A report on effects of groundwater depletion on riparian birds. Ongoing residential and industrial development across Arizona is significantly reducing surface water in key riparian zones, disrupting natural ecological patterns on which birds and other wildlife depend. A report on a productive birding field trip to the Mogollon Rim lakes region in August, 2024 by members of the Maricopa Audubon Society. Bird of the episode: MacGillivray's Warbler. Birding hotspot: Cattail Cove State Park in west...
Apr 03, 2024•38 min•Season 3Ep. 139
A report on new research that describes how the Nightingale, an Old World flycatcher that got a mention in Homer's Iliad, William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet and countless other poetic and dramatic works over many centuries on its way to literary stardom, has a new claim to fame. It develops a capacity for mimicking the territorial songs of competing males in perfect pitch. Ornithologists are investigating whether other birds have similar abilities. Bird of the episode: the Mallard. Birding h...
Mar 27, 2024•34 min•Season 3Ep. 138
A report on research indicating Southwestern Flycatchers are adapting to climate change genetically by interbreeding with individuals from diverse population clusters in the Northwest and interior western US. A profile of the colorful Northern Shoveler, often spotted in Arizona during winter months. Introduction to Tucson Audubon's Mason Center. Bird of the episode: Lesser Goldfinch: Birding hotspot: Homolovi State Park. Friends of wildlife organization: Maricopa Trail & Park Foundation. Cal...
Mar 20, 2024•35 min•Season 3Ep. 137
A report on the Arizona Field Ornithologist's field expedition to Lake Havasu on the Colorado River January 27, 2024. A 'save the date' for another field expedition, this to Springerville AZ in search of breeding Mountain Plovers. White Mountain Audubon board member Rob Betasso report on a successful winter birding trip in search of Rosy Finches on Sandia Mountain near Albuquerque New Mexico. Bird of the episode: Marbled Godwit. Birding hotspot: Slide Rock State Park near Sedona. Friend of Wildl...
Mar 13, 2024•37 min•Season 3Ep. 136
A report on a novel approach to increasing the stock of seeds from plants preferred by the threatened Montezuma Quail. Quail hunters are donating sublingual pouches of harvested birds from which undigested seeds are collected and stored, then planted in quail-friendly natural areas. A report on sightings of Spotted Towhee in Maine - in winter - the first ever. Bird of the week: LeConte's Thrasher. Birding hotspot: Lynx Lake in Prescott National Forest. Friend-of-wildlife organization: Gila Water...
Mar 06, 2024•34 min•Season 3Ep. 135
A report on efforts by the Cocopah Indian community to restore portions of the lower Colorado River riparian zone including critical delta bird habitat. These efforts are being supported by recently awarded federal grants and corporate philanthropy. Bird of the week: Least Sandpiper. Birding hotspot: Thunderbird Conservation Park and Arrowhead Lakes in Maricopa County. Friend of Wildlife organization: Water Education Foundation. Calendar of bird friendly events coming up in Arizona.
Feb 28, 2024•28 min•Season 3Ep. 134
A report on a recently awarded multimillion dollar grant from the U.S. Highway Administration to Arizona Game and Fish Department and Arizona Department of Transportation for construction of wildlife overpasses/underpasses along Arizona portions of Interstates 17 and 40. These structures are designed to allow large mammals and other wildlife to safely cross thoroughfares during seasonal migrations and to cut down on vehicle collisions with wildlife. Bird of the week: Lawrence's Goldfinch. Birdin...
Feb 21, 2024•33 min•Season 3Ep. 133
An introduction to winter waterfowl birding across North America. Millions of waterfowl overwinter in Arizona, can be observed along riparian corridors and on lakes and reservoirs statewide. An update on actions taken by several Audubon Society chapters in the Midwest that are stepping away from the Audubon name and forming a new organization. Bird of the episode: Long-billed Curlew. Birding hotspot: the Arboretum at Flagstaff. Friend of Wildlife organization: Gila River Indian Community of Ariz...
Feb 14, 2024•39 min•Season 3Ep. 132
A report on scientific research being done by the Sala Lab at Arizona State University with support from the Drylands Institute. The Sala Lab is working to document environmental changes that are leading some scientists to conclude the decades long drought plaguing the Southwest is not temporary and that the region faces permanent aridification. An overview of research on Caledonian Crows and Jays and how they protect food sources and caches from conspecific competitors. Bird of the episode: Lad...
Feb 07, 2024•33 min•Season 3Ep. 131
Update on research into effects of wildfires on birds, their migratory and breeding habitats here in the Southwest. A species overview of the Ferruginous Hawk, North America's largest hawk, a regular in southern Arizona. Bird of the episode: House Sparrow. Birding hotspot: ASU Research Park, Tempe. Friend of wildlife organization: Central Arizona Project. A brief calendar of bird-friendly events coming up in Arizona.
