Threatened – Details, episodes & analysis

In Puerto Rico, there is an area of saline lagoons, salt flats and mangrove swamps where humans have extracted salt for over 500 years. We often describe the effects of human activity on the environment as negative. But the migratory birds that eat and rest in one of the most visited places by locals and tourists probably see things differently.

More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. 

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Birds have their common English name and a name in the languages of all the places they might fly through. And then they have their Latin name, which is their taxonomic name, the one scientists use. In this episode, we learn about a decades-long effort in Puerto Rico to change San Pedrito's scientific name, why it matters and the journeys of two people seeking to make it happen.

More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. 

Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. 

BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible.

Today’s episode was produced by Ari Daniel, Allison Wilson, Mark Bramhill, Conor Gearin, and Sam Johnson. Fact checking by Conor Gearin, mixing by John Kessler. Original theme music by Ian Coss. 

Special thanks to Willistown Conservation Trust.

Additional Resources:

A World on the Wing: The Global Odyssey of Migratory Birds | Book by Scott Weidensaul 

Motus Wildlife Tracking System: Explore GPS-Tracked Bird Migration Routes

One Way to Save Birds: Pay Farmers to Flood Their Land | KQED

A boon for birds: Once overlooked, China’s mudflats gain protections | Mongabay

A Phenomenal Discovery, Bringing A Glimmer Of Hope To A Declining Species Of Bird | Manomet

A bird’s eye view of quantum entanglement | NOVA

In the final episode of this season Host Ari Daniel tours the marsh at the Nemours Wildlife Foundation with Dr. Drew Lanham, cultural and conservation ornithologist at Clemson University. They bring us a story of time travel. Of touching a place through old hands and seeing it through new eyes. Of honoring a people for the incredible work they did— and sharing how that work continues today, and is reflected in the birds that call this place home.  

Related Resources:

• ACE Basin - The Nature Conservancy
• Low Country Legacy - National Geographic
• Nemours Wildlife Foundation
• African Passages, Lowcountry Adaptations - Lowcountry Digital History Initiative | College of Charleston
• Lowcountry Land Trust
• Harriet Tubman’s Great Raid

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Every spring, millions of birds travel the Atlantic Flyway, one of four major North-South routes for migratory birds in the Americas. Along the way, they need to stop for food, water, and rest— and Block Island, Rhode Island, provides. In this episode, producer Ben James takes us to this special place where we meet master bird bander Kim Gaffett. She is the latest in a long line of women citizen scientists whose work on Block Island has instilled a powerful culture of bird study and conservation, stretching back over a hundred years.

Related Resources:

50 Years of Bird Banding - Block Island Times
Thirsty Birds “Burn the Engine” in Flight - NPR
Block Island - The Nature Conservancy in Rhode Island
Block Island Conservancy
The Bird Lady of Block Island, Miss Elizabeth Dickens - BlockIsland.com
Flying Transformers: Birds Gear Up for Migration

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BirdNote is an independent nonprofit media production company. Your dollars make it possible to create sound-rich shows that connect you to the joys of birds and nature. Support BirdNote’s conservation mission, and get more of the content you love, by subscribing to BirdNote+ at https://birdnote.supercast.tech or make a one-time gift at BirdNote.org. Thanks!

Host & Senior Producer: Ari Daniel
Producer: Ben James
Editor: Caitlin Pierce, Rough Cut Collective
Audio mix: Rob Byers, Johnny Vince Evans, and Michael Raphael, Final Final V2
Theme song and original music: Ian Coss
Additional music: Blue Dot Sessions
Content Director: Allison Wilson
Audio and Video Editor: Sam Johnson
Fact-checker and Digital Producer: Conor Gearin
Artwork: Clint McMillen at Braincloud Design

Threatened  is a production of BirdNote. Learn more about the BirdNote team.

Zimbabwe is home to six species of vultures, five of which are critically endangered and at risk of extinction. At Victoria Falls, researchers and wildlife rehabilitators are working to increase populations, and advocates in the cities of Bulawayo and Harare educate farmers and traditional healers on the importance of these birds to healthy ecosystems. Producer ish Mafundikwa takes us on a road trip around the country to explore the issues affecting these often misunderstood and maligned birds.

