The Bird Brief – Details, episodes & analysis

Welcome back to the Bird Brief, this is Stephanie Jenkins Aslett, avian ecologist. This Pre-Christmas edition is about a viral conspiracy, wildlife research, and the wild crossover between satire and science. Let’s get started.

 
Stories:

https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2024/11/12/dead-birds-drones-new-mexico-tech-research/76197212007/ 

https://dot.alaska.gov/faiiap/meet-aurora.shtml 

Bird Sound:

Rock Pigeon (Columba livia); Recorded by Paul Marvin/Macaulay Library; Dec 2017; ML108565061.

Ring-necked Pheasant (Phasianus colchicus); Recorded by Dominic Garcia-Hall/Macaulay Library; Jan 2018; ML81397411.

Mallard. Martin Billard, XC881155. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/881155.

Music: The Weeknd from wish by Lundstroem is licensed under a Attribution 4.0 International License. https://freemusicarchive.org/music/lundstroem/songs-i-regard-terrible/the-weeknd-from-wish/ 

This is Stephanie Jenkins Aslett, thanks for listening. If a particular story piqued your interest, be sure to check out the show notes for more details. If you have a story that you would like to spread the awareness of, I would love to highlight it in my podcast. Just let me know in the comments or send a note to thebirdbrief@gmail.com. Please tune in next time for The Bird Brief - your rundown, or should I say featherdown, of the birds we love.

Happy Thanksgiving and welcome back to Season 2, Episode 5 of The Bird Brief! This is Stephanie Jenkins Aslett, avian ecologist giving you the rundown on the most recent happenings in birds, both in popular news and published research throughout the world. This Thanksgiving edition will be super brief, just one story about Gus, the emperor penguin that made it to outback…and back. Let’s get started.

Stories:

https://apnews.com/article/australia-emperor-penguin-released-84319f95da162330da3265232c1fcfc1

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/emperor-penguin-found-australia-tourist-beach-malnourished-denmark-rcna179726 

Bird Sound:

Emperor Penguin · Aptenodytes forsteri recorded by steve, XC877994. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/877994. 

Music: The Weeknd from wish by Lundstroem is licensed under a Attribution 4.0 International License. https://freemusicarchive.org/music/lundstroem/songs-i-regard-terrible/the-weeknd-from-wish/ 

This is Stephanie Jenkins Aslett, thanks for listening. If a particular story piqued your interest, be sure to check out the show notes for more details. If you have a story that you would like to spread the awareness of, I would love to highlight it in my podcast. Just let me know in the comments or send a note to thebirdbrief@gmail.com. Please tune in next time for The Bird Brief - your rundown, or should I say featherdown, of the birds we love.

 Welcome to Episode 3 of the Bird Brief. This is Stephanie Jenkins Aslett, avian ecologist and former intelligence analyst for the Department of Defense giving you the rundown on the most recent happenings in birds, both in popular news and published research throughout the world. Today’s episode will range from a bird suspected of espionage, bird flu in Antarctica, wind turbine innovation, and how you can use weather data to track this year’s spring bird migration from your doorstep… in your slippers. You will be up to date in just five minutes. Let’s get started.

See below for links to all the articles we talked about on the show:

News: 

 https://www.wsj.com/world/india-accused-chinese-spy-racing-pigeon-08516191 

.https://www.yahoo.com/tech/company-makes-incredible-bladeless-wind-103000921.html

https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2024/02/27/bird-flu-antarctica-first-cases/

https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/2024/01/15/bird-calls-pay-phone-maryland/

Research Articles:

Beaman Julian E., White Craig R., Clairbaux Manon, Perret Samuel, Fort Jérôme and Grémillet David 2024 Cold adaptation does not handicap warm tolerance in the most abundant Arctic seabird Proc. R. Soc. B.2912023188720231887 http://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2023.1887 https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rspb.2023.1887 

Correction to fact in podcast: The Arctic is warming around 3 times faster than the rest of the globe, not just compared to temperate regions as stated in the podcast.  AMAP. Arctic climate change update 2021: key trends and impacts. Summary for policy-makers. Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP), Oslo, Norway (2021). 

