BirdNote Daily

Like today’s swans, the extinct species Annakacygna hajimei and Annakacygna yoshiiensis were quite large. But unlike their modern relatives, these birds lived most of their lives out at sea, and their fossils reveal remarkable adaptations to this unusual lifestyle. This led the researchers who first described these species to dub them “the ‘ultimate bird’ that ever existed.”

More info and transcript at BirdNote.org.

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Both this Eastern Towhee and the Spotted Towhee of the West sport a black or dark brown hood and back. And when they fly, their tails flash white. When a hawk gives chase, the towhee's flashing tail-feathers draw the predator's attention. Momentarily distracted, the hawk may come up with just a couple of tail feathers — as the towhee escapes into the underbrush. So if you see a towhee missing a couple of tail feathers, it may be th...

The 'Akiapōlā'au is a bright yellow bird with a black eye mask, found only in the upper elevations on the Big Island of Hawai'i. But its most distinct feature is its totally unique, uneven bill. The top of the bill is long, skinny, and curved like a sickle. Once abundant, habitat loss and disease from mosquitoes has taken a toll on the 'Akiapōlā'au population. In a race against extinction, people are working to restore habitat and ...

Descriptive names can be a great help when you’re getting to know a new bird. Some species have common names that put their plumage pattern front and center – like the Five-striped Sparrow. If you encounter a bird described as flammulated, lineated, banded, or barred, keep an eye out for their namesake stripes and streaks!

BirdNote is grateful to the many contributions of Dr. Gordon Orians, and for his ongoing support of the show.

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Elegant Black Terns breed in summer on secluded wetlands across the northern states and Canada. Because of major losses of wetlands in their breeding range — especially in Canada's prairie provinces — Black Tern numbers have dropped dramatically since the 1960s. The future of this beautiful bird depends on protecting and restoring high-quality wetlands. Recent research shows that artificial nest platforms can enhance the terns' bre...

Skateboarder and birder Dave Mull remembers the first time he heard a Steller’s Jay imitating a Red-tailed Hawk. “These Steller's Jays were pretending to be something they were not, kind of tricking the world,” he says. It got him into the mindset that he could attempt a terrifying new skateboard trick called the “stump jump.”

Music in today's episode is by Dave Mull, inspired by the endemic species on Santa Cruz Island, CA.

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Roosters don’t need to set an alarm to tell them when it’s time to crow — their internal circadian clock lets them anticipate sunrise with remarkable accuracy. To us sleepy humans, it may seem like they all start crowing at once. But scientists have found that roosters follow a strict social hierarchy: only the top bird can issue the first cock-a-doodle-doo of the day!

More info and transcript at BirdNote.org.

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Hudsonian Godwits are tough birds to find, and they were once thought extinct due to overhunting. After nesting at sites scattered in the High Arctic, they migrate south on a route that takes them over the ocean from Canada to South America. In spring, they head north through the Great Plains. Populations are estimated to be in the tens of thousands today, but like many arctic nesters, they are a threatened species.

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In August 2008, Kasatochi Island erupted in the middle of auklet breeding season, burying tens of thousands of chicks in hot ash. At first, the auklets’ future on the island appeared bleak. But in just a few years, the birds had returned in force. Thousands nested within the innumerable chambers left behind by sea-cooled lava.

More info and transcript at BirdNote.org.

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Beaks suited for opening tough, hard seeds — thick, conical beaks — evolved in more than one lineage of birds. Rose-breasted Grosbeaks are related to cardinals, which also have powerful beaks. Evening Grosbeaks belong to the finch family, which includes goldfinches and crossbills — an entire family of seedeaters. But both these grosbeaks were named before their family connections were fully understood.

More info and transcript at Bi...

We make it a habit to detail the broad and beautiful spectrum of bird colors, but iridescent feathers are undoubtedly among the most mesmerizing. When sunlight hits the Bufflehead’s dark head feathers at the right angle, their colors transform into shades of the rainbow, from deep violet to green and gold. Common Grackles, caught in natural light, gleam gold, green and blue-purple. Starlings, too. And the dull gray Rock Pigeons shu...

Ross’s Geese and Snow Geese are both white-bodied waterfowl with black wingtips that can be difficult to tell apart. The pair are a great example of what science calls sister species, which occur when a portion of one species takes an evolutionary step away from the rest, resulting in a species split. In this case, genetic studies suggest that the Ross’s Goose branched away from their Snow Goose relatives more than two million year...

Found in the Sierra Madre, the Arizona Woodpecker has a special connection to the mountain range. Sharing mid-elevation pine and oaks with fellow border straddlers, these small brown birds with white and brown cheeks stand out from other Woodpeckers with their heavily marked white underparts. Uniquely, they forage by flying to the base of a tree and then spiraling up the trunk. And in courtship, the male turns himself into a paper ...

Swainson’s Hawks make an incredible journey every year, migrating 12,000 miles round-trip from North America’s prairies to Argentina’s pampas. What makes them truly unique is their diet. Most hawks hunt rodents and reptiles, but Swainson’s Hawks switch to insects, feasting on grasshoppers and locusts in South America. In the 1990s, this diet nearly led to disaster when pesticides in Argentina killed over 20,000 hawks in two years. ...

Some bird songs leave us in admiration of their beauty, some with a sense of wonder at their complexity—and others are downright comical. As a maker of silly sounds, the male Willow Ptarmigan beats the Three Stooges hands down. But these sounds are no laughing matter. Where it nests in the shrubby willow tundra of Alaska and Canada, the Willow Ptarmigan crows to attract females and show other males he’s in charge of his territory.

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Over 12,000 miles across at its widest point, you might think the Pacific Ocean is a barrier that even high-flying birds can’t cross. Think again – some species make the trip every year as part of their life cycle. During the spring, Bar-tailed Godwits break up their trip from New Zealand to Alaska with a stop in the Yellow Sea off the coast of East Asia. But for their winter migration, they fly from North America to New Zealand wi...

Why do birds consistently follow certain routes in their migrations? Pathways of migration evolved, shaped by the wind. During the height of the last ice age, ice-free breeding habitat for songbirds remained in what is now Alaska and parts of Western Canada. Studies of fossil pollen show that consistent winds blew across the continent on a northwest-southeast heading of 155 degrees. Scott Weidensaul recounts in his book Living on t...

While full-speed-ahead birding can mean spotting a large number of species, there's quiet joy in stand-still birding. Pick a place-forest, field, or marsh. Find a seat that's dry, and hold your binoculars to your eyes. Be still and blend in. After perhaps 20 minutes, birds accept you as part of the landscape and go back to the business of being birds. You might even see a bird like this female Anna's Hummingbird fly to her secret n...

At first glance, many of the sparrows in North America look pretty much the same: like small, drab-colored songbirds hanging out on the ground. But these “little brown jobs” can be fun to identify if you know what field marks to look for!

More info and transcript at BirdNote.org.

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