Related Resources:

BirdLife Zimbabwe
Vulture Conservation - Victoria Falls Wildlife Trust
Saving Africa’s Vultures - BirdLife International
Judge the Vulture Ambassador - Victoria Falls Wildlife Trust
The Race to Save Africa’s Vultures - BBC Earth
Video - Saving Africa’s Vultures in 2020 - BirdLife International

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BirdNote is an independent nonprofit media production company. Your dollars make it possible to create sound-rich shows that connect you to the joys of birds and nature. Support BirdNote’s conservation mission, and get more of the content you love, by subscribing to BirdNote+ at https://birdnote.supercast.tech or make a one-time gift at BirdNote.org. Thanks!

Host & Senior Producer: Ari Daniel
Producer: ish Mafundikwa
Editor: Caitlin Pierce, Rough Cut Collective
Audio mix: Rob Byers, Johnny Vince Evans, and Michael Raphael, Final Final V2
Theme song and original music: Ian Coss
Additional music: Blue Dot Sessions
Content Director: Allison Wilson
Audio and Video Editor: Sam Johnson
Fact-checker and Digital Producer: Conor Gearin
Artwork: Clint McMillen at Braincloud Design

At Bempton Cliffs, on the Yorkshire Coast on the east side of the UK, about 3,000 charismatic little seabirds nest. The puffin is a sparkbird for producer Paul Drury-Bradey and many others that come to see them in the summer months. But these awkward flyers with colorful bills can spark more than just an interest in birds and birding. Conservationists hope they can also spark interest in addressing climate change, reducing and cleaning up plastic waste, and other human-caused challenges that threaten their existence. 

Related Resources:

Video - A Day in the Life of RSPB Bempton Cliffs Reserve | RSPB
Bempton Cliffs Nature Reserve
Atlantic Puffin - More at All About Birds
Counting Puffins - Bempton Cliffs - The RSPB Community
Atlantic Puffin Conservation in the UK - Joint Nature Conservation Committee

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BirdNote is an independent nonprofit media production company. Your dollars make it possible to create sound-rich shows that connect you to the joys of birds and nature. Support BirdNote’s conservation mission, and get more of the content you love, by subscribing to BirdNote+ at https://birdnote.supercast.tech or make a one-time gift at BirdNote.org. Thanks!

Host & Senior Producer: Ari Daniel
Producer: Paul Drury-Bradey & Nic Granville-Fall
Editor: Caitlin Pierce, Rough Cut Collective
Audio mix: Rob Byers, Johnny Vince Evans, and Michael Raphael, Final Final V2
Theme song and original music: Ian Coss
Additional music: Blue Dot Sessions
Content Director: Allison Wilson
Audio and Video Editor: Sam Johnson
Fact-checker and Digital Producer: Conor Gearin
Artwork: Clint McMillen at Braincloud Design

Butte, Montana, used to be home to some of the most productive copper mines in the country. About a quarter of the world’s supply came from the area and it’s now the site of a massive effort to restore the degraded ecosystem. But, the local birds aren’t just victims of the pollution; they can actually tell us if things are getting better as all the pollution gets cleaned up. Birds here offer portraits of what’s happening on a larger ecosystem scale—especially Ospreys, which are at the top of the food chain and depend on waterways that are now contaminated with heavy metals. Producer Nick Mott travels along this polluted area to peer into the lives of these birds to see what they reveal.

Related Resources:

Watch the Hellgate Ospreys Nest Cam livestream
Learn about the Montana Osprey Project
More about Ospreys at All About Birds
"Old Mines Still Plague Montana’s Clark Fork" - High Country News
"Lasers, Drones, and Air Cannons: Inside the Effort to Save Migrating Waterfowl From a Toxic Death" in Audubon

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BirdNote is an independent nonprofit media production company. Your dollars make it possible to create sound-rich shows that connect you to the joys of birds and nature. Support BirdNote’s conservation mission, and get more of the content you love, by subscribing to BirdNote+ at https://birdnote.supercast.tech or make a one-time gift at BirdNote.org. Thanks!

