The Science of Birds is a lighthearted exploration of bird biology. It's a fun resource for any birder or naturalist who wants to learn more about ornithology. Impress your birding friends at cocktail parties with all of your new bird knowledge! Hosted by Ivan Phillipsen, a passionate naturalist with a PhD in Zoology.
123 episodes transcribedThis is Episode 83. It’s all about birds in the family Odontophoridae. These are the New World quails.Why is this the family of "New World"...
This is Episode 82. It's all about the ways that scientists track the movements of individual birds.The focus of today’s episode is not so much a...
This is Episode 81. It’s all about birds in the family Nectariniidae. These are the sunbirds and the spiderhunters.If you live in or have gone birding...
This is Episode 80. It's all about flightless birds, and about the evolutionary processes that lead to flightlessness.Flightlessness in birds is,...
This is Episode 79. It's all about the Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis).This is one of North America’s most common raptors. We find these bird...
This is Episode 78 and today we’re doing an overview of parental care in birds. How do birds raise their babies?Parent birds feeding their chicks in a...
In this episode—which is Number 76—I’ll be answering some interesting questions sent to me by my listeners. Questions about birds, of course.The quest...
This episode—which is Number 74—is all about edible bird’s nests and Bird’s Nest Soup.Edible bird nests are a traditional delicacy in east Asia. Espec...
This episode—which is Number 72—is about what happens to birds, not just in bad weather, but in really bad weather. We’re talking hurricanes, floods,...
This episode—which is Number 71—is about one particular scientific article. An article that’s near and dear to my heart.This study was published in 2...
This episode—which is Number 70—is all about the Great Blue Heron. The scientific name for the Great Blue Heron is Ardea herodias.This species is one...
This episode—which is Number 69—is all about the avian skeleton. Bird bones.So this is an episode about some basic anatomy of birds.Bird bones and the...
This is Episode Number 67. It’s the last episode of 2022, so that means it’s the Annual Review!We’re going to look back at 2022, at some of the most i...
This episode—which is Number 66—is all about the ways you can help birds. How you can make a difference in their conservation.It’s one thing to enjoy...
This episode—which is Number 64—is all about the importance of temperate grasslands as habitat for birds.When we say “temperate grasslands,” we mean t...
