Okay, But... Birds

E44. An adult eagle has no natural predators, so why are birds of prey declining? Dr. Todd Katzner, a wildlife biologist with the U.S. Geological Survey, explains the surprising dangers facing golden eagles and their kin, from spinning wind turbines to a threat small enough to fit on a grain of rice. In this episode, you'll hear about: Why an eagle that can clearly see a wind turbine still flies into one How a hunter's choice of bullet ends up inside an eagle The flap count that tells a vulture whether to risk crossing the sea All audio, video, and images in this episode are either original to Okay, But... Birds (© Okay Media, LLC) or used under license/permission from the respective rights holders. Media from the Macaulay Library is used courtesy of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology as follows: Bald Eagle audio contributed by Darrell Peterson, ML145265541 Golden Eagle audio contributed by W. Douglas Robinson, ML612942188 Golden Eagle audio contributed by Kathy Groschupf, ML57165 American Goshawk video contributed by Dan J. MacNeal, ML297994251 Harpy Eagle audio contributed by Curtis Marantz, ML81101 Ruby-throated Hummingbird audio contributed by Trenton Voytko, ML604314061 Ferruginous Hawk audio contributed by Gerrit Vyn, ML172487

E42. Birds get sick too, and a lot of what happens next looks surprisingly familiar. Dr. Andrea Townsend of Hamilton College has spent two decades following American crows through outbreaks, and she walks Scott through what illness really does to a bird, from the family it belongs to down to the clever brain it depends on. In this episode, you'll hear about: The surprising way crows choose their partners, and what it costs them when disease comes around What a stomach bug does to one of the cleverest birds you'll ever meet Why going it alone can be the riskier move while a virus is spreading All audio, video, and images in this episode are either original to Okay, But... Birds (© Okay Media, LLC) or used under license/permission from the respective rights holders. Media from the Macaulay Library is used courtesy of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology as follows: American Crow video contributed by Jay McGowan, ML472843 Common Raven audio contributed by Gerrit Vyn, ML137574 Burrowing Owl audio contributed by Bob McGuire, ML188805

E40. There are only 15 crane species on the planet, and 11 of them are in trouble. Dr. Andy Caven, Director of Central Flyway Programs for the International Crane Foundation, has spent his career on two of them: the sandhill cranes that pour into one stretch of Nebraska's Platte River every spring, and the whooping crane, which came back from the edge and is still nowhere near safe. Scott asks him what it actually takes to keep a bird like that on the landscape, and the answer runs through soggy grassland, private ranches, and one river worth fighting over. In this episode, you'll hear about: The number Andy gives for how many cranes stand on that stretch of river, which Scott makes him say twice How a bird that was down to a couple of dozen individuals ended up stopping a dam What a wet meadow is, and why one is so much easier to lose than to build back All audio, video, and images in this episode are either original to Okay, But... Birds (© Okay Media, LLC) or used under license/permission from the respective rights holders. Media from the Macaulay Library is used courtesy of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology as follows: Mallard audio contributed by Mike Andersen, ML136504 Wilson's Phalarope audio contributed by W. Douglas Robinson, ML474658841 Swamp Sparrow audio contributed by Wil Hershberger, ML94352

E38. You have pulled one out of a jacket sleeve at a bad angle, picked one up on a walk, and you are almost certainly within arm's reach of a few thousand of them right now. Dr. Cody Limber, who recently finished his PhD at Yale, spent it taking growing feathers apart one cell at a time to find out what they are actually made of. A feather is not a fancy scale, it does not grow the way you would guess, and after all this time nobody can say what the first ones were for. In this episode, you'll hear about: The strangest things growing out of birds, and which of them actually count as feathers What a feather is actually made of, once you smash one into individual cells and read what every cell was doing What a feather actually is, whether it is alive or dead, how it is put together, and the coordination that color and pattern demand All audio, video, and images in this episode are either original to Okay, But... Birds (© Okay Media, LLC) or used under license/permission from the respective rights holders. Media from the Macaulay Library is used courtesy of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology as follows: Eastern Whip-poor-will audio contributed by Bob McGuire, ML195774 Red-bellied Woodpecker audio contributed by Wil Hershberger, ML306064 Indian Peafowl audio contributed by Rounak choudhary, ML621021542 Common Raven audio contributed by Gerrit Vyn, ML132161 Mallard audio contributed by Mike Andersen, ML136504 Double-crested Cormorant audio contributed by Bob McGuire, ML233274 Zebra Finch (Australian) audio contributed by Vicki Powys, ML226233 American Herring Gull video contributed by Steve Kelling, ML540908261 Golden-winged Warbler video contributed by Benjamin Clock, ML476422 Great Argus audio contributed by Arnoud B. van den Berg, ML71122 Horned Screamer audio contributed by Paul A. Schwartz, ML58925 Wild Turkey audio contributed by James (Jim) Holmes, ML73964601

