This episode—which is Number 98—delves into the fascinating world of the avian brain. Despite the long-standing misconception that "bird brain" equates to being unintelligent, recent scientific research reveals that birds possess remarkably sophisticated brains, rivaling the intelligence of primates and even humans in some respects. By tracing the evolutionary paths of both mammals and birds from a common ancestor, I explain how birds have developed unique brain structures that enable complex thought processes, decision-making, and problem-solving.

We'll explore the anatomical intricacies of a bird's brain, breaking down its basic architecture into the forebrain, midbrain, and hindbrain. I highlight the critical role of structures like the hyperpallium and the dorsal ventricular ridge in enabling advanced cognitive abilities. Additionally, the discussion touches on brain plasticity, neuron density, and the specific regions involved in vocalization and memory.

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This is Episode 97. It’s all about bluebirds: the three North American species in the genus Sialia: The Eastern Bluebird, Western Bluebird, and Mountain Bluebird.

For centuries, these beloved birds have been celebrated in paintings, poems, songs, and Disney cartoons.

The Eastern Bluebird is the state bird of Missouri and New York, while the Mountain Bluebird is the state bird of Idaho and Nevada.

And, apparently, the Mountain Bluebird was the inspiration for the original Twitter logo.

But bluebirds aren’t just cultural icons. They’ve also become valuable study subjects for scientists in the fields of ornithology and general biology. Research on these little birds has led to insights about the way the natural world works—from evolution, to ecology, behavior, diseases, and genetics.

Links of Interest

• North American Bluebird Society

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In this episode—which is Number 96—I’ll be answering questions sent by my listeners. So this is what we call an “Ask Me Anything” (AMA) episode.

I enjoy doing these, and it’s so interesting to see what sorts of questions people have about birds.

The listeners who get to contribute questions for these Ask Me Anything episodes are members of my community on Patreon. There are several tiers of support that people can join, and at the Helpful Hornbill and Awesome Osprey level, one perks is getting to ask questions for episodes like this one.

So if you’d like to have me answer your bird questions in a future episode, consider signing up on my Patreon page, and become a Helpful Hornbill or an Awesome Osprey.

I got lots of participation this time and some great questions. Many of the questions submitted are about things I hadn’t thought about before. Some of them are sort of out of left field… Which is so cool. The curiosity and unique perspectives of my listeners—you guys—drive me to expand my own understanding of birds. And I love that!

Links of Interest

• Male Montezuma Oropendola song and bow display [VIDEO]

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This episode—which is number 95—is all about spoonbills.

There are six spoonbill species in the world, all of which belong to the genus Platalea. The unique beak of spoonbills sets them apart from pretty much all other birds. What is the advantage of having a bill shaped like that? We'll answer that question in this episode.

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This episode—which is Number 94— is all about the Avian Digestive System. That’s right, kids, we’re looking at bird guts today!

If you’ve ever wondered what happens to a fish swallowed by a kingfisher or what happened to that piece of bacon swiped off your lunch plate by a cheeky Ring-billed Gull... Well, you're about to find out.

I’ll do my best to describe in words the anatomical features we encounter today. But I’ve also drawn a diagram for you. You can check that out on the show notes for this episode on the Science of Birds website.

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This episode—which is number 93—is all about the the House Sparrow (Passer domesticus), one of the world’s best known and most abundant birds. It expanded across the planet along with humans over the last 10,000 years, with the spread of agriculture. Today, this plucky little bird is a model organism for the study of basic bird biology. Over 7,000 scientific studies of the House Sparrow have been published.

In this episode, we’ll get into what this species looks and sounds like, where it lives, its behavior, its breeding biology, and more.

Links of Interest

• World Sparrow Day

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This episode—which is Number 92—is all about the value of desert ecosystems as habitats for birds.

Deserts are important for the birds that are adapted to live in them—birds that can handle the harsh conditions.

Deserts are home to relatively few bird species. Only the polar regions and maybe some parts of the open ocean have less bird diversity.

Even if a bird species can handle the extremes of heat and cold in a desert, the desiccating winds, and the lack of water, that bird may not find much food.

Because where there are few plants, there are few invertebrates. So a bird in the desert can have a hard time finding any leaves, seeds, fruit, or bugs to eat.

And yet, an assortment of bird species from many disparate families have managed to carve out an existence in the world’s most arid lands. There may be nowhere near as many of them as in, say, a tropical rainforest or a temperate woodland…

BUT, the birds we do find in the desert are, I think, a particularly fascinating and admirable bunch. They’re tough little buggers. They’re resilient. Desert birds have interesting adaptations and behaviors that allow them to survive in places that would kill most other birds in a day.

CORRECTIONS: I realized after I recorded this episode that I mispronounced the names of the Namib and Thar deserts. Namib should be pronounced "NAH-mib." Thar is pronounced "Tar."

Links of Interest

• Grayish Miner in the Atacama Desert [VIDEO]

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This is Episode 91. It’s all about birds in the family Paridae. These are the chickadees, tits, and titmice—cute little forest-dwelling songbirds known and loved by many people around the world.

I’ve had a lot of requests to make a podcast episode about chickadees and their kind. Some species in this family are familiar visitors to backyard bird feeders. They’re highly active, vocal, bold, and sometimes quite confiding with people. It’s possible to gain the trust of tits and chickadees of some species by feeding them seeds out of the palm of your hand.

These birds not only visit bird feeders regularly, at least in winter, but they’ll also happily lay eggs in artificial nest boxes. All of these traits make birds in the Paridae family great subjects for scientists who want to study bird behavior and ecology.

So chickadees, tits, and titmice are among the most well-studied songbirds on the planet. Lucky for us here on The Science of Birds podcast, that means there’s a lot we can learn about them

Links of Interest

• Ground Tit [VIDEO]

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