upbringing or experiences and she’ll redirect the question to how we can all help youth in low-income areas gain better access to the outdoors and career opportunities in wildlife. 

Corina is one of the rare people who understands that we all shine brighter if we focus our attention on helping others gain access to the wild. GET IT, GIRRRRRRL. 

BIRD SHIT WE DISCUSSED

USEFUL RESOURCES

• Corina’s “Do Anything for the Count” parody video…SO FREAKIN’ GOOD YOU GUYS.
• Diversity in Action Magazine: a great magazine “dedicated to supporting and promoting diversity in science, technology, engineering, the arts, and math”…definitely worth a read!
• Greening Youth Foundation: an incredible nonprofit that engages "underrepresented youth and young adults while connecting them to the outdoors and careers in conservation."
• Sarah is digging the book “Bird Sense” right now
• Find Corina in all the places: Twitter, Instagram, and her website
• Corina’s favorite bird conservation group? The Audubon Society! They do incredible work in so many communities. 

BIRDS WE MENTION (in order)

• Blue Jay
• American Avocet
• American Crow
• Seaside Sparrow 
• Marsh Wren
• Roseate Spoonbill
• Wood Stork
• Pileated Woodpecker
• Kiwi

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While counting down the days until spring migration, we might as well go full-out WINTER. Embrace your cold side and learn about some awesome birds that call the Arctic their home (for at least part of the year). 

Learn about: a bird that sprays stomach oil onto the wings of its enemies; an eagle with the widest wing span; a hoarding bird that’s used false teeth and catheters while nest-building; and a bird that flies 600 miles a day just two days after learning how to fly. 

Tell us what you’d like to hear on Bird Sh*t Podcast by dropping us a line at [email protected]! You can also find us on Instagram (@birdshitpodcast) and Twitter (@birdshitpod).

BIRD SHIT WE DISCUSSED

BIRDS WE MENTION (in order)

• Atlantic Puffin
• Dovekie
• Arctic Tern
• Common Tern
• Northern Fulmar
• Southern Fulmar
• Great Shearwater
• Northern Gannet
• Blue-footed Booby
• Snow Bunting
• White-tailed Eagle
• Ruddy Turnstone
• Black Turnstone

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Grassland bird populations are declining more than any other bird group in North America. Rather than spaz out—our normal reaction to bad bird news—we had a conversation with Alyssa DeRubeis and felt a lot better about the work being done for grassland birds. Spoiler: there’s still hope for restored habitats. 

Alyssa grew up in Minnesota and started birding when she was five years old. After obtaining her Bachelor’s degree in Wildlife Ecology, she earned her Master’s degree studying nesting and non-breeding birds in remnant and restored tallgrass prairies at the University of Arkansas. 

Tune in to learn a TON of cool stuff about grassland birds, their biggest threats, and what the future holds for these fragile birds. Plus, Alyssa shares tips on how to find bird nests (without disturbing birds) and shares one of the coolest birder-to-birder lifer stories we’ve ever heard. 

BIRD SHIT WE DISCUSSED

USEFUL RESOURCES

• The bird tattoo contest at the Biggest Week in American Birding
• The Breeding Bird Survey is a vital resource for understanding what’s happening to birds in North America
• The Nature Conservancy is doing great things for grassland bird habitat protection and restoration!

BIRDS WE MENTION (in order)

• American Redstart
• Great Gray Owl
• Barn Owl
• Sedge Wren 
• Dickcissel
• Northern Cardinal
• Indigo Bunting
• Eastern Meadowlark
• Black-Capped Chickadee
• Henslow’s Sparrows
• Winter Wren
• Blackburnian Warbler
• Scarlet Tanager
• Red-bellied Woodpecker
• Snowy Owl
• Snow Bunting
• Bald Eagle
• American Robin
• Barn Swallow
• Red-winged Blackbird
• Marbled Godwit
• Northern Goshawk
• Cooper’s Hawk
• Boreal Owl

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Ever wonder what bird species your favorite characters from the hit TV series "The Office" would be? Wonder no more. In this episode, we correlate characteristics of different bird species to some of the rowdy bunch of characters from "The Office."

Tune in to find out if we let Dwight be the Bald Eagle he thinks he is, why Stanley is the quintessential "lazy bird," and how the heck we determined the right bird for Michael.