E36. Hummingbirds run one of the fastest metabolisms of any animal with a backbone, which is why we picture them as permanently buzzing. Scott sits down with Dr. Anusha Shankar, assistant professor at the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, who studies how hummingbirds budget energy in a world that keeps moving the goalposts. It turns out the blur at your feeder is the exception, not the rule. In this episode you'll hear about: Why the same bird might spend three hours a day flying, or thirteen, depending entirely on what the flowers are doing What happens overnight when a hummingbird lets itself go cold, and how long it takes to come back Seven months in the Ecuadorian cloud forest, and the hummingbirds that sat on the nets and waited Plus: the doubly labeled water method, a sugar concentration threshold you can taste-test at your own feeder at your own risk, and the reason Anusha gets called the hummingbird pee person. The "snoring" hummingbird video Scott and Anusha discuss: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_uEfmQt34Nc All audio, video, and images in this episode are either original to Okay, But... Birds (© Okay Media, LLC) or used under license/permission from the respective rights holders. Media from the Macaulay Library is used courtesy of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology as follows: Ruby-throated Hummingbird audio contributed by Trenton Voytko, ML604314061 Black Metaltail audio contributed by Pedro Allasi Condo, ML663268821 Violet-tailed Sylph audio contributed by Paul Coopmans, ML58045 White-booted Racket-tail audio contributed by Daniel Cadena, ML256331 Bee Hummingbird video contributed by Timothy Barksdale, ML440270 Black Metaltail photograph by Thibaud Aronson, via iNaturalist and Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

E34. Not all birds build one, but for the ones that do, a nest has a single job and a shockingly wide range of ways to get it done. Dr. Vanya Rohwer, Curator of Birds and Mammals at the Cornell University Museum of Vertebrates, joins Scott to walk the far end of that spectrum, from nests made entirely of spit to a colony structure heavy enough to snap the tree it sits in. In this episode you'll hear about: The complete and comical inventory of one hamerkop nest, read aloud, contents included What a bird does when you hand it a nest somebody else already built Why a shed snakeskin in a tree cavity is a calculated decoration New episodes every Thursday. If the show is doing it for you, leave a rating or hit follow. All audio, video, and images in this episode are either original to Okay, But… Birds (© Okay Media, LLC) or used under license/permission from the respective rights holders. Bird media from the Macaulay Library is used courtesy of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology as follows: American Robin audio contributed by Bob McGuire, ML206448 Baltimore Oriole audio contributed by Bob McGuire, ML219606 Black-legged Kittiwake audio contributed by Roger Charters, ML202491 White-nest Swiftlet audio contributed by Arnoud B. van den Berg, ML36421 Cliff Swallow audio contributed by James (Jim) Holmes, ML92053871 Chimney Swift audio contributed by Wil Hershberger, ML107413 Hamerkop audio contributed by Anonymous, ML97562 Eastern Whip-poor-will audio contributed by Bob McGuire, ML195774 Montezuma Oropendola audio contributed by David L. Ross Jr., ML215446 Western Grebe audio contributed by Bob McGuire, ML195029 Rufous Hornero audio contributed by Mike Andersen, ML132447 Northern Yellow Warbler audio contributed by Wil Hershberger, ML516692 Sociable Weaver audio contributed by Jacob Henry, ML637193738 Great Crested Flycatcher audio contributed by Wil Hershberger, ML94314 Blue-gray Gnatcatcher audio contributed by Wil Hershberger, ML534430 White-breasted Nuthatch audio contributed by Bob McGuire, ML306062