Jan 31, 2024•35 min•Season 3Ep. 130
An article on the Short-eared Owl, one of a very few owl species readily spotted during daylight hours on perches above open spaces and along forest edges throughout Arizona. And, an article that describes how birds survive extreme cold. Bird of the week: Greater Yellowlegs. Birding hotspot: Kartchner Caverns State Park. Friend of wildlife organization: Global Drylands Center at Arizona State University. Calendar of bird-friendly events in days ahead here it Arizona.
Jan 24, 2024•36 min•Season 3Ep. 129
The Phoenix area annual winter water bird survey is back after a one-year hiatus. Information on how to contribute. A report from Tucson Audubon on winter towhees now present at the Paton Center for Hummingbirds. A report on research that some scientists say supports the idea that drought is the new normal in Arizona, that the future will be characterized by permanent aridification. Bird of the week: the Hermit Warbler. Birding hotspot: Rawhide Mountains Wilderness. Friend of Wildlife: Natural H...
Jan 17, 2024•36 min•Season 3Ep. 128
An article on winter finches in Arizona by Charles J. Babbitt, author of Birds of Arizona: What to Know, Where to Go. Bird of the episode: Great-tailed Grackle. Birding Hotspot: San Rafael Valley grasslands in southeastern Arizona. Friend of Wildlife Organization: The Peregrine Fund. Calendar of bird-friendly events coming up in Arizona.
Jan 10, 2024•39 min•Season 3Ep. 127
An article 'Do You Hear What I Hear?' that discusses how birds are able to make sounds outside the range of human hearing in addition to the songs and calls we do hear without the aid of technical devices. Bird of the episode: Green Heron. Birding hotspot: Alamo Lake State Park. Friend of Wildlife: Runnin'W Wildlife Center, Cornville. Calendar of bird friendly events coming up in Arizona.
Jan 03, 2024•33 min•Season 3Ep. 126
An introduction to the MOTUS wildlife stracking system being rolled out across Arizona in cooperation with several Audubon Society chapters. Bird of the week: Green Tailed Towhee. Birding hotspot: Dead Horse Ranch State Park. Friend of Wildlife organization: Discovery Center at Lake Pleasant, a program of the Maricopa County Parks department. Calendar of bird friendly events coming up in weeks ahead in Arizona.
Dec 27, 2023•31 min•Season 3Ep. 125
Species profile of Williamson's Sapsucker considered by many birders to be the most strikingly beautiful woodpecker of all North American woodpecker species. Bird of the week: Hairy Woodpecker. Birding Hotspot: Lost Dutchman State Park/Superstition Wilderness east of Phoenix in Central Arizona. Friend of Wildlife organization: Empire Ranch Foundation. Calendar of bird friendly events coming up in Arizona.
Dec 20, 2023•31 min•Season 3Ep. 124
Overview of the 'Sagebrush Sea,' a vast grassland ecosystem spanning much of the western United States and prairie regions of Canada, home to numerous native bird species. Conservationists and ranchers among other stakeholders are cooperating to sustain and in some areas restore critical breeding habitat for grassland birds. And, a report of native Arizona birds Bell's Vireo and Western Flycatcher discovered for the first time in the province of New Brunswick in eastern Canada. Bird of the episo...
Dec 13, 2023•42 min•Season 3Ep. 123
A profile of early American ornithologist Alexander Wilson for whom Wilson's Warbler, Wilson's Phalarope, Wilson's Plover, Wilson's Snipe and other species are named. Update on progress in construction of wildlife crossings of major highways in western United States. Bird of the episode: Hermit Thrush. Birding hotspot: Indian Bend Wash Greenbelt spanning Scottsdale and Tempe. Friend of Wildlife: Rio Vista Conservation Project. Calendar of bird-friendly events coming up in Arizona.
Dec 06, 2023•39 min•Season 3Ep. 122
A report on progress being made in efforts to save the quickly diminishing Great Salt Lake in Utah, a critical migratory stopover for countless species of birds and other wildlife. A broad coalition of environmental and governmental organizations have organized to create a permanent solution to the crisis. And, a statement by the Arizona Water Coalition applauding Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs' decision to cancel water leases held by Fondomonte Arizona LLC that allowed the company to draw groundw...
Nov 29, 2023•25 min•Season 3Ep. 121
A report on a research initiative by Tucson Audubon titled 'Save the Sonoran Saguaro.' participants will plant Saguaro Cactus seedlings and track their progress over time. An essay titled 'Highway of New Birds' that describes rare bird sightings in southern Arizona's high peaks; species typically found in the Rocky Mountains and northern Mexico that intermingle in Arizona. Bird of the week: Hooded Warber. Birding hotspot: Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument. Friend of wildlife organization: Inte...
