Have you ever gone for a walk in the woods and wondered what bird was making a sound like a siren going off, or somebody revving a chainsaw engine—or sneezing? Do you hear birds every day, in the park or your neighborhood, but never know quite what you are listening to? Birds are singing all around us, and author and illustrator Becca Rowland , aka Girl in White Glasses, connects the dots between their songs and the birds who make them, helping you to easily identify and remember their calls in ...
Jun 19, 2025•20 min
Bird flight is a mesmerizing spectacle, yet its intricacies remain largely shrouded in mystery for most. Even after over a century of study, certain aspects of bird flight continue to baffle the public and ornithologists alike. Peter Cavanagh , a dedicated bird photographer, pilot, and expert in the fields of biomechanics and anatomy, has dedicated a decade to crafting this remarkable book, How Birds Fly . Through awe-inspiring photography and conversational prose, Peter unveils the complex evol...
May 22, 2025•41 min
Danielle Whittaker's The Secret Perfume of Birds is the untold story of a stunning discovery: not only can birds smell, but their scents may be the secret to understanding their world. The puzzling lack of evidence for the peculiar but widespread belief that birds have no sense of smell irked evolutionary biologist Danielle Whittaker. Exploring the science behind the myth led her on an unexpected quest investigating mysteries from how juncos win a fight to why cowbirds smell like cookies. In The...
Apr 24, 2025•27 min
Mike Stark’s Starlings: The Curious Odyssey of a Most Hated Bird is a first-of-its-kind history of starlings in America, an oddball, love-hate story at the intersection of human folly, ornithology, and one bird’s tenacious will to endure. Has there ever been a more hated bird than the European starling? Let loose in New York City’s Central Park by a misguided aristocrat, the starlings were supposed to help curb insect outbreaks and add to the tuneful choir of other songbirds. Rather than staying...
Mar 27, 2025•22 min
Professional birding amateur and national bestselling author Matt Kracht has had it with these goddamn birds. His new book, A Dumb Birds Field Guide to the Worst Birds Ever , is a warning, a field guide to help you identify and stay away from the absolute worst birds ever to plague planet Earth. Featuring an all-new scientific scale devised by the author that proves how awful birds really are. Check out my GoodReads Review . Support the show Connect with me at... GoodReads: Hannah Buschert IG: @...
Feb 27, 2025•29 min
Roger Pasquier's Birds at Rest is the first book to give a full picture of how birds rest, roost, and sleep, a vital part of their lives. It features new science that can measure what is happening in a bird’s brain over the course of a night or when it has flown to another hemisphere, as well as still-valuable observations by legendary naturalists such as John James Audubon, Alfred Russel Wallace, and Theodore Roosevelt. Much of what they saw and what ornithologists are studying today can be obs...
Jan 30, 2025•25 min
Ian Parsons', Of the Trees and the Birds , tells the story of how trees and birds go together, as they have done for millions of years, evolving long before we did. Over their long and shared history, they have formed numerous relationships, some of which are basic and obvious to us, like a bird using a tree to perch in whilst searching for food. Others are more intricate, but still noticeable to us, with the classic example being that many tree species use birds to propagate their next generati...
Jan 02, 2025•29 min
It is the end of 2024 - so time for a bit of a wrap-up! Lyzy Lusterman, owner of Buteo Books , joined me to talk about some favorites, some trends, and books to look forward to in 2025. Buteo Books is a family-owned and operated business based on the firm belief that independent booksellers are a vital component of our social and cultural landscape. Their brick-and-mortar store is in San Rafael, California but can also be found online ( Instagram ; TikTok ) Don't forget to check-out Buteo Books ...
Dec 05, 2024•24 min
Tessa Boase's Etta Lemon is a gripping narrative exploring two formidable heroines and their rival, overlapping campaigns. Moving from the feather workers’ slums to high society, from the first female political rally to the rise of the eco-feminist, it restores Etta Lemon to her rightful place in history – the extraordinary woman who saved the birds. Check out my GoodReads Review . Support the show Connect with me at... GoodReads: Hannah Buschert IG: @Hannahgoesbirding Facebook: @HannahandErikGo...
Nov 07, 2024•32 min
Most birders keep lists of the species birds they have seen, but do any keep a list of pub birds, that is birds on pub signs and in pub names? John Lawton's Inn Search of Birds is about these pub birds, their natural histories, folk-histories and those of the pubs that bear their names, some of the people involved in the story, and the memories that pub birds have evoked over a birding lifetime. This may appear to be a niche aspect of birding but before the advent of modern technology, pubs in ‘...