Since this is a new episode format, we'd love to know if you like this episode! Send us an email ([email protected]) or find us on Twitter (@birdshitpod) and Instagram (@birdshitpodcast). We'd love to know what think...or if you want us to do this for other TV shows, books, movies. etc.!

BIRD SHIT WE DISCUSSED

USEFUL RESOURCES

Google Street View Birding group on Facebook!

BIRDS WE MENTION (in order)

• Bald Eagle
• Northern Mockingbird
• Woodhouse’s Scrub-Jay
• Common Nightingale
• Northern Shrike
• Horned Lark
• Brown-headed Cowbird
• Great Skua
• Herring Gull
• Rosy-faced Lovebird
• Red-headed Woodpecker
• Red-winged Blackbird

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Before we dive too deep into 2020, let's reflect on 2019. Some big things happened in the bird world last year.

Scientists identified the remains of a 15-pound, 3-foot-tall parrot named Squawkzilla. US cities adopted bird-friendly laws. We've lost 1 in 4 birds since the 1970s (hey, we didn't say it was all good news). Plus, meet 5 bird species that had an AWESOME year.

Here's our birdy recap of 2019!

BIRD SHIT WE DISCUSSED

USEFUL RESOURCES

• Chicago Bird Collision Monitors…we love this (and similar) organizations!
• New York City Audubon, American Bird Conservancy, and the American Institute of Architects helped pass bird-friendly building laws in NYC!
• Have you played Untitled Goose Game?

BIRDS WE MENTION (in order)

• Blue-gray Gnatcatcher
• American Woodcock
• Gouldian Finch
• House Sparrow
• American Robin
• European Starling
• Long-tailed Duck
• Bufflehead
• House Finch
• Dark-eyed Junco
• Northern Cardinal
• Rock Pigeon
• Piping Plover
• Kirtland’s Warbler
• Interior Least Tern
• Hoiho (Yellow-Eyed Penguin)
• Tricolored Blackbird

BIRDS IN THE NEWS

• Birds’ bodies are getting smaller and their wings are getting larger.
• NYC and Austin’s airport are making the world safer for birds!

2019 BIRD NEWS WRAP-UP

• Changes to the Migratory Bird Act are effed up and make things bad for birds.
• Using eDNA to detect endangered species = COOL
• The worst news about birds came out in 2019. We’re still sad about it. 
• Birding is good for your mental health!
• Squawkzilla? Squawkzilla. 
• Half-male, half-female Northern Cardinal can’t sing but can lay eggs. Whoa!

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Some people think it's weird that many gifts in the "12 Days of Christmas" carol are birds. We're not those people...because BIRDS. Impress your friends and family this holiday season by spittin' some fun facts about the birds mentioned in this song—plus, a special Hannukah bird!

You'll also get the lowdown on Audubon's 2019 Christmas Bird Count and how you can participate. This long-standing citizenry science event turns a whopping 120 years old this year! WOWOWOWOW. Plus, joining a CBC group near you is a great way for beginner birders to get a helping hand with identification. Check it out!

Oh, we also share two fun and intriguing articles in "Birds in the News" that aren't about climate change destroying birds. Yay!

Thanks to everyone who listened to Bird Sh*t Podcast in 2019. We'll see ya with our eyes to the skies in 2020!

BIRD SHIT WE DISCUSSED

USEFUL RESOURCES

• Hanson’s “Snowed In” is the quintessential Christmas album. 
• James Bond’s “Birds of the West Indies” Peterson Field Guide
• Get the info on the 2019 Audubon Society Christmas Bird Count taking place near you! 

BIRDS WE MENTION (in order)

• Rock Pigeon
• American Black Duck
• Red-legged Partridge (French Partridge)
• Gray Partridge
• European Turtle-Dove
• Faverolle (chicken breed)
• Eurasian Blackbird
• American Robin
• Graylag Goose
• Mute Swan
• Trumpeter Swan
• Ring=necked Pheasant
• European Goldfinch
• Scarlet Macaw
• Northern Cardinal
• Blue Jay
• Great Tit

BIRDS IN THE NEWS

• Happiest bird story of 2019: this 91-year-old Canadian man who has built 900+ birdhouses
• James Bond was an ornithologist IRL. True story. (And RIP <3)

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