BirdCast Info:

https://birdcast.info/migration-tools/migration-dashboard/ 

https://birdcast.info/migration-tools/local-migration-alerts/ 

Music and Bird Sound:

Dovekie (Alle alle); Recorded by Nina Karnovsky/Macaulay Library; Jul 2008; ML137297. Dovekie 03 Calls SJ, Cornell Lab of Ornithology

Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis); Recorded by Dave Herr/Macaulay Library; May 1990; ML47538. Red-tailed Hawk 02 Calls US-WA , Cornell Lab of Ornithology

Horned Lark (Eremophila alpestris); Recorded by Martha Fischer/Macaulay Library; Jul 2007; ML134110. Horned Lark 02 Song CA-NL, Cornell Lab of Ornithology

Rock Pigeon (Columba livia); Recorded by Paul Marvin/Macaulay Library; Dec 2016; ML44449551. Rock Pigeon 01 Song US-CA

Swainson's Thrush (Russet-backed) (Catharus ustulatus [ustulatus Group]); Recorded by Paul Fenwick/Macaulay Library; May 2020; ML229755881. Swainson's Thrush 07 Flight calls (Russet-backed) US-CA, Cornell Lab of Ornithology

Evening Grosbeak (type 1) (Coccothraustes vespertinus (type 1)); Recorded by Bob McGuire/Macaulay Library; A

This is Stephanie Jenkins Aslett, thanks for listening. If a particular story piqued your interest, be sure to check out the show notes for more details. If you have a story that you would like to spread the awareness of, I would love to highlight it in my podcast. Just let me know in the comments or send a note to thebirdbrief@gmail.com. Please tune in next time for The Bird Brief - your rundown, or should I say featherdown, of the birds we love.

Welcome back to Episode 4 of The Bird Brief, this is Stephanie Jenkins Aslett, avian ecologist giving you the rundown on the most recent happenings in birds, both in popular news and published research throughout the world.

 
Stories:

1. https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/australia-commits-64-mln-protect-against-looming-bird-flu-threat-2024-10-13/ AND https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2024/sep/17/deadly-avian-flu-strain-could-enter-australia-via-thieving-migratory-birds-scientists-warn 
2. https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0287116
3. https://www.newscientist.com/article/2451606-france-slashed-bird-flu-outbreaks-by-vaccinating-ducks/ 
4. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn4y42y5wn4o 
5. https://www.thecooldown.com/outdoors/birds-climate-change-behavior-north-america/ 
6. https://phys.org/news/2024-10-microplastic-free-carrier-pesticides-potential.html 

Bird Sound:

Hen Harrier (Circus cyaneus). Stanislas Wroza, XC670733. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/670733. 

American robin. Molly Jacobson, XC467818. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/467818 .

Christmas Frigatebird. Frank Lambert, XC68337. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/68337.

Abbotts Booby. Craig Robertson, XC583373. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/583373.

Bar-tailed godwit. Paul Kelly, XC933298. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/933298.

Bar-tailed godwit. Thomas Bergman, XC915090. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/915090. 

Music: The Weeknd from wish by Lundstroem is licensed under a Attribution 4.0 International License. https://freemusicarchive.org/music/lundstroem/songs-i-regard-terrible/the-weeknd-from-wish/ 

This is Stephanie Jenkins Aslett, thanks for listening. If a particular story piqued your interest, be sure to check out the show notes for more details. If you have a story that you would like to spread the awareness of, I would love to highlight it in my podcast. Just let me know in the comments or send a note to thebirdbrief@gmail.com. Please tune in next time for The Bird Brief - your rundown, or should I say featherdown, of the birds we love.

