This week on Birds of a Feather Talk Together, we're traveling to Australia to explore one of the country's most fascinating—and controversial—birds: the Noisy Miner.

John recently encountered Noisy Miners during his birding trip to Australia, and after watching their remarkable behavior firsthand, we knew we had to dedicate an episode to them. These highly social birds are famous for their loud calls, complex family groups, and surprisingly aggressive behavior toward other birds.

Field Museum ornithologists and Curators of Birds John Bates and Shannon Hackett join RJ and Amanda Pole to dive into Noisy Miner behavior, Australian birds, bird communication, territoriality, cooperative breeding, and why this species has become one of the most fascinating birds in Australia.

John also shares stories from his recent birding adventures in Australia, including firsthand encounters with Noisy Miners and what makes seeing them in the wild such an unforgettable experience.

To wrap up the episode, we answer a listener mailbag question about noise pollution and its effects on birds.

Whether you're interested in Australian birds, bird behavior, wildlife science, ornithology, bird communication, or simply love learning about some of the world's most remarkable species, this episode is packed with fascinating bird facts and unforgettable stories.

If you love birding, birdwatching, Australian wildlife, bird behavior, bird identification, conservation, ornithology, and nature podcasts, this is an episode you won't want to miss.

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How long can a bird stay in the air without landing?

This week on Birds of a Feather Talk Together, we're diving into the incredible world of the Chimney Swift—one of North America's most unique birds. These aerial specialists spend nearly their entire lives on the wing, eating, drinking, courting, and even collecting nesting material while flying. Outside of nesting and nighttime roosts, they rarely land at all.

And when they finally do stop flying, they don't perch on branches like most birds. Instead, their long, specialized claws allow them to cling to the vertical walls of chimneys, hollow trees, caves, and other upright surfaces, making them unlike almost any other bird you'll encounter.

Field Museum ornithologists and Curators of Birds John Bates and Shannon Hackett join RJ and Amanda Pole to explore the remarkable adaptations that allow Chimney Swifts to live almost entirely in the sky. We discuss their migration, nesting behavior, conservation challenges, and why these fascinating birds have become so closely associated with human-made chimneys.

Along the way, the conversation takes a few unexpected turns. We discuss how wildfire smoke can affect birds and bird migration, the impacts of climate change on wildlife, the surprising history behind bird's nest soup, and answer a follow-up listener mailbag question inspired by our recent Carolina Wren episode.

Whether you're a lifelong birder or just discovering the incredible birds flying overhead every summer evening, this episode is full of fascinating bird science, ornithology, and plenty of fun detours.

If you enjoy birding, birdwatching, bird behavior, bird migration, backyard birds, wildlife science, conservation, and nature podcasts, subscribe for new episodes every week.

Topics covered:

• Chimney Swifts
• Bird flight adaptations
• Bird migration
• Nesting behavior
• Chimneys and vertical roosting
• Wildfire smoke and birds
• Climate change
• Bird's nest soup
• Carolina Wren mailbag
• Ornithology and bird conservation

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This week on Birds of a Feather Talk Together, we're joined by ornithologist David Vander Pluym to explore a fascinating bird from Central America and South America: the Slate-throated Redstart—also known as the Slate-throated Whitestart.

David is a graduate student at the Louisiana State University Museum of Natural Science whose research focuses on bird ecology and migration. Before beginning graduate school, he spent years studying birds along the Colorado River in Arizona and California, and he now researches the remarkable altitudinal migration of the Slate-throated Redstart.

Together, we discuss why this colorful bird may now be called the Slate-throated Whitestart, what scientists have learned about its behavior and habitat, and how birds can migrate not just across continents, but up and down mountains in response to changing seasons.

Field Museum ornithologists and Curators of Birds John Bates and Shannon Hackett join RJ Pole and Amanda Pole for a fascinating conversation about tropical birds, mountain ecosystems, bird migration, evolution, bird taxonomy, and ornithological research.

We also catch up with David about this year's Birds of a Feather March Madness Bird Tournament. As one of the LSU graduate students who helped vote throughout the competition, he shares his thoughts on one of the tournament's biggest fan favorites—the Club-winged Manakin—and his opinion might surprise you.

Whether you're interested in bird migration, tropical birds, ornithology, bird evolution, scientific research, or discovering beautiful species you've never heard of, this episode is packed with fascinating bird science and unforgettable stories from the field.

If you love birding, birdwatching, bird behavior, tropical birds, migration, ornithology, wildlife science, bird evolution, and nature podcasts, this is an episode you won't want to miss.

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