284 episodes

The American Birding Podcast brings together staff and friends of the American Birding Association as we talk about birds, birding, travel and conservation in North America and beyond. Join host Nate Swick every Thursday for news and happenings, recent rarities, guests from around the birding world, and features of interest to every birder.

The American Birding Podcast American Birding Association

    • Science
    • 4.7 • 548 Ratings

The American Birding Podcast brings together staff and friends of the American Birding Association as we talk about birds, birding, travel and conservation in North America and beyond. Join host Nate Swick every Thursday for news and happenings, recent rarities, guests from around the birding world, and features of interest to every birder.

    08-11: Beat this Big Year Record with Jeff Bouton

    08-11: Beat this Big Year Record with Jeff Bouton

    Digiscoping is more popular than ever, but bird records involving this practice are few and far between. We needed someone to lay down the gauntlet, and last year that person was Jeff Bouton. Many birders know Jeff as the representative for Kowa Optics, and he's a familiar face around bird festivals and events, and now, the Digicoping Big Year Champion, a record he set in 2023. He’s here to challenge others to match him. 
    Also, a rare bird on the Las Vegas strip gets national media exposure, for better or for worse. 
    Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it! And don’t forget to join the ABA to support this podcast and the many things we do for birds and birders!
    Thanks to HX Expeditions for sponsoring this episode! Change the way you see the world with HX Expeditions. 

     


     

    • 43 min
    08-10: Protecting Plovers in NYC with Chris Allieri

    08-10: Protecting Plovers in NYC with Chris Allieri

    Beach nesting shorebird conservation is one of the more nuanced issues on the continent because the sorts of places and times of year where they prefer to nest are the sorts of places and times of year that humans prefer to recreate. But opportunities exist to get people to care about and protect these birds that we share space with. Chris Allieri and the NYC Plover Project are doing just that. The volunteer group is one of the most celebrated and successful groups in New York City, and Chris joins us to talk about what works and what doesn't. 
    Also, it was inevitable that Flaco the celebrity Central Park Owl would meet an untimely end, but what does he mean for future birds and the ways in which we enjoy them?
    Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it! And don't forget to join the ABA to support this podcast and the many things we do for birds and birders!

    • 54 min
    08-09: This Month in Birding - February 2024

    08-09: This Month in Birding - February 2024

    It's Leap Day! It’s not often that we have an extra week in February, but this month’s This Month in Birding marks the first time we’ve ever had an episode on the 29th of February. We are joined by Jennie Duberstein, Nicole Jackson, and Gabriel Foley for a panel that is as unique as this day to talk eBird streaks, landfill condors, brilliant falcons, and more. 
    Links to articles discussed in this episode:
    One's trash is another's treasure: How landfills support Andean condors
    Innovative problem solving by wild falcons
    Yellow-crested Helmetshrike rediscovered
    Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it!

     



     


     

    • 54 min
    08-08: Still Birding to Change the World with Trish O'Kane

    08-08: Still Birding to Change the World with Trish O'Kane

    Way back in 2019, we first spoke with Trish O’Kane about the Birding to Change the World program she had instituted at the University of Vermont, where she is a lecturer and environmental educator, because of an essay she had written for The New York Times. She's back 5 years later to talk about her new memoir, appropriately titled Birding to Change the World, which recounts her journey from nascent bird obsessive to activist to environmental educator through the effort to protect a much-loved urban park in Madison, Wisconsin.
    Also, Emperor Penguin colonies are all accounted for in Antarctica, thanks to poop-tracking satellites. 
    Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it!

     


     

    • 45 min
    08-07: 2023 Rare Bird Draft with Amy Davis & Tim Healy

    08-07: 2023 Rare Bird Draft with Amy Davis & Tim Healy

    2023 was an exceptional year for ABA Rarities, and few can remember a more extraordinary one in terms of both quality and quantity of shocking and spectacular rare birds in the US and Canada. As we do every year, we welcome North American Birds editor Amy Davis and educator and writer at The Nemesis Bird, Tim Healy, to share our favorites and draft the Top 10 (and a few more) ABA Area Rare Birds for 2023.
    Also, congrats to Peter Kaestner for becoming the first birder to see 10,000 species.
    Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it!

    • 1 hr
    08-06: The Drama of Shorebird Migration with Randall Wood

    08-06: The Drama of Shorebird Migration with Randall Wood

    The voyages of migratory shorebirds are cinematic in their scope; certainly an attractive subject for a nature documentarian. Randall Wood is the award-winning writer, director, and producer of Flyways: The Untold Story of Migratory Shorebirds, which aired in the United States on the PBS program Nature on February 7, 2024. He joins us to talk about the film, which focuses on the incredible journeys of three long-distance migrants and the researchers racing against time to preserve these birds and this incredible phenomenon. You can find the film at pbs.org/nature, YouTube and the PBS App. 
    Also, the AOS NACC released their first batch of potential splits and lumps, with a lot of potential changes coming to the ABA Area. 
    Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, and Google Podcasts, and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it!

    • 34 min

Customer Reviews

4.7 out of 5
548 Ratings

548 Ratings

Lewisbholmes ,

look forward to each episode

A favorite podcast, I enjoy the breadth of topics, the casual yet focused discussions, and all the shows with Ted Floyd.

Now Unsubscribed ,

Can We Just Talk About Birds?

ABA member, birder and outdoor enthusiast here that cannot stand the political/woke/non-informational turn this podcast has taken over the last six months. Do not find it interesting at all to listen to virtue signaling from the sometimes interesting host or the woke tribunals take during the monthly “bird talk” about modern society. Heavy leftist podcasts are dime a dozen but I tried this podcast to get more in depth studies of the ABA region and species NOT divisive politics.
Were it not for the Ted Floyd episodes…yikes

CeceD. ,

St. Petersburg, Florida

Nate’s interviews are always insightful. He is able to interview his guests to get the best information they have to offer us listeners.

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