 Welcome back to The Bird Brief, this is Stephanie Jenkins Aslett, avian ecologist giving you the rundown on the most recent happenings in birds, both in popular news and published research throughout the world. This episode falls in that spooky time of year, so in that vein - we are going to unearth the oldest known birds, talk about migration myths, even say the word neonicotinoid, and end with a murder mystery at 10,000 feet. Let's get started.

 
Stories:

https://dnyuz.com/2024/10/23/a-feathered-murder-mystery-at-10000-feet/  AND https://www.nytimes.com/2024/10/23/science/birds-migration-10000-feet-predator.html  

https://www.reuters.com/science/oldest-known-birds-prey-lived-alongside-t-rex-north-america-2024-10-09/  

https://phys.org/news/2024-10-neonicotinoids-birds-fronts.html AND https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/ele.14534 

https://www.newsweek.com/why-do-birds-migrate-scientists-debunk-long-held-assumption-1972752 

https://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/science/bulgarian-father-and-son-row-across-arctic-ocean-for-endangered-species/article68654727.ece 

Bird Sound:

Black-bellied Plover (Pluvialis squatarola); Recorded by Gerrit Vyn/Macaulay Library; Jul 2007; ML138238.

Peregrine Falcon (Tundra) (Falco peregrinus calidus/tundrius); Recorded by Michael Andersen/Macaulay Library; Jun 2007; ML136378.

Alain Verneau, XC938588. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/938588.

Mallard. Martin Billard, XC881155. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/881155.

Common Blackbird. Elias A. Ryberg, XC917122. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/917122.

Music: The Weeknd from wish by Lundstroem is licensed under a Attribution 4.0 International License. https://freemusicarchive.org/music/lundstroem/songs-i-regard-terrible/the-weeknd-from-wish/ 

This is Stephanie Jenkins Aslett, thanks for listening. If a particular story piqued your interest, be sure to check out the show notes for more details. If you have a story that you would like to spread the awareness of, I would love to highlight it in my podcast. Just let me know in the comments or send a note to thebirdbrief@gmail.com. Please tune in next time for The Bird Brief - your rundown, or should I say featherdown, of the birds we love.

Welcome to The Bird Brief, this is Stephanie Jenkins Aslett, avian ecologist giving you the rundown on the most recent happenings in birds, both in popular news and published research throughout the world. Today, we’ll explore everything from bilingual parrots to chicks of the most dangerous birds in existence to increasing nesting occupancy using 3D printing. Let’s get started!

Stories:
 https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/czdpe7n7l50o 

https://www.sciencealert.com/something-strange-is-happening-to-the-calls-of-amazon-parrots and https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rspb.2024.0659 

https://www.voxelmatters.com/3d-printing-encourages-bird-repopulation-in-suffolk/

https://phys.org/news/2024-09-pirate-birds-seabirds-regurgitate-fish.html#google_vignette and https://conbio.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/conl.13052 

Bird Sound:
Southern Cassowary. Marc Anderson, XC132934. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/132934.
Yellow-naped Amazon.Albert Lastukhin, XC371393. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/371393.
Black-legged Kittiwake. Paul Lynch, XC930790. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/930790.
Great Frigatebird. Paul Lynch, XC930790. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/930790. 
Chilean Skua. Bernabe Lopez-Lanus, XC45193. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/45193. 

Music: The Weeknd from wish by Lundstroem is licensed under a Attribution 4.0 International License. https://freemusicarchive.org/music/lundstroem/songs-i-regard-terrible/the-weeknd-from-wish/ 

This is Stephanie Jenkins Aslett, thanks for listening. If a particular story piqued your interest, be sure to check out the show notes for more details. If you have a story that you would like to spread the awareness of, I would love to highlight it in my podcast. Just let me know in the comments or send a note to thebirdbrief@gmail.com. Please tune in next time for The Bird Brief - your rundown, or should I say featherdown, of the birds we love.

