BirdNote Daily

00:01:41

Owls Migrate, Too

BirdNote Daily ·

2026/10/06

When you think of bird migrations, you might think of a bluebird or a robin first. But some owls do migrate – such as the Short-eared Owl, which flies south for the winter. Northern Saw-whet Owls were once thought non-migratory, but in fact they travel at night, unseen. Snowy Owls breed in the Arctic then wander toward the south, staying wherever they can find food. Some Burrowing Owls spend their whole life in one place. But others migrate every spring and fall with the regularity of a

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00:01:45

Migrations: A Whimbrel’s Wayward Journey

BirdNote Daily ·

2026/10/05

Biologists with Manomet tagged a Whimbrel named Lindsay with a GPS tracker. She has spent the summer breeding in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge on the northern coast of Alaska. As fall migration begins, she heads straight into a storm in the Gulf of Alaska. The tempest slingshots her toward British Columbia, where she picks up a tailwind down the California coast. Landing near San Francisco, she rests and refuels.More info and transcript at BirdNote.org.Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our

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00:01:41

October Migrants – Look Who's Back!

BirdNote Daily ·

2026/10/04

In the October sunlight, a Lincoln's Sparrow – like this one – sings energetically from a hedgerow. Soon a Fox Sparrow chimes in. Both nested in Alaska last summer but will spend the winter farther south. The Snow Geese are moving, too. A massive movement of birds takes place in the fall. The exodus of summer visitors to the tropics has given way to a surge from the north. And predators can't be far behind.More info and transcript at BirdNote.org.Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly

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00:01:45

Flyin' in the Rain

BirdNote Daily ·

2026/10/03

Most birds are mostly waterproof. Their feathers, aided by oil from preen glands, keep them pretty watertight. So why do birds avoid flying during rainstorms? It may have more to do with the air than with the water. Rainstorms tend to occur when atmospheric pressure is low. Air in a low-pressure system is less dense. But it’s dense air that gives birds the aerodynamic lift they need to take wing. Falling rain and high humidity make air even less dense. Many birds perch and wait out a storm

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00:01:44

Where Swallows Go in Winter

BirdNote Daily ·

2026/10/02

Through all of spring and summer, swallows dart and sail overhead, their airborne grace a wonder to behold. But by October, the skies seem empty. Most swallows have flown south, in search of insects. The eight species of swallows that nest in the U.S. — including the Cliff Swallow — migrate south to Central or even South America. Watch for them again next spring!More info and transcript at BirdNote.org.Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free

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00:01:45

Questions That Get Kids Curious About Nature

BirdNote Daily ·

2026/10/01

Brianna Amingwa is a birder, environmental educator, and mom of two bird-loving boys. In this episode, Brianna shares one of her favorite, tried-and-true techniques for sparking curiosity with kids outside. This easy activity has a funny name: INIWIRMO. It’s an acronym for I Notice. I Wonder. It Reminds Me Of. INIWIRMO works by inviting kids and adults to turn each phrase into a statement about something they observe in nature.More info and transcript at BirdNote.org.Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to

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00:01:45

The Eurasian Tree Sparrow

BirdNote Daily ·

2026/09/30

In Lafayette Park in St. Louis, Missouri, a dozen or so Eurasian Tree Sparrows from Germany were released. But unlike other introduced species such as the similar-looking House Sparrow, they did not spread very far and remained in a limited area in the Midwest. It’s not fully clear why, but it’s possible that they just behave differently. And the aggressive House Sparrow may have helped prevent the tree sparrows from spreading further by competing for the same nesting sites.BirdNote is supported by

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00:01:37

Birding 101: Where to Find Birds

BirdNote Daily ·

2026/09/29

There’s no wrong place to search for birds — looking out the window and listening for calls and songs is a great place to start. But you might be curious where else to look. In this episode, get a few quick tips on good places to find birds.Listen to this episode in Spanish. More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these

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00:01:45

Which Bird Has the Most Feathers?

BirdNote Daily ·

2026/09/28

In general, the bigger the bird, the higher the number of feathers. Someone counted the feathers on a Tundra Swan and came up with 25,216. At least 80% were on the swan’s neck. Penguins, on the other hand, have lots of small feathers all over their bodies. The largest species is the Emperor Penguin, and one project counted around 80,000 feathers on a single bird. That’s nearly sixty per square inch – keeping the penguin insulated and waterproof in harsh climates. But the most feathered creature

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00:01:44

Great Horned Owl Family in Autumn

BirdNote Daily ·

2026/09/27

Compared to many birds, Great Horned Owls remain with their parents a long time. They hatched in early March, from eggs laid in late January. By April, both parents were hunting through the night to feed their young. But for the last two weeks, the adults have not fed the young. The owlets have learned the skills they need to hunt for themselves. And any night now, the young owls will strike out on their own.More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly

