Your Bird Story – Details, episodes & analysis

SamSam Graves is a NYC-based artist, zine maker, and birder. In our conversation we touched on these aspects of her life. SamSam spoke passionately about Piping Plover (Charadrius melodus) conservation.

You might be surprised to learn that Piping Plovers nest annually on Rockaway Beach in NYC!! However, subspecies C. m. melodus are listed an endangered species in New York State and classified as threatened by the U.S Fish and Wildlife Service.

SamSam also shares her stance on birding ethics and a fascination with mousebirds.

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Information about New York City’s Piping Plovers is available at NYC Plover Project, NYC.gov, NYC Parks, NYS DEC, and U.S. FWS.

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Creator and Host: Georgia Silvera Seamans

Producer and Editor: Pod for the People

Vocalizations: 

Piping Plover call: https://macaulaylibrary.org/asset/27747281

Northern Cardinal: https://macaulaylibrary.org/asset/225370771

Piping Plover song: https://macaulaylibrary.org/asset/64002271

Speckled Mousebird https://ebird.org/species/spemou2

A conversation with Eric Archer about the film he and his collaborator Jesse Brown are making about John Burroughs, "the literary naturalist," and the ecology of the Hudson Valley. Birds included!

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Information about The Burroughs Rambles film can be found ⁠here⁠.

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Creator and Host: Georgia Silvera Seamans

Producer and Editor: Pod for the People

Vocalizations:

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• Indigo Bunting ⁠https://macaulaylibrary.org/asset/166626⁠
• Brown Thrasher ⁠https://macaulaylibrary.org/asset/236707141⁠, 
• Winter Wren ⁠https://macaulaylibrary.org/asset/43989871⁠
• Indigo Bunting (flight calls) ⁠https://macaulaylibrary.org/asset/30735901⁠

Halcyon Journey: In Search of the Belted Kingfisher by Marina Richie was published in 2022. Earlier this year Georgia read the book and knew she had to speak with the author. Halcyon Journey is the best of nature writing. Each ingredient in the book is wonderful on its own but together make an awe-some read. The Belted Kingfisher, the female Belted Kingfisher, the kingfisher in Indigenous cultures, kingfishers around the world, friendship, community science, scientific contributions, Western watersheds, family ties and memory, urban streams, and a woman naturalist and her adventures. And the illustrations by Ram Papish are outstanding. Richie answers a listener's question during our conversation--thanks to Michelle S. We are sure you will discover other elements in Halcyon Journey.

Marina Richie's website: https://marinarichie.com

Ram Papish's website: https://www.rampapishart.com

Season 4 of Your Bird Story aka CHIRP is funded with a ⁠⁠Voice for Nature Foundation⁠⁠ grant.

Creator and Host: Georgia Silvera Seamans

Producer and Editor: ⁠⁠Pod to the People⁠⁠

Bird vocalizations: ⁠Macaulay Library

The Friends of the Moshassuck River is led by Greg Gerritt. He has a 50-year history in environmental advocacy from NYC to Rhode Island. From the Friends website: "The Narragansett Indians gave the river its name, Mooshausick, meaning the river where moose watered." Greg hasn't spotted any moose on the river, but he has seen and heard many other creatures. Tune into our conversation about how to make a woodland, being a river keeper, and observing birds. Listen to the end to hear Greg Gerritt's powerful call to action.

Subscribe to the Moshassuckcritters Youtube channel.

Season 4 of Your Bird Story aka CHIRP is funded with a ⁠Voice for Nature Foundation⁠ grant.

Creator and Host: Georgia Silvera Seamans

Producer and Editor: ⁠Pod to the People⁠

Bird vocalizations: Macaulay Library

In honor of fall bird migration and Halloween, we are re-airing this episode about the birds of African diasporic myth and folklore. Enjoy it again or for the first time.

Fresh episodes coming in November and December.

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Kene'h Oweh is the creator and storyteller of By the Fire. In conversation with Ken, she shared myths and folk tales about birds and bird-like creatures of the Black diaspora. She also spoke about feeding birds during the lockdown in London, and her burgeoning interest in pigeons. Definitely subscribe to By the Fire!

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Season 4 of Your Bird Story aka CHIRP is made possible with a Voice for Nature Foundation grant.

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Production

Creator and Host: Georgia Silvera Seamans

Producer and Editor: Pod to the People

Raptor vocalizations were accessed from the Macaulay Library.