Nov 22, 2023•36 min•Season 3Ep. 120
A guide to a number of extraordinary higher elevation birding spots in Arizona's southeastern sky island region compiled by Tucson Audubon and The Sky Island Alliance, a binational consortium of ecologists in U.S. and Mexico. Bird of the episode: Horned Grebe. Birding hotspot: Table Top Wilderness nature preserve along the southern border region of Arizona. Friend of Wildlife: Arizona Bird Committee. Calendar of bird-friendly events coming up in Arizona.
Nov 15, 2023•40 min•Season 3Ep. 119
On November 1, 2023 the American Ornithological Society, the scientific authority on the naming of bird species in the Americas, announced it will no longer allow birds to be named for people, and that it will begin a process to replace English bird names that have been named for people in the past. We will have the official announcement. Bird of the week: Horned Lark. Birding hotspot: San Carlos Lake. Friend of wildlife organization: Central Arizona Conservation Alliance. Calendar of bird-frien...
Nov 08, 2023•37 min•Season 3Ep. 118
U.S. Supreme Court hands down ruling that limits EPA's authority to regulate commercial development of wetlands. Rio Rico residents and a consortium of environmentalists and wildlife conservation organizations challenge effort to bring commercial development to riparian corridors within the Rio Rico watershed. The proposal was withdrawn. Bird of the week: House Finch. Birding hotspot: Horseshoe reservoir on the Verde River north of Bartlett Lake. Friend of wildlife: Natural History Institute, Pr...
Nov 01, 2023•40 min•Season 3Ep. 117
A report titled 'Residential Neighborhood Diversity Study' by the The Central Arizona–Phoenix Long-Term Ecological Research (CAP LTER) program. Bird of the episode: Greater Roadrunner. Birding hotspot: Roosevelt Lake at the headwaters of the Salt River. Friend of wildlife organization: VIDA Wildlife Rehabilitation Center, Yuma. Calendar of bird-friendly events coming up in Arizona.
Oct 25, 2023•36 min•Season 3Ep. 116
Greater Phoenix has more than 1,400 artificial lakes. A report on a study conducted by faculty and students affiliated with The Central Arizona–Phoenix Long-Term Ecological Research (CAP LTER) program. A description of the Zen Curtain device for preventing bird collisions with windows and other reflective surfaces. Bird of the Episode: the Great Egret. Birding Hotspot: Granite Reef Diversion Dam on the Salt River. Friend of wildlife organization: Reid Park Zoological Society. Calendar of bird-fr...
Oct 18, 2023•32 min•Season 3Ep. 115
An introduction to Birdcast from Cornell Lab of Ornithology, an app that tracks and visualizes birds in migration in real time across North America. A discussion of trees that attract birds to Western lands and forests. How Icelanders are saving Puffins from possible extinction by capturing newly fledged pufflings and throwing them into the sea. Bird of the episode: Common Loon. Birding hotspot: Chiricahua National Monument in Cochise County. Friend of Wildlife organization: ASU's CAP-LETR resea...
Oct 11, 2023•36 min•Season 3Ep. 114
Rare bird sightings in Maricopa County in late September. Includes a Great Crested Flycatcher and Sabine's Gull. A commentary on migration habits of White Winged Doves by Charles J. Babbitt, author of Birds of Arizona, What to Know and Where to Go. Bird of the week: Grace's Warbler. Birding Hotspot: Mormon Lake in Coconino County. Friend of Wildlife organization: White Mountain Nature Center at Pinetop/Lakeside. List of bird-friendly events coming up in Arizona.
Oct 04, 2023•33 min•Season 3Ep. 113
The movement to replace the names of people attached to bird names with names that specifically describe the species is gaining momentum, and not just among birders. Bird of the week: Great Horned Owl. Birding hotspot: Harcuvar Mountains Wilderness in LaPaz County. Friend of Wildlife: Hassayampa River Preserve near Wickenburg. Calendar of bird-friendly events coming up in October.
Sep 27, 2023•36 min•Season 3Ep. 112
A report on the Arizona Field Ornithologist's recent successful field expedition to Arizona's Santa Cruz riparian region in search of the Green Kingfisher. Bird of the episode: the Gray Hawk. Birding hotspot: Riggs Lake, Mt. Graham's 'crown jewel.' Friend-of-wildlife initiative, Arizona Game and Fish Department's Focus Wild Arizona. Calendar of bird-friendly events coming up in Arizona.l
Sep 20, 2023•32 min•Season 3Ep. 111
A look at 8 'spark birds' that draw youngsters (and the young at heart) into birding. An introduction to the Southwestern Willow Flycatcher by Matt Griffiths at Tucson Audubon. Bird of the week: Golden Eagle. Birding Hotspot: Sipe White Mountain Wildlife Area. Friend of wildlofe organization: Arizona Natural History Association. Calendar of bird-friendly events coming up in Arizona.
Sep 13, 2023•38 min•Season 3Ep. 110