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00:01:41

Prions Filter-Feed Like Whales

BirdNote Daily ·

2026/09/26

Birds called prions have an especially creative approach to getting their food. They pass seawater through their mouths and filter it to catch tiny animals such as krill and other small crustaceans. It’s similar to how baleen whales feed, leading to the prion’s nickname: the whale-bird. The sides of their bills have comb-like structures. Small food items get trapped in the combs as water flows past. In Greek, the word “prion” means saw, which refers to the bird’s highly specialized mouth. More info

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00:01:45

Song of the Mountains: The Brown-backed Solitaire

BirdNote Daily ·

2026/09/25

Brown-backed Solitaires are ordinary-looking: medium-sized, gray-brown birds. But they have one of the most melodic, complex songs in the world, ringing out year-round in high-altitude forests from Mexico to Central America.Listen to this show in Spanish here. More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible

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00:01:45

Help Birds Survive Heat Waves

BirdNote Daily ·

2026/09/24

It's easy to feel helpless during a heat wave, as if there's nowhere to hide from the sun. Birds feel much the same. Extreme heat poses a risk to young birds of many species. Here are three things we can do to protect birds and ourselves from heat.More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible. Hosted by

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00:01:45

The Secret Lives of Goldfinches

BirdNote Daily ·

2026/09/23

American Goldfinches are one of our most familiar birds, but they lead lives that are anything but ordinary. These birds will sometimes raise two broods a year, have a secret weapon against cowbirds, and have the ability to distinguish between songs that — to our ears — sound the same. Backyard birds they may be, but American Goldfinches never cease to amaze.More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free

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00:01:43

Swallow or Swift?

BirdNote Daily ·

2026/09/22

At a glance, swallows and swifts, both graceful fliers, look much alike. But swifts — like this Chimney Swift — have longer, slimmer wings and short bodies, enabling them to glide for long periods. Their glides are punctuated by rapid, stiff bursts of wing-beats. Swallows, on the other hand, flex and flap their wings. Why do swifts have such a peculiar, stiff wing stroke? Picture a bird wing, with two halves jointed in the middle. Swift wings have a short inner “half” and a long outer half. This

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00:01:45

Migrations: Molt Migration

BirdNote Daily ·

2026/09/21

At the end of summer, the once-bright feathers of a male American Goldfinch look ragged. Growing new flight feathers in a process called molting makes him more vulnerable to predators. Before migrating to wintering grounds, many songbirds stop at a secondary location to undergo the awkward phase of feather replacement. It’s called molt migration. The places birds go to molt could be important targets for conservation efforts.More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to

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00:01:43

Ridgway's Rails on San Francisco Bay

BirdNote Daily ·

2026/09/20

Once abundant around San Francisco Bay, the Ridgway’s Rail — formerly known as the California Clapper Rail — is now endangered. In the 19th Century, unregulated hunting plundered the species. In the 20th Century, rampant development reduced salt marsh habitat by 85%. But in the 21st Century, the Ridgway’s Rail has allies. Restoration is under way to increase healthy saltmarsh habitat for these endangered birds. Also, efforts to control the number of predatory cats are improving the chances for the

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00:01:40

Fairy-Wrens Sing Secret Passwords to Unborn Chicks

BirdNote Daily ·

2026/09/19

Superb Fairy-wrens teach their embryonic chicks a secret code. This "incubation call" contains a special note that will later serve as a password. When the chicks have hatched, this password enables the adult birds to identify their babies in the darkness of their domed nest. A species of Australian cuckoo lays its eggs in the wren’s nest, hoping to pawn off the task of parenting. But wren chicks learn their mother’s song and incorporate the password note into their begging calls.More info and

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00:01:45

Your Support Makes All the Difference

BirdNote Daily ·

2026/09/18

Today is the last day of our on-air pledge drive. BirdNote is an independent nonprofit that relies on financial support from listeners like you. Recurring donors ensure that there is a steady source of funding to keep making sound-rich stories that inspire, entertain and educate about the remarkable lives of birds and the natural world. This week, we are asking you to support the show by making a donation now.More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly

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00:01:45

Making BirdNote

BirdNote Daily ·

2026/09/17

BirdNote Daily is a two-minute show that takes a lot more than two minutes to create. Each episode weaves together an informative script, lively narration, immersive sound design, and our catchy theme song. BirdNote Daily is not just about one element, it’s many things working together that makes it great. The same is true for BirdNote funding, which makes the show possible. It’s not about what any one person does, it’s all of us giving what we can to support BirdNote’s mission. This week, we are

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