Bird of the Week Bird of the Week
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- Science
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A podcast about birds, released on a non-weekly basis.
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Patriot Parrots
In the last episode we said there were no parrots in the United States of America. But that was only a half truth. A better truth would have been to say that once upon a time there was a parrot, the Carolina Parakeet that went extinct about 100 years. And in its place today there is an invasive species, the Monk Parakeet. So what is the story of these two birds, why did one die while the other has thrived? Today we are going to try and find out.
To support Bird of the Week and gain access to our second podcast, What's up with that's Bird's Name? click on through to Patreon: www.patreon.com/birdoftheweek
Want birds in your inbox? Drop me a line at weekly.bird@outlook.com and I'll hook you up with a free weekly bird.
Links:
Carolina Parakeet: https://ebird.org/species/carpar/Why the Carolina Parakeet went extinct: https://www.mentalfloss.com/posts/carolina-parakeet-extinction-mysteryMonk Parakeet: https://ebird.org/species/monparMonk nest: https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/parrots-are-taking-over-the-world/Parakeet panic: https://www.pushkin.fm/podcasts/cautionary-tales/when-parakeets-plundered-new-york -
Parrots
Have you been hankering for a cracker, well has polly got one for you today as we look at Parrots. This is a big old family of birds, so join me as we do a speed run of parrots and find out what these birds are all about.
To support Bird of the Week and gain access to our second podcast, What's up with that's Bird's Name? click on through to Patreon: www.patreon.com/birdoftheweek
Want birds in your inbox? Drop me a line at weekly.bird@outlook.com and I'll hook you up with a free weekly bird.
Notes:
Parrot beaks: https://parrotjunkie.com/blogs/health/parrot-beak-anatomyTripedal locomotion: https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rspb.2022.0245#:~:text=Our%20findings%20demonstrate%20that%20parrots,substrate%20reaction%20forces%20and%20power.Lorikeet Tongue: https://www.psittacology.com/lorikeet-tongue-diet/ Powder Down: https://www.birdnote.org/listen/shows/powder-downOld World Parrots: https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/psitta4/cur/introductionNew World Parrots: https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/psitta3/cur/introductionCockatoos: https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/cacatu2/cur/introduction#:~:text=Cockatoos%20are%20large%20parrots%20of,also%20the%20most%20widely%20recognized.New Zealand Parrots: https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/strigo1/cur/introduction#genusNestorKea: https://www.firstlighttravel.com/blog/cheeky-keaAlex: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alex_(parrot)Burrowing Parrots: https://ebird.org/species/burparEclectus Parrot: https://ebird.org/species/eclpar4?siteLanguage=en_AUOrange-Bellied Parrot: https://ebird.org/species/orbpar1Greater Vasa Parrot: https://ebird.org/species/vaspar1 -
My Grandmother and the Budgerigar
This will be a different episode. I have also had a strong association between my grandmother and Budgerigars, she owned one and gifted me one of my own for my sixth birthday. So this episode will be part memoir, part eulogy, part ... Budgerigar discussion...? Maybe not one for everyone, but let's give it a spin.
To support Bird of the Week and gain access to our second podcast, What's up with that's Bird's Name? click on through to Patreon: www.patreon.com/birdoftheweek
Want birds in your inbox? Drop me a line at weekly.bird@outlook.com and I'll hook you up with a free weekly bird.
Notes:
Budgerigar: https://ebird.org/species/budger/Murmuration: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hEiuKDEPM5gBudgie colour mutation: https://www.budgie-bubble.co.uk/budgie-mutationsUV feathers: https://budgiesareawesome.blogspot.com/2010/07/glowing-budgies.html -
The Unicorn Bird
Sadly our world is not populated with magical unicorns. But what we lack in horned horses we make up for with horned birds. Join me this week as we meet one of the strangest birds, the avian equivalent of the unicorn, the Horned Screamer.
To support Bird of the Week and gain access to our second podcast, What's up with that's Bird's Name? click on through to Patreon: www.patreon.com/birdoftheweek
Want birds in your inbox? Drop me a line at weekly.bird@outlook.com and I'll hook you up with a free weekly bird.
Notes:
Horned Screamer: https://ebird.org/species/horscr1/Horned Lark: https://ebird.org/species/horlarHorned Parakeet: https://ebird.org/species/horpar2Hollow bones: https://www.montananaturalist.org/blog-post/avian-adaptations/#:~:text=Hollow%20bones%20are%20also%20called,areas%20in%20a%20bird's%20bones. -
The Sparrow, the Moon and the Emu-wren
In the 1960s the United States of America lost a unique sub-species of bird when the Kennedy Space Centre was developed as part of the space race. Today, Australia is on the cusp of repeating this history, with the home of the endangered Southern Emu-wren being earmarked for the development of a launch site.
Until 2 February 2024 public submissions are open on the site's proposed development. To help protect the Emu-wren visit Birdlife Australia and use their form to voice your opposition: https://www.actforbirds.org/whalersway
Notes:
Birdlife media release on Whalers Way: https://birdlife.org.au/news/rocket-launch-facility-will-destroy-threatened-bird-habitat/Dusky Seaside Sparrow: https://www.fws.gov/species/dusky-seaside-sparrow-ammodramus-maritimus-nigrescensSouthern Emu-wren: https://ebird.org/species/souemu1?siteLanguage=en_AUAustralian Government Emu-wren species profile: http://www.environment.gov.au/cgi-bin/sprat/public/publicspecies.pl?taxon_id=26006 -
Lazarus Rising
So if it's one thing we know people are good at it's making other things go extinct. We are living during one of the great mass extinct events. But every now and again, we come across a bird that was thought to have gone extinct, only for them to be rediscovered, sometimes hundreds of years later. Well, this year, we are going to meet three birds that were thought to be extinct only to be found alive and (not so) well many years later.
To support Bird of the Week and gain access to our second podcast, What's up with that's Bird's Name? click on through to Patreon: www.patreon.com/birdoftheweek
Want birds in your inbox? Drop me a line at weekly.bird@outlook.com and I'll hook you up with a free weekly bird.
Notes:
Lazarus Taxon: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lazarus_taxonLazarus of Bethany: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lazarus_of_BethanyIt's time to D-D-D-Duel!: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFkdcQgNJHoBlue-eyed Ground Dove: https://ebird.org/species/begdov2Doves raised in captivity: https://abcbirds.org/news/blue-eyed-ground-dove-captive-rearing/ Inbreeding depression: https://evolution.berkeley.edu/the-relevance-of-evolution/conservation/inbreeding-depression/Bermuda Petrel: https://ebird.org/species/berpetDavid Wingate: https://www.birdnote.org/listen/shows/david-wingate-and-rescue-cahowA Tale of Two Islands: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1733312/9071817-a-tale-of-two-islandsTakahe: https://ebird.org/species/takahe3Story of the Takahe: https://www.nzgeo.com/stories/takahe-the-bird-that-came-back-from-the-dead/International Union for the Conservation of Nature: https://www.iucn.org/
Customer Reviews
Informative and entertaining
Loving “Bird of the week”. Interesting, informative and entertaining. Always makes me smile and I am learning so much. Many thanks.
Love Bird of the week!
Loved the first 11 eps, and looking forward to more coming out.
The emails you’ve loved for years now in delicious audio form!
My favourite email is now a podcast!
I am so chuffed that my favourite weekly email is now a non-weekly podcast. Keep the feathered facts coming!