Welcome back to a new season of the The Bird Brief! This is Stephanie Jenkins Aslett, avian ecologist, giving you the rundown on the most recent happenings in birds, both in popular news and published research throughout the world. Today we have cover everything from birds that crave tropical cyclones to the effects of drug trafficking on birds and how birds can see wind turbines better. Let's get started.

Stories:
https://phys.org/news/2024-06-cocaine-trafficking-threatens-critical-bird.html and https://www.nature.com/articles/s41893-024-01365-z 

https://www.discoverwildlife.com/animal-facts/desertas-petrels-chase-hurricanes and https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(24)00806-6?_returnURL=https%3A%2F%2Flinkinghub.elsevier.com%2Fretrieve%2Fpii%2FS0960982224008066%3Fshowall%3Dtrue 

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/article/2024/aug/13/urban-birds-are-teeming-with-antibiotic-resistant-bacteria-study-finds

https://www.seattletimes.com/seattle-news/environment/oregon-researchers-painting-wind-turbine-blades-to-cut-bird-deaths/ 

Bird Sound:
Golden-winged Warbler. Todd Wilson, XC103849. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/103849.
Golden-cheeked Warbler. Phoenix Birder, XC573860. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/573860.
Philadelphia Vireo. Andrew Spencer, XC189441. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/189441.
Desertas Petrel. Ben Metzger, XC508037. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/508037.  Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0
American Crow. Thomas Magarian, XC524205. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/524205.
Mallard. Martin Billard, XC881155. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/881155.
Swainson’s Hawk. Richard E. Webster, XC626069. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/626069.
White-tailed Eagle. Karl-Birger Strann, XC401923. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/401923.

Music: The Weeknd from wish by Lundstroem is licensed under a Attribution 4.0 International License. https://freemusicarchive.org/music/lundstroem/songs-i-regard-terrible/the-weeknd-from-wish/ 

This is Stephanie Jenkins Aslett, thanks for listening. If a particular story piqued your interest, be sure to check out the show notes for more details. If you have a story that you would like to spread the awareness of, I would love to highlight it in my podcast. Just let me know in the comments or send a note to thebirdbrief@gmail.com. Please tune in next time for The Bird Brief - your rundown, or should I say featherdown, of the birds we love.

Welcome to Episode 7 of the Bird Brief. I'm Stephanie Jenkins Aslett, avian ecologist, here to bring you the latest on birds from news and research around the globe. Today’s episode will range from a new hummingbird species, the plight of the critically endangered laughingthrush, and a record setting feather. For the love of birds let’s get started.

Stories:

https://www.cnn.com/2024/05/14/world/giant-hummingbirds-new-species-backpacks-scn/index.html 

https://phys.org/news/2024-05-critically-endangered-bird-greater-captivity.html#google_vignette 

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/humans-are-driving-a-new-kind-of-evolution-in-animals/ 

https://www.cnn.com/2024/05/21/style/huia-feather-sold-new-zealand-intl-scli/index.html 

Music and Bird Sound:

Cristian Pinto, XC382312. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/382312.

Tree Swallow (Tachycineta bicolor); Recorded by Wil Hershberger/Macaulay Library; May 1997; ML84826 

Tristan Guillebot de Nerville, XC909850. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/909850 

Ricardo Gagliardi, XC835964. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/835964.

Don`t trust the News by 1st Contact is licensed under a Attribution 4.0 International License

This is Stephanie Jenkins Aslett, thanks for listening. If a particular story piqued your interest, be sure to check out the show notes for more details. If you have a story that you would like to spread the awareness of, I would love to highlight it in my podcast. Just let me know in the comments or send a note to thebirdbrief@gmail.com. Please tune in next time for The Bird Brief - your rundown, or should I say featherdown, of the birds we love.