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We sit down with Nate Stick to talk about his sciency childhood, his career path, his blog, fave bird facts, and his bird watching strategies which he wrote about in his book, Birding for the Curious: The Easiest Way for Anyone to Explore the Incredible World of Birds. Nate is the digital communications manager and podcast host at the American Birding Association.

You can follow Nate on Instagram at n8swick.

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Season 4 of Your Bird Story aka CHIRP is funded with a Voice for Nature Foundation grant.

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Production

Creator and Host: Georgia Silvera Seamans

Producer and Editor: Pod to the People

Audio: bird vocalizations were accessed in the Macauley Library.

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Don't call Rodney Stotts a master falconer. He told me other people gave him the label. He focuses on relationships between birds and people. During our conversation, Rodney refused to choose a favorite bird. Every species and individual bird has special characteristics. He honors people in his life by naming birds after them. "Whenever I am missing one of them, I can take that bird and fly that bird, and it's just like we're together." Dippy's Dream, Rodney's sanctuary, is named for his mother. I'm grateful for the time Rodney took to share his path to urban wildlife conservation from "I need a check" to protecting and making places for wildlife.

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Season 4 of Your Bird Story aka CHIRP is funded with a Voice for Nature Foundation grant.

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Production

Creator and Host: Georgia Silvera Seamans

Producer and Editor: Pod to the People

Audio: bird vocalizations were accessed in the Macauley Library (Bald Eagle, juvenile) and at Xeno-Canto (Eurasian Eagle-Owl, female and male calls).

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Katy Tanis, children's book writer and illustrator and pattern designer, describes herself as "not a bird-bird person." In our conversation, Katy talks about Edward and Annie, her book about Rockhopper Penguins; her fascination with goldenrod and the Golden-crowned Kinglets who she's observed on this plant; and the cardinals and shore birds near her home. It sounds like Katy is a bird person.

Learn more about Katy's art at Daughter Earth.

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Season 3 of Your Bird Story aka CHIRP is funded with a Voice for Nature Foundation grant.

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Production

Creator and Host: Georgia Silvera Seamans

Producer and Editor: Pod to the People

Audio: bird vocalizations were accessed from xeno-canto: https://xeno-canto.org/172355 (Rockhopper Penguin) and https://xeno-canto.org/729505 (Golden-crowned Kinglet). The car and bird track was provided by Katy Tanis.

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In this episode Devan Aptekar shares his joyful journey of being a science teacher in a New York City middle school. Devan's goal for students is for them to graduate middle school believing and knowing they are scientists. Georgia brought the Explore Birds education program to 12 science classes at Devan's school in the fall of 2022. Devan and Georgia talk about the experiences of the students. She asks Devan to discuss how his colleagues perceived the program and the impact the program has had on his relationship to birds.

Devan Aptekar is a geologist and a writer. He is working on a new manuscript about future New York City where bird divination plays a central role. We cannot wait to read this book!

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Season 3 of Your Bird Story aka CHIRP is made possible with a Voice for Nature Foundation grant.

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Production

Creator and Host: Georgia Silvera Seamans

Producer and Editor: Pod to the People

Bird vocalizations were accessed from the Macaulay Library.

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How do you disrupt the "great forgetting machine" that is colonialism? Biologist and zoologist Dr. Leo Douglas offers this observation among many: "The more we can encourage people to think about this history, it's the more we can bring a broader cross section of society into the conservation fold, and give them a wider variety of reasons why they should be concerned or interested or value the natural world." Dr. Douglas drops many insights in our conversation about the history of the bird-people connection in Jamaica and its roots in the West Africa via the transatlantic slave trade. Please listen and contribute to the discussion in the comments.

Leo Douglas is a Clinical Assistant Professor at Liberal Studies. He received his Ph.D., a Masters of Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Biology, and an Advanced Environmental Policy Certificate from Columbia University. He also holds a Masters of Philosophy degree in Zoology from the University of the West Indies, Jamaica (source). You can follow him on Twitter @ leo_r_douglas.

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Season 3 of Your Bird Story aka CHIRP is made possible with a Voice for Nature Foundation grant.

+++

Production

Creator and Host: Georgia Silvera Seamans

Producer and Editor: Pod to the People

Bird vocalizations were accessed from the Macaulay Library.

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Like. Review. Subscribe. Share.