love/birds

Reposted from September 24, 2020: Join us as we sing the praises of Fall Migration as well as the appearance of a new friend in our backyard. Episode photo is of a Barred Owl. All bird photos and sound by Bill Michalski. Episode Links: Bill color-changes: https://www.birdwatchingdaily.com/birds/david-sibleys-id-toolkit/david-sibley-what-the-changing-colors-of-a-songbirds-bill-mean/amp/ and https://pages.vassar.edu/sensoryecology/bird-beak-coloration-more-than-just-a-fashion-statement/ Barred Owl urbanization: https://www.birdwatchingdaily.com/news/science/barred-owls-move-to-burbs/ Birds Discussed:Continue reading "Ep 15: Our Little Chouette"

Reposted from July 30, 2020: Bill and Tassy have returned from their summer vacation to report on the birds they saw from the peaks around Golden and Estes Park, Colorado. Episode photo is the Emo-J (Stellar’s Jay) who performed for us in Rocky Mountain National Park. And don’t worry, we explain the absence of episodeContinue reading "Ep 14: Rocky Mountain High"

Reposted from May 28, 2020: Bill and Tassy recount a recent birding session at Little Creve Coeur Marsh, where they saw the requisite birds as well as an abandoned pavilion filled with…snakes. Episode photo is a molting American Goldfinch male, taken by Bill Michalski. Episode Links: Bluebird boxes: https://extension2.missouri.edu/g9429 Double-crested Cormorant dries its feathers: https://academy.allaboutbirds.org/double-crested-cormorant-dries-its-feathers/Continue reading "Ep 12: Snakes on the Plains"

Reposted from May 21, 2020: Tassy and Bill record an account of their quick (due to rain) birding outing and the seemingly magic circle of conifers that yielded four new bird sightings in a matter of minutes. Episode photo (Cedar Waxwing) and bird sounds captured by Bill Michalski Episode Links: *Actual* Wax on the Wings:Continue reading "Ep 11: Magic Tree Circle"

Reposted from May 14, 2020: Bill and Tassy come to you from beside a firepit, birds and nature all around, to discuss a whopping eight species… and tick protection. Episode photo (Eastern Kingbird) and bird noises captured by Bill Michalski. Episode Links: Our social-distancing-appropriate Air BnB: https://www.airbnb.com/rooms/19979397?source_impression_id=p3_1589462383_mQl7g5fubEOPg3%2F5&guests=1&adults=1 Former St Louis Cardinals’ second-base player and currentContinue reading "Ep 10: Fireside, No Chats"

Reposted from April 30, 2020: Bill and Tassy recount their latest bird sightings and then wax poetic about the benefits of birding during the Coronavirus shutdown. Episode photo is a Baltimore Oriole, photo by Bill Michalski. All cat and bird sounds recorded by Bill Michalski. Episode links: Etiology of “Sitting in the Catbird Seat”: https://grammarist.com/idiom/sitting-in-the-catbird-seat/Continue reading "Ep 9: In the Catbird Seat"

Reposted from April 23, 2020: Bill and Tassy broadcast from their backyard and are joined in the (somewhat drunken) revelry by a fiesty Northern Flicker (species featured in episode pic). Birds discussed: 1) Barn Swallow https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Barn_Swallow/overview 2) Northern Cardinal https://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/northern-cardinal 3) Solitary Sandpiper https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Solitary_Sandpiper/overview 4) Prothonotary Warbler https://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/prothonotary-warbler

Reposted from April 15, 2020: Tassy and Bill recount their first birding venture to St Louis’s Forest Park and talk about Tassy’s somewhat *original* approach to communicating with our feathered friends. Episode photo is a Blue-gray Gnatcatcher. All bird sounds and photography recorded by Bill Michalski. Links: Lesley the Bird Nerd: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDjdXwT-KrFPsqOSg4KL8Nw Birds discussed: 1)Continue reading "Ep 7: Gnatty Lite"

Reposted from April 6, 2020: One sparrow might not make a Spring, but five sure do! Tassy and Bill recount their most recent birdwatching trip to Tower Grove Park and talk about some antics of their backyard wildlife, including an update on those feuding robins from episode one. Bird photo by Bill Michalski. Featured birdsContinue reading "Ep 6: The Sparrow Special"

Reposted from April 1, 2020: Bill and Tassy recount the last birding outing of their stay-cation, an exciting trip to Tower Grove Park where they saw a few titillating new species. All bird sounds and photos by Bill Michalski.