Welcome to Episode 6 of the Bird Brief. I'm Stephanie Jenkins Aslett, avian ecologist, here to bring you the latest on birds from news and research around the globe. Today, we're discussing everything from geomagnetic storms, to bird flu outbreaks, to migrating shorebirds in Africa. All in just five minutes. Before we start, a quick note: I'm new to mixing sound and audio equipment needed to produce a podcast,so thanks for bearing with the quirky sound quality in the last part of the show. For the love of birds let’s get started.

Stories:

https://www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1073/pnas.2306317120

https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsbl.2018.0918

https://phys.org/news/2024-05-night-auroras-extreme-solar-storm.html 

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/abstract/document/1059801 

https://www.axios.com/2024/05/04/bird-flu-wildlife-mammals

Catry, T., Correia, E., Gutiérrez, J.S. et al. Low migratory connectivity and similar migratory strategies in a shorebird with contrasting wintering population trends in Europe and West Africa. Sci Rep 14, 4884 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-55501-y https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-024-55501-y

Music and Bird Sound:

Black-bellied Plover (Pluvialis squatarola); Recorded by Gerrit Vyn/Macaulay Library; Jul 2007; ML138238.

Albert Lastukhin, XC902033. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/902033.

W. Agster, XC897347. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/897347.

Bar-tailed Godwit (European) (Limosa lapponica lapponica); Recorded by Patrik Åberg/Macaulay Library; Jun 2010; ML63209671.

Trumpeter Swan (Cygnus buccinator); Recorded by James M. Hartshorne/Macaulay Library; Mar 1956; ML3748.

Don`t trust the News by 1st Contact is licensed under a Attribution 4.0 International License.

This is Stephanie Jenkins Aslett, thanks for listening. If a particular story piqued your interest, be sure to check out the show notes for more details. If you have a story that you would like to spread the awareness of, I would love to highlight it in my podcast. Just let me know in the comments or send a note to thebirdbrief@gmail.com. Please tune in next time for The Bird Brief - your rundown, or should I say featherdown, of the birds we love.

Welcome to Episode 5 of the Bird Brief! This is Stephanie Jenkins Aslett, avian ecologist giving you the rundown on the most recent happenings in birds, both in popular news and published research throughout the world. Today’s episode will range from 3D printed prosthetics for birds, plumage color changes due to humans, an atypical champion of a gul screeching contest, and the oldest living bird in the world. You will be up to date in just five minutes. Let’s get started.

Stories:

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-024-58762-9 

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0169204624001002

https://www.kmvt.com/2024/04/26/birds-blame-power-outage-twin-falls/

https://www.thepoke.com/2024/04/24/every-detail-of-this-seagull-boy-wins-european-screeching-competition-is-simply-magnificent/

https://www.rspb.org.uk/whats-happening/news/celebrating-albatrosses 

Music and Bird Sound:

Laughing Gull (Leucophaeus atricilla); Recorded by Tom Johnson/Macaulay Library; Apr 2018; ML97299221.

California Gull (Larus californicus); Recorded by Bob McGuire/Macaulay Library; May 2013; ML188486.

Laysan Albatross (Phoebastria immutabilis); Recorded by Ernest S. Booth/Macaulay Library; Jun 1959; ML959.

Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis); Recorded by Maureen Chambrone/Macaulay Library; Jul 2017; ML79919841.

Red-rumped Parrot; Marc Anderson, XC689128. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/689128. Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 

Rosy-faced Lovebird; Bram Vogels, XC892937. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/892937. Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0

Red-legged Seriema; Michael Hurben, XC855641. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/855641.   Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0

Don`t trust the News by 1st Contact is licensed under a Attribution 4.0 International License.

This is Stephanie Jenkins Aslett, thanks for listening. If a particular story piqued your interest, be sure to check out the show notes for more details. If you have a story that you would like to spread the awareness of, I would love to highlight it in my podcast. Just let me know in the comments or send a note to thebirdbrief@gmail.com. Please tune in next time for The Bird Brief - your rundown, or should I say featherdown, of the birds we love.