E32. Wildfire smoke is blanketing more of the map every year, and it turns out a smoky sky changes everything for birds, from how they breathe to whether we can find them at all. Dr. Olivia Sanderfoot, Research Scientist at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, is back to walk Scott through what all that haze is doing to the birds living in it. In this episode: Birds don't breathe the way we do, and that single fact shapes everything about how smoke hits them Stay, shift, or go: the framework for what a bird actually does when the air turns toxic When the birds go quiet, it isn't always because they left Data collection for Project Phoenix is open now through the end of November. If you're on the West Coast, you can sign up at projectphoenix.study and log a 10-minute count from wherever you are, even your own window. All audio, video, and images in this episode are either original to Okay, But... Birds (© Okay Media, LLC) or used under license/permission from the respective rights holders. Bird media from the Macaulay Library is used courtesy of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology as follows: Northern Yellow Warbler audio contributed by Wil Hershberger, ML516692 Black-Crowned Night Heron audio contributed by Bob McGuire, ML225814 Tufted Titmouse audio contributed by Wil Hershberger, ML100712 Cooper’s Hawk audio contributed by Wil Hershberger, ML94518 Bornean Orangutan audio contributed by John MacKinnon, ML82019 American Robin audio contributed by Bob McGuire, ML206448

E30. That wall of birdsong outside your window at sunrise has a name, a structure, and a surprising amount of drama. This week Scott talks with Dr. Dan Mennill, a professor at the University of Windsor who wires whole forests with microphones to eavesdrop on the entire neighborhood at once, about what the dawn chorus is actually for, and what it means when it starts to thin out. In this episode: Why dawn, why so loud, and who gets to sing first (hint: it's not about who's the best singer) What 16 microphones and kilometers of cable revealed about birds negotiating in real time What happened when one field site went quiet, and why that quiet is louder than it sounds Listen now, then tell us what your morning chorus sounds like. All audio, video, and images in this episode are either original to Okay, But... Birds (© Okay Media, LLC) or used under license/permission from the respective rights holders. Bird media from the Macaulay Library is used courtesy of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology as follows: Soundscape contributed by Wil Hershberger, ML516838 Black-throated Green Warbler contributed by Wil Hershberger, ML79475 American Redstart contributed by Wil Hershberger, ML100804 Tufted Titmouse contributed by Wil Hershberger, ML100712 Northern Cardinal contributed by Wil Hershberger, ML191165 Northern Flicker contributed by William V. Ward, ML3 Black-capped Chickadee contributed by Bob McGuire, ML197114 American Robin contributed by Bob McGuire, ML206448 Alder Flycatcher contributed by Mike Andersen, ML132247 Savannah Sparrow contributed by Gerritt Vyn, ML137843 Chipping Sparrow contributed by Wil Hershberger, ML534466 White-crowned Sparrow contributed by Bob McGuire, ML207181 Red-tailed Hawk contributed by David McCartt, ML229578

E28. A bird's brain is the most expensive thing it owns, and evolution doesn't hand one out for free. Dr. Carlos Botero, Associate Professor at the University of Texas at Austin, has spent a decade tracing what variable, unforgiving environments actually do to bird cognition, and the answer flips a lot of conventional wisdom on its head. In this episode: Why the harshest places on Earth produce two kinds of birds: the puzzle-solving geniuses and the brute-force survivors, with almost nothing in between How big brains might not have evolved for the reasons we always assumed Why being one of the smartest birds in the sky can come with a hidden cost All audio, video, and images in this episode are either original to Okay, But... Birds (© Okay Media, LLC) or used under license/permission from the respective rights holders. Bird media from the Macaulay Library is used courtesy of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology as follows: Willow Ptarmigan audio contributed by Leonard J. Peyton, ML50031 American Crow audio contributed by Bob McGuire, ML229089 Blue Jay audio contributed by Gaetan Dupont, ML173749 Black-capped Chickadee audio contributed by Jay McGowan, ML202239 Snowy Owl audio contributed by Gerrit Vyn, ML138288