Oct 10, 2024•32 min
Lillian Stokes and Matt Young's The Stokes Guide to Finches of the United States and Canada has everything you could possibly want to know about the finches of North America (including Hawaii!) and Canada. Learn all you need to know about identifying and attracting finches with this comprehensive, gloriously colorful field guide from America’s foremost authorities on birds and nature. Following the extraordinary finch superflight of 2020-2021, birders across the country became obsessed with finc...
Sep 12, 2024•55 min
Randi Minetor's The Complete Language of Birds dives into an unusual dimension of historical and arcane knowledge with the study of birds. A collection of fun and interesting facts about birds gathered from science and culture, the stunning illustrations and lively descriptions make this an engaging guide you’ll return to again and again. Check out my GoodReads Review . Support the show Connect with me at... GoodReads: Hannah Buschert IG: @Hannahgoesbirding Facebook: @HannahandErikGoBirding Emai...
Aug 15, 2024•26 min
Sophie Osborn's Feather Trails: A Journey of Discovery Among Endangered Birds is the story of one woman’s remarkable work with a trio of charismatic, endangered bird species—and her discoveries about the devastating threats that imperil them. A wildlife biologist and birder, Osborn reveals how the harmful environmental choices we’ve made—including pesticide use, the introduction of invasive species, lead poisoning, and habitat destruction—have decimated Peregrine Falcons, Hawaiian Crows, and Cal...
Jul 18, 2024•36 min
Geoff Wisner's A Year of Birds is a work of art as well as a work of literature. With 150 watercolors and field sketches by renowned bird artist Barry Van Dusen and a foreword by celebrated naturalist Peter Alden, the author of numerous Audubon Field Guides, Henry David Thoreau's writings on birds are showcased in a way never seen before. Unlike previous collections, the observations in A YEAR OF BIRDS are arranged by the day of the year, emphasizing the relationship of birds with their environm...
Jun 20, 2024•29 min
Sarah T. Dubb's, Birding with Benefits , published by Gallery Books is a romance novel about a divorcée who embarks on her “year of yes” and crosses paths with a shy and sensitive birdwatcher who changes her life. Newly divorced, almost-empty-nester Celeste is finally seeking adventure and putting herself first, clichés be damned. So when a friend asks her to “partner” with his buddy John for an event, Celeste throws herself into the role of his temporary girlfriend. But quiet cinnamon roll John...
May 23, 2024•32 min
Jeff Ollerton's Birds and Flowers explores the relationships between plants and birds which first emerged at least 50 million years ago and over time have influenced the evolution of both groups. This groundbreaking book is the first to deal with pollinating birds in all their diversity, involving almost 1,390 avian species interacting with tens of thousands of different plants. It rescues them from being novelties of natural history and explores these interactions in all their evolutionary and ...
Apr 25, 2024•36 min
Gretchen Newberry's The Nighthawk Evening focuses on the bird itself—its complex conservation status and cultural significance—and the larger, often hidden world of nocturnal animals. Along the way, she gives readers insight into the daily life of a scientist, especially one who works primarily at night. The Nighthawk’s Evening uses one scientist and one species to explore the challenges, disappointments, and successes of scientific research and conservation efforts. Read my GoodReads review Con...
Mar 28, 2024•20 min
Jordan Spalding's Black-throated Blue Warbler looks into the life of a female black-throated blue warbler throughout a single breeding season, from migration to migration. It is an exploration of the natural environment and a celebration of the tenacity of life. As well as delving into where the natural sciences meet the natural world and the impact we have on the places we work to protect. Read my GoodReads review Connect with me at... IG: @Hannahgoesbirding and @Erikgoesbirding Facebook: @Hann...
Feb 29, 2024•24 min
Susan Myers, The Bird Name Book , is an alphabetical reference book on the origins and meanings of common group bird names, from “accentor” to “zeledonia.” A cornucopia of engaging facts and anecdotes, this superbly researched compendium presents a wealth of incisive entries alongside stunning photos by the author and beautiful historic prints and watercolors. Myers provides brief biographies of prominent figures in ornithology―such as John Gould, John Latham, Alfred Newton, and Robert Ridgway―a...
Feb 01, 2024•24 min
Trish O'Kane's Birding to Change the World details the astonishing science of bird life, from migration and parenting to the territorial defense strategies that influenced her own activism. A warm and compelling weave of science and social engagement, this is the story of an improbably band of bird lovers who saved their park. And it is a blueprint for muscular citizenship, powered by joy. Check out my GoodReads review here . Support the show Connect with me at... GoodReads: Hannah Buschert IG: ...
