We interrupt our usual format to bring you a slightly different episode. It's an Australian bird quiz, pretty straight forward, play along at home and see how you go. 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 [email protected] and I'll hook you up with a free weekly bird. Links: Eastern...

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...

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 [email protected] and I'll hook you up with a free weekly...

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...

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 [email protected] and I'll hook you up with a...

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:...

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...

Last year New Zealand crowned the Puteketeke as their Bird of the Century. This raise a lot of questions: who has the authority to name a bird for the century, why is 2023 the year it happened, and what the heck is the Puteketeke? Join me in this episode to learn more and to find out how John Oliver made a dramatic entry to saw the vote in favour of an underdog. 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:...

As we enter the festive season there is no better bird to feature than the European Robin. These bright little birds have an association with Christmas that extends way waaaaay back. So let's dive in with a short min Christmas stocking stuffer Bird of the Week special to find out what the deal is with Christmas and Robins. 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...

The Night Parrot is known as one of the most elusive birds in the world. Between 1912 and 1990 there was no evidence that they lived, and even then it would be another 23 before a living one was even seen. But then in 2013, the Night Parrot was re-discovered to much fanfare. However, it later emerged that much subsequent evidence for their existence was falsified. Just what happened and why is a wild tale, so joy me as we tell the story of the Night Parrot. To support Bird of the Week and...

It's a common story throughout the world: when people turn up we tend to kill things, with many animals being driven to extinction. So join me today as we do a review of the Australian birds that have gone extinct since European colonisation. But would you be shocked if I told you there was only one? It's true, the Paradise Parrot is the only Australian bird that has gone extinct. So let's find out who they were, what happened, and if we can stop their close cousin from going the same...

We finally got to the TAXONOMY episode. Join me as we explain what taxonomy is, how it works, and how we use it to arrange a big old family tree that contains every bird and maps how they're all related to each other. It's an overview of bird family tree from the dinosaurs to today. 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...

Without a question, the Kiwi is one of the most unusual birds in the world. A lifetime of isolation on New Zealand has lead to a bird that is doing an impersonation of a rodent. This week we will find out who the Kiwi is, where they came from, how they live and where they're going. 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...

So birds can fly, and as result they have spread themselves every corner of the world. And yet, despite this fact, very few individual species have managed to find a way to conquer the world on their own. Well, nearly none, because there are five birds, just five that have found their way onto every continent. These birds, the cosmopolitan birds make up an exclusive club. Join me in this episode to meet the five birds that have spread themselves around the world. Find out how they did, and...

It's time to talk Puffins. The auks are a fascinating group of ocean going birds. They have fancy plumes, fancy beaks, some of them even smell like citrus, and the evolved to fly under the waves and in the air. So let's meet these penguins for the northern hemisphere and find out what they got going on. 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?...

A bird's ability to sing has long fascinated and enchanted we people. But how do birds sing, do all birds sing and why do they sing? These are important questions, and maybe we will ever answer some of them. 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 [email protected] and I'll hook you up with a free weekly...

Today we are meeting the Woodpeckers, those chisel faced birds that spend all day banging their head into a tree, sounds frustrating. Well as it turns out the Woodpeckers are evolved for a life of a tree pecking. In this episode we will find out how they do it, why they do it, and how they avoid a concussion.   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...

There is a famous Swiss case from 1474 of a rooster that was put on trial for the unnatural crime of laying an egg. It is a silly story of human folly, as is so often the case. But this strange tale does lead to a deeper and more interesting point about avian gender, how it is radically different to mammals, and how in some rare cases a hen can maybe turn into a rooster. How is that possible? Tune in to find out and we even have a little surprise at the start of the show as well. To support...

Who doesn't love a Wren? They're adorable stub-tailed birds with beautiful voices. But wait! Are we talking about the same bird? As it turns out there are hundreds of unrelated birds that are called Wrens. The state of play when it comes to what is and isn't a Wren is wild, and this episode we do a full review of all the wrens buzzing around out there. 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:...

A slightly different episode to look at three birds with odd names. We will look at how the Turkey, the Jamaican Mango and the Gouldian Finch got their names. What do these birds have to do with each other? Nothing whatsoever, but maybe we can find a theme in there somewhere.  Really though, this is just a shameless plug for my second podcast, What's Up With That Bird's Name, available only through Patreon. www.patreon.com/birdoftheweek Want birds in your inbox? Drop me a line at...

The Egg War is the rather bizarre story of how a colony of Common Murres on the Farallon Islands off the coast of San Francisco sparked conflict during the American Gold Rush in the 1850-60s.  It is a wild tale of murder, piracy, lighthouse keepers with delusions of grandeur and an awful lot of people wearing hats. Join me for a silly story. 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:...

Eggs may be an every day mundane thing. Something that lives in your fridge and that you see all the time. And yet, they are little marvels of nature. So join me today as we learn everything there is to know about eggs. 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 [email protected] and I'll hook you up with a free weekly...

This is Part II of our story on the Chicken. In this episode we will find out how the Chicken was domesticated, and how we changed them to suit our needs and transitioned them from Junglefowl to industrialised factory production line. 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 [email protected] and I'll hook you up with a...

In the world today there are some 20 billion chickens. They are the most abundant bird in the world, and almost all of them exist to feed us people. They are the world's  most delicious bird, but where did they come from and what makes them special? Good news, I have the answers to these questions. So join me for Part 1 of our exploration on the domesticated chicken. 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...