Raptor expert Shawn Carey joins us live from the top of Hawk Mountain in Pennsylvania. Plus, Mike O'Connor tackles the topic of feather felony, and a weed seed-eating songbird challenges callers in our Mystery Bird Contest.
#184: October 12, 2008
An infamous old TV commercial helps us introduce a Featured Feathered Friend; Mike O'Connor helps a listener save money while heating her birdbath; and we're giving away a beautiful prize in our email contest.
#183: October 5, 2008
Award-winning author and naturalist Scott Weidensaul talks about the new "Birds & Beans" initiative. Also, the theme from Rawhide helps us re-introduce a Featured Feathered Friend, and Mike O'Connor tells a listener how gorging House Sparrows retain their slender shapes.
#182: September 28, 2008
A familiar-sounding Mystery Bird fools a number of callers; we hear the lament of the House Finch; and Mike O'Connor tackles a legal question about collecting birds' nests.
#181: September 21, 2008
We hear some predictions about which northern finches may visit the lower 48 this winter; we feature a bird that looks a lot better than it sounds; and Mike O'Connor explains why pigeons walk so weirdly.
#180: September 14, 2008
We hear about wrestling Mockingbirds, the wonders of Block Island, and the only "true migrant" Eastern woodpecker.
#179: September 7, 2008
Mass Audubon's Wayne Petersen tells us about a new program that will turn off the lights in Boston skyscrapers to reduce energy use...and save migrating birds. And we stump our listeners in today's Mystery Bird Contest.
#178: August 31, 2008
We catch the East Coast excitement about a Southwest hummer; we also learn some fun facts about the Ruby-throat; and we even get some advice about pigeons.
#177: August 24, 2008
We get some great reports on migrating nighthawks, and Whimbrels at a Pops Concert, and a live report from the Isles of Shoals in the Gulf of Maine. Plus, Mike O'Connor provides some good binocular advice.
#176: August 17, 2008
We learn about birds that boom, and birds that break speed records, and Mike O'Connor tells a listener why her birds are so quiet.
#175: August 10, 2008
We stump our callers in the Mystery Bird Contest, we "crown" a featured bird, and Mike O'Connor answers a listener's eggshell inquiry.
#174: August 3, 2008
We hear about a southwestern hummer that's causing a stir in Massachusetts; we learn about a bird that rubs its feathers with mothballs; and we try to answer a question about a dove that just refuses to go home.
#173: July 27, 2008
Boreal Campaign senior scientist Jeff Wells shares the good news about 55 million acres being protected in northern Ontario. Also, we stump our callers in the Mystery Bird Contest, and a quote from the great Aldo Leopold introduces our Featured Feathered Friend.
#172: July 20, 2008
We hear some fabulous conservation news from Canada. Also, we learn why a muddy retriever might bring birds to your yard. And, take this Featured Bird...please!
#171: July 13, 2008
We "return to those thrilling days of yesteryear," hear a most unusual-sounding bird, and try to solve a mystery about some nocturnal woodpeckers.
#170: July 6, 2008
We hear the sound that gives a tiny predator its name; we hear the calls of roosting parakeets; and in our Let's Ask Mike segment, we hear some advice about dealing with a screeching Great Horned Owl.
#169: June 29, 2008
We get a trucker-friendly introduction to our Featured Feathered Friend; we stump our callers with a wild-sounding Meadowlark relative; and our man Mike O'Connor reveals the “secrets” of some long-lived birds.
#168: June 22, 2008
We get a live mountaintop bird report, we learn how a wandering songbird got its name, and we hear about an "exploding" Mockingbird.
#167: June 15, 2008
We listen to some frightening creatures with huge red eyes, hear "testimony" from a Congressional hearing, and solve the mystery of the Peeping Tom Chipping Sparrows.
#166: June 8, 2008
We learn how feeding phalaropes defy gravity, and we recount a bird's story that began in Central Park.