Jan 04, 2024•44 min
Cameron Cox's Terns of North America: A Photographic Guide published by Princeton University Press, is the essential identification guide to the terns, noddies, and skimmers of North America. Covering every species and featuring hundreds of high-quality color images, this book is the ideal companion for anyone interested in this charismatic but sometimes challenging group of seabirds. Support the show Connect with me at... GoodReads: Hannah Buschert IG: @Hannahgoesbirding Facebook: @HannahandEri...
Dec 07, 2023•30 min
Find More Birds by Heather Wolf is a gorgeously photographed trove of 111 ingenious tips for seeing more birds wherever you are—from crowd favorites (hummingbirds, owls, eagles) to species you’ve never spotted before. Support the show Connect with me at... GoodReads: Hannah Buschert IG: @Hannahgoesbirding Facebook: @HannahandErikGoBirding Email us at HannahandErikGoBirding@gmail.com Website: http://www.gobirdingpodcast.com Get a discount at Buteo Books using code: BIRDNERDBOOKCLUB...
Nov 09, 2023•34 min
Yellowstone's Birds: Diversity and Abundance in the World's First National Park , edited by Douglas W. Smith, Lauren E. Walker, and Katherine E. Duffy, explores a beloved national treasure: Yellowstone National Park. Established in 1872, Yellowstone National Park is the oldest and arguably the most famous national park in North America, attracting millions of visitors each year. While many come to the park for its recreational activities, the wildlife of Yellowstone is just as alluring. This boo...
Oct 12, 2023•38 min
Finding W. H. Hudson by Conor Mark Jameson came about due to an imposing, life-size oil painting dominates the main meeting room at the RSPB’s base in the heart of England: ‘the man above the fireplace’ – always present, rarely mentioned. Curious about the person in the portrait, the author began a quest to rediscover William Henry Hudson (1841–1922). It became a mission of restoration: stitching back together the faded tapestry of Hudson’s life, re-colouring it in places and adding new threads ...
Sep 14, 2023•51 min
Curlew Moon by Mary Colwell is the chronicles of her impressive journey, weaving a wonderfully told story of the experiences on her walk, interspersed with the natural history of this most impressive of birds that has fascinated us for millennia. Colwell started walking in the early spring when birds were first arriving on their breeding grounds in the west of Ireland, walking through to Wales when they incubated their eggs. She then travelled through England to coincide with the time when the c...
Aug 17, 2023•24 min
Woman, Watching: Louise de Kiriline Lawrence and the Songbirds of Pimisi Bay by Merilyn Simonds is a remarkable biography of an extraordinary woman — a Swedish aristocrat who survived the Russian Revolution to become an internationally renowned naturalist, one of the first to track the mid-century decline of songbirds. Read my GoodReads review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/4782820121 Support the show Connect with me at... GoodReads: Hannah Buschert IG: @Hannahgoesbirding Facebook: ...
Jul 20, 2023•27 min
101 Curious Tales of East African Birds offers bite-size stories about fascinating birds featuring cutting-edge research. And is packed with stunning photographs of East African birds, both iconic and little known. Read my GoodReads review here: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/61728879 Support the show Connect with me at... GoodReads: Hannah Buschert IG: @Hannahgoesbirding Facebook: @HannahandErikGoBirding Email us at HannahandErikGoBirding@gmail.com Website: http://www.gobirdingpodcast.com ...
Jun 22, 2023•23 min
Field Guide to North American Flycatchers: Empidonax and Pewees is the first guide from Cin-Ty Lee, illustrated by Andrew Birch that covers a difficult group of birds for beginners through expert birders. Read my GoodReads review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5403080039 Support the show Connect with me at... GoodReads: Hannah Buschert IG: @Hannahgoesbirding Facebook: @HannahandErikGoBirding Email us at HannahandErikGoBirding@gmail.com Website: http://www.gobirdingpodcast.com Get a ...
May 25, 2023•28 min
Julia's first book, Field Notes from an Unintentional Birder , is a Canadian bestseller published by Douglas & McIntyre in 2020. Check out Julia's website for more! Read my GoodReads review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5500906054 Support the show Connect with me at... GoodReads: Hannah Buschert IG: @Hannahgoesbirding Facebook: @HannahandErikGoBirding Email us at HannahandErikGoBirding@gmail.com Website: http://www.gobirdingpodcast.com Get a discount at Buteo Books using code: ...
Apr 27, 2023•23 min
Jen Bristol's new book, Cemetery Birding, is an unexpected guide to birding some amazing spots that don't get visited too often. Check out this link for more! Support the show Connect with me at... GoodReads: Hannah Buschert IG: @Hannahgoesbirding Facebook: @HannahandErikGoBirding Email us at HannahandErikGoBirding@gmail.com Website: http://www.gobirdingpodcast.com Get a discount at Buteo Books using code: BIRDNERDBOOKCLUB...
Mar 30, 2023•28 min
