The Field Guides
Nature nerds rejoice! The Field Guides is a monthly podcast that will bring you out on the trail, focusing on the science of our North American wildlife.
Episodes
Every summer, large sacks of caterpillar silk appear in trees across much of North America. They’re the communal home of Fall Webworms, and they’re not pretty - full of caterpillars, their poop (frass), and dead leaves. But, y’know, those sacks are full of something else - fascinating nature facts! And in this episode, Bill and Steve dive into the mes...
This episode, we’re stepping back to the golden age of natural history podcasting by resurrecting the format of the classic show Wild Ideas: The Podcast. Joining us on the trail is one of the OG hosts: the man himself, Gordon Maupin. It’s a 3-way team-up where each of us brings a heavy-hitting seasonal mystery to the table.
Every now and then, a conservation opportunity comes along that you can't pass up. The Western NY Land Conservancy (WNYLC) is currently in a race to permanently protect the Bear Lake Preserve, 311 acres of undeveloped shoreline, mature forest, and an array of critical wetland habitats linked to the Lake.
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Something’s not right in the woods, at least if you’re a white-tailed deer. In this episode, the guys dig into chronic wasting disease (CWD), a strange illness reshaping deer populations in many areas of the Lower 48 (and Scandinavia!). It’s not caused by a virus or a bacteria, but it is related to mad cow disease. They break down what it is, how it s...
The Brown Tree Snake (Boiga irregularis) has wreaked ecological havoc on Guam since its accidental release in the years following WWII, playing a major role in the extinction of endemic bird species and causing trophic cascades that have rewired how the island’s forests function. But how did a population of millions come from just a handful of snakes? And how doe...
It’s gator time, folks! It seems like we should’ve already covered this topic, but, nope, this is our first ever episode on the American Alligator (Alligator mississippiensis), and we’ve got two ringers to help: Daniel returns (our Field Guide host who moved to Florida last year) and he’s joined by his mentor in all things swamp-related, Chip Ca...
In this episode, Bill and Steve dive into a tiny, bustling world - a world that’s hiding on the feathers of the birds we see every day. Joining them is Dr. Alix Matthews, postdoctoral research associate in the Department of Biological Sciences at the University at Buffalo, and she reveals the strange lives of feather mites — how these barely-visible hitchhi...
It’s part 2 of our dive into the Insect Apocalypse, with our good friend Dr. Jason Dombroskie from the Cornell University Insect Collection!
In this part, Jason fills us in on the drivers of the Insect Apocalypse and - most importantly - what we can do about it.
The guys are back in the field with our good friend Dr. Jason Dombroskie from the Cornell University Insect Collection!
Listen in as Jason leads us through fields and forests, trusty butterfly net in hand, filling us in on the so-called “Insect Apocalypse.” Are insect populations really...
Part 2 of our time in the woods with naturalist Sandy Geffner. This time, Sandy leads Steve and Bill on a “hike”—though with Sandy, the word takes on a different meaning. You might not cover much distance, but you’ll travel miles in understanding: exploring ecology and hearing stories of the forest and the wildlife within it. Enjoy!
What exactly is a “naturalist”? Spend a little time with Sandy Geffner, and you’ll find out. Steve and Bill rarely go more than an episode or two without mentioning him—a naturalist who profoundly shaped both their lives. This month, they head into the woods to talk with Sandy about how a baseball-loving kid from Long Island became some...
It’s hard to believe, but we’re doing another episode on fish! This time around, Steve introduces us to the Sturgeon (family Acipenseridae), from their dinosaur-era origins to their caviar-fueled scandals (did you know Beluga caviar comes from Sturgeon? Bill didn’t either). So strap in as the guys touch on Sturgeon, for the very first time.
In this special bonus episode we're crossing over with The Spark Bird Podcast! (@sparkbirdproject)
Bill joins one of the hosts of the Spark Bird Project podcast, Jenn Lodi-Smith, to go birding in Buffalo’s historic Forest Lawn Cemetery, sharing spark bird stories, conservation efforts for mig...
Bill and Steve return for the second part of their look into the Dawn Chrous, that early morning explosion of bird song that refuses to let you sleep in.
This episode was recorded on April 20, 2025 at Majors Park in East Aurora, NY.
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Bill and Steve look into the Dawn Chrous, that early morning explosion of bird song that refuses to let you sleep in.
And, for all you Daniel-haters out there, this episode is 100% Daniel-free (but Bill and Steve are both crying on the inside. We miss Daniel buckets, and we're betting you do, too)...
In this episode, Steve leads a discussion on the invasive Grass Carp. The guys go over the evolutionary history of grass carp and its relatives, its biology, its introduction to The Great Lakes region, why people are concerned, and anything interesting Steve found out about it.
There are a lot more...
The guys return to Everglades National Park, again looking for a predator that Daniel wants to get too close to: the American Crocodile (Crocodylus acutus). Listen in as Daniel shares some research, busts croc-related myths, and Steve probably gets a little too excited about how crocs deal with salt water. Bill doesn’t have much to say, but he’s there, too....
This month, we head to the tropics and meet the Blue Iguana of the Cayman Islands! This endangered lizard is found nowhere else on the globe save for the island of Grand Cayman in the Caribbean, and just two decades ago, it’s likely there were fewer than 25 animals remaining in the wild. This was a species that was functionally extinct, but thanks to the herculea...
How hard is it to reintroduce species to a tropical island? Turns out, pretty hard! But it’s so worth it. The rewilding of the Galapagos island of Floreana will make it the largest tropical island ever to be rewilded. Researchers have spent over a decade meticulously planning for the reintroduction of the iconic Floreana Giant Tortoise (Chelonoidis niger niger). Once thought to be extinct, this species, along with eleven othe...
This month, Daniel leads the guys into uncharted waters for the podcast…that’s right, it’s our first-ever episode about fish! The Great Lakes salmon fishery is one of the greatest angling spectacles in the US. Large predatory salmon, native to the Pacific Northwest, are stocked in the Great Lakes region to maintain a world class fishery and control invasive baitfish. The undisputed monarch among these s...
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