E26. We borrowed a phrase from human dating and tried to pin it on birds. Turns out they never needed the rulebook. Dr. Wenfei Tong, biologist and author of Bird Love, joins Scott to unpack what bird partnerships actually look like once you stop projecting our scripts onto them, from females who run the territory to males who guard their paternity in deeply weird ways. In this episode you'll hear about: Why the drabbest little brown bird in the garden has one of the wildest sex lives in the animal kingdom How a female calls the shots when she holds the better real estate, and what the males do about it The cloacal pecking payoff you have to hear to believe All audio, video, and images in this episode are either original to Okay, But... Birds (© Okay Media, LLC) or used under license/permission from the respective rights holders. Bird media from the Macaulay Library is used courtesy of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology as follows: Laysan Albatross audio contributed by Ted Miller, ML117679 Black-capped Chickadee audio contributed by Jay McGowan, ML202239 Spotted Sandpiper audio contributed by Lucas DeCicco, ML516963 Northern Jacana audio contributed by Gerrit Vyn, ML140224 Red-necked Phalarope audio contributed by Bob McGuire, ML235440 Black Coucal audio contributed by Myles E. W. North, ML3084 Papuan Eclectus audio contributed by Thane Pratt, ML169808 Red-winged Blackbird audio contributed by Wil Hershberger, ML249827 Red-winged Blackbird audio contributed by Wil Hershberger, ML94215 Red-capped Manakin audio contributed by David L. Ross Jr., ML57360 Blue-footed Booby audio contributed by Robert I. Bowman, ML85906 Greater Flamingo audio contributed by Myles E. W. North, ML2443 Dunnock audio contributed by Niels Krabbe, ML249162

E24. Flight is the thing we associate most with birds, so what does it mean when a lineage gives it up? Dr. Scott Edwards, Harvard, joins Scott to unpack how flightlessness evolves, why it keeps happening across the bird family tree, and what the genome reveals about how a bird loses the ability to fly. In this episode you'll hear about: How losing flight reshapes a bird's body, from feathers to forelimbs to that one famously enormous egg Why the answer wasn't where geneticists expected to find it What an extinct giant and a tiny tropical relative can tell us about where moa actually came from All audio, video, and images in this episode are either original to Okay, But... Birds (© Okay Media, LLC) or used under license/permission from the respective rights holders. Bird media from the Macaulay Library is used courtesy of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology as follows: Falkland Steamer-Duck audio contributed by Maurice A. E. Rumboll, ML4114 Great Tinamou audio contributed by David L. Ross, Jr., ML57320

E22. Folklore says birds know a storm is coming before we do. Scott talks with Dr. Gunnar Kramer, Iowa State University, about what's actually happening when a tiny warbler decides it's time to fly, or time to bail. In this episode: Why the question itself might be slightly wrong, and what's really going on inside that bird A storm, some missing warblers, and a discovery nobody set out to make What 300 birds falling out of the sky over Texas can tell you about how much fuel is in the tank Listen, follow, and tell a friend who’s a little superstitious. All audio, video, and images in this episode are either original to Okay, But... Birds (© Okay Media, LLC) or used under license/permission from the respective rights holders. Bird media from the Macaulay Library is used courtesy of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology as follows: Yellow-billed cuckoo audio, Wil Hershberger, ML94446 Barnacle goose audio, Bob McGuire, ML235525 Golden-winged warbler video, Benjamin Clock, ML476422 Blue-winged warbler video, Eric Liner, ML469433 Yellow-billed cuckoo video, Larry Arbanas, ML466566 Eastern kingbird audio, Wil Hershberger, ML534398 Tennessee warbler audio, Wil Hershberger, ML85236 Tennessee warbler video, Eric Liner, ML466381 Wood thrush video, Benjamin Clock, ML471755

E20. Less than 1% of what's in a museum is actually on display. So what's happening with the other 99%? Scott talks with Dr. Sushma Reddy, Breckenridge Chair of Ornithology at the Bell Museum and Associate Professor at the University of Minnesota, about the extraordinary scientific afterlife of a specimen in a drawer. In this episode: How birds collected 150 years ago are answering questions their collectors never imagined, from air pollution to insect decline Why falcons turned out to be closer to parrots than hawks, and what other surprises fell out of the bird family tree The case for making museum collections more open, especially to scientists from the places these specimens originally came from If you have a few seconds, please follow, rate, and leave a review for the show. It makes a huge difference in helping others discover it. Thanks for listening! All audio, video, and images in this episode are either original to Okay, But... Birds (© Okay Media, LLC) or used under license/permission from the respective rights holders. Bird media from the Macaulay Library is used courtesy of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology as follows: Bald eagle sound contributed by Gerrit Vyn, ML 200943 Red-tailed hawk sound contributed by David McCartt, ML 229578 Gyrfalcon sound contributed by Lucas DeCicco, ML 516973 Kea sound contributed by William V. Ward, ML 8523 Small ground finch sound contributed by Robert I. Bowman, ML 86711 Iiwi sound contributed by Doug Pratt, ML 5888 Sickle-billed vanga sound contributed by Anonymous, ML 100013