Return of the Birds 44from26
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If you're feeling shut in, shut down or shut out, let the birds carry you away. John Burroughs's Wake-Robin with premier bird vocalizations from the Macaulay Library at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology delivers something something truly delightful and wholly unexpected. A long-form, serialized audiobook podcast.
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Second Edition Trailer
It’s the best time of the year. The parade begins. As Winter retreats Spring leans in. The birds are returning. And so is our show.
Return of the birds is the serialized audiobook podcast of the nature study, Wake Robin, by John Burroughs. It’s the best story about birds I’ve ever read out loud.
The podcast combines Burroughs’s anticipation and delight that the birds bring to the changing seasons with field recordings of the bird songs he so accurately describes woven into the narration.
First published in 1871, Return of the Birds is a podcast 149 years in the making.
Come join the gentleman rambler on the shady trails of the Catskills, the Adirondacks and the fields and farms around the nation’s Capitol.
Return of the Birds is 18-episodes. You can binge the first edition now or enjoy the weekly episodes of this new, second edition as they’re released. -
Introduction: Presenting Live Birds and not just Stuffed and Labeled Specimens
Click the links below for details about the bird vocalizations used in this episode from the Macaulay Library at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology:
Winter Wren
Eastern Bluebird
American Robin
Intro music: Kai Engel Walking Barefoot on Grass
Outro music: The United States Army Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps: United States National Anthem (The Star Spangled Banner)
Download Wake-Robin by John Burroughs in e-reader format at archive.org.
The Creative Commons and public domain contains a wealth of images, music and more. The images used in these show notes link back to the contributors.
Winter Wren
Eastern Bluebird
American Robin -
Welcome Back Flycatchers, Woodpeckers & Thrushes
Credits & Links:
Click the links below for details about the bird vocalizations used in this episode from the Macaulay Library at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology
American Robin
Bluebird
Phoebe bird
Kingbird
Northern Flicker 1
Northern Flicker 2
Tufted Titmouse
White-breasted Nuthatch
Eastern Meadowlark
Northern Bobwhite
Ruffed Grouse
Barn Swallow
Greater Prairie Chicken
Great Horned Owl
Barred Owl
Barn Owl
Red Rooster
Chipping Sparrow
Snow Bunting
Brown-headed Cowbird
Downy Woodpecker 1
Downy Woodpecker 2
Song Sparrow
Baltimore Oriole
Wood Thrush
Intro music: Kai Engel Walking Barefoot on Grass
Outro music: The United States Army Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps: United States National Anthem (The Star Spangled Banner)
Download Wake-Robin by John Burroughs in e-reader format at gutenberg.org or archive.org.
The Creative Commons and public domain contains a wealth of images, music and more. The images used in these show notes link back to the contributors.
American Robin
Eastern Phoebe
Eastern Kingbird
Northern Flicker
Tuffed Titmouse
a title="Tufted Titmouse -
Yellow-billed and Black-billed Cuckoos, White-eyed Vireos, and a Side-by-Side Comparison of the Hermit Thrush and Wood Thrush Bird Songs
Naturalist John Burroughs quotes 'To the Cuckoo’ by William Wordsworth. He considers in detail the White-eyed Vireo’s skilled mimicry in her mid-summer song and how it may rival the mockingbird’s own ability. Burroughs shares observations on how elevation might impact and effect the distribution of species in the Town of Highlands, New York. And concludes with a comparison of the vocal quality and musicianship between the hermit and the wood thrushes.
Intro music: Kai Engel Walking Barefoot on Grass
Outro music: The United States Army Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps: United States National Anthem (The Star Spangled Banner)
Download Wake-Robin by John Burroughs in e-reader format at gutenberg.org or archive.org. -
John Burroughs Shares His Admiration for the Aristocratic Wood Thrush, Praise for the Soulful Veery, Some Criticism for the Catbird, and an Encounter with a Black Snake
Naturalist and gentleman rambler John Burroughs was born 183 years ago on April 3, 1837. We’re grateful to carry on his work. Continuing where we left off in episode 3, we pick up in the first chapter of his book Wake-Robin. John Burroughs focuses on the thrushes. He details the grace and ease of the Wood Thrush. The Veery’s simple, descending flute-like tone adds to the twilight symphony. But Burroughs has some terse criticism for the Catbird and its song. But he turns to empathy for a Catbird family, when its nest is terrorized by a black snake and loses a fledgling to its grasp. In the end, Burroughs avenges the Catbird family.
Credits & Links:
Click the links below for details about the bird vocalizations used in this episode from the Macaulay Library at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology:
Wood Thrush
Veery
Vesper Sparrow
Gray Catbird
Intro music: Kai Engel Walking Barefoot on Grass
Outro music: The United States Army Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps: United States National Anthem (The Star Spangled Banner)
Download Wake-Robin by John Burroughs in e-reader format at archive.org.
The Creative Commons and public domain contains a wealth of images, music and more. The images used in these show notes link back to the contributors. -
The Scarlet Tanager and the Dog Days of August, and, Finally, the Silent End of the Season
Reaching the end of Chapter 1 in John Burroughs's classic nature study, Wake-Robin, the gentleman rambler describes the birds of July, the Scarlet Tanager, compares the Peewee’s hunting prowess and efficiency on the wing to the Chipping Sparrow's, or Socialis's, fumbling pursuit of a month. The marvel and spectacle when the pigeon hawk, now known as a Merlin, unflinchingly chases a goldfinch. Concluding with the late season silence and August’s departures.
The Creative Commons and public domain contains a wealth of images, music and more. The images used in these show notes link back to the contributors.
Credits & Links:
Click the links below for details about the bird vocalizations used in this episode from the Macaulay Library at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology:
Scarlet Tanager
Field Sparrow
Great Crested Flycatcher
Barn Swallow
Chipping Sparrow
Vesper Swallow
American Robin
Yellow-billed Cuckoo
White-eyed Vireo
Bobolink
Hermit Thrush
Intro music: Kai Engel Walking Barefoot on Grass
Outro music: The United States Army Old Guard Fife and Drum Corps: United States National Anthem (The Star Spangled Banner)
Download Wake-Robin by John Burroughs in e-reader format at archive.org.
Customer Reviews
Amazing
I’m so delighted to have found this!
Sweet
Thankful to have found this delightful podcast.
The perfect podcast to unwind with after a long day.
I often listen to more business related podcasts and so Return of the Birds has been a breath of fresh air when I want to just relax and find a reprieve from all the busyness. I don’t even particularly care about birds and have found this story to be quite captivating. Peter is a natural storyteller and is a joy to listen to. I especially love how he’s weaved authentic bird calls into the audio while reading to reflect the story.