Host & Senior Producer: Ari Daniel
Producer: Nick Mott
Editor: Caitlin Pierce, Rough Cut Collective
Audio mix: Rob Byers, Johnny Vince Evans, and Michael Raphael, Final Final V2
Theme song and original music: Ian Coss
Additional music: Blue Dot Sessions
Content Director: Allison Wilson
Audio and Video Editor: Sam Johnson
Fact-checker and Digital Producer: Conor Gearin
Artwork: Clint McMillen at Braincloud Design

In the Black Belt region of Alabama, we go on a birding tour and learn about the Swallow-tailed Kite. The  Swallow-tailed Kite’s range in this region decreased rapidly over the past one hundred years, primarily due to habitat loss from agriculture, urban development, and logging. Now protected by the State of Alabama, we visit a family farm where the kites are frequently seen and learn how the ensuing curiosity about the birds has brought new opportunities. Producer Jay Avery brings us this story of a threatened bird, an historically excluded human community, and how they are helping each other.

Related Resources:

Visit the website for Connecting with Birds and Nature Tours
Learn about the Black Belt in Alabama Audubon
See how the Avian Research and Conservation Institute tracks Swallow-tailed Kites
Get an overview of Swallow-tailed Kites on All About Birds
Sustainability Ag-vocate: Christopher Joe of Joe's 
Learn about Christopher Joe of Joe's Black Angus Farm and Connecting with Birds and Nature Tours

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Sign up to receive BirdNote's weekly newsletter

BirdNote is an independent nonprofit media production company. Your dollars make it possible to create sound-rich shows that connect you to the joys of birds and nature. Support BirdNote’s conservation mission, and get more of the content you love, by subscribing to BirdNote+ at https://birdnote.supercast.tech or make a one-time gift at BirdNote.org. Thanks!

Host & Senior Producer: Ari Daniel
Producer: J. Nailah Avery
Editor: Caitlin Pierce, Rough Cut Collective
Audio mix: Rob Byers, Johnny Vince Evans, and Michael Raphael, Final Final V2
Theme song and original music: Ian Coss
Additional music: Blue Dot Sessions
Content Director: Allison Wilson
Audio and Video Editor: Sam Johnson
Fact-checker and Digital Producer: Conor Gearin
Artwork: Clint McMillen at Braincloud Design

Georgia’s longleaf pine forests are home to many endangered species, including the Red-cockaded Woodpecker. This resilient and unusual little bird is making a comeback from the brink of extinction thanks to an unexpected partner and recovery efforts set in motion by the Endangered Species Act. But complicated rule changes and bureaucracy have put the protected status, and in turn the birds themselves, in jeopardy. This story comes to us from Producer Claire Reynolds.

Learn about the Fort Benning Military Installation on Audubon.org
Check out the Red-cockaded Woodpecker on All About Birds
See what USFWS says about Red-cockaded Woodpecker recovery
Read "Longleaf Pine Forests: A Southern Treasure" on Nature.org
Learn about Pinus palustris (Longleaf Pines)

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Sign up to receive BirdNote's weekly newsletter

BirdNote is an independent nonprofit media production company. Your dollars make it possible to create sound-rich shows that connect you to the joys of birds and nature. Support BirdNote’s conservation mission, and get more of the content you love, by subscribing to BirdNote+ at https://birdnote.supercast.tech or make a one-time gift at BirdNote.org.Thanks!

Host & Senior Producer: Ari Daniel
Producer: Claire Reynolds
Editor: Caitlin Pierce, Rough Cut Collective
Audio mix: Rob Byers, Johnny Vince Evans, and Michael Raphael, Final Final V2
Theme song and original music: Ian Coss
Additional music: Blue Dot Sessions
Content Director: Allison Wilson
Audio and Video Editor: Sam Johnson
Fact-checker and Digital Producer: Conor Gearin
Artwork: Clint McMillen at Braincloud Design