Laura Erickson's For the Birds

Latest Episodes:

Jelly Redux May 21, 2024

Show notes

Laura sparked unprecedented anger in a listener last week because of a program and blogpost from 2007. (All my blogpost/transcripts have photos, and some are longer than the program itself, but this program's linked transcript/blogpost has a *lot* more information than I could include in the program, along with pertinent photos and a video.)

Review: Kenn Kaufman's new book, The Birds that Audubon Missed. Part 2 May 17, 2024

Show notes

*The Birds That Audubon Missed* by Kenn Kaufman is a clear-eyed and surprisingly exciting portrait of a time and place that have long ago disappeared, and an important and timely book as well. Laura can’t recommend it highly enough.

Kenn Kaufman's new book: The Birds That Audubon Missed, Part 1 May 16, 2024

Show notes

Kenn Kaufman has written an important new book. Laura begins her review by talking about her own personal feelings about Audubon and his work before Kaufman's rich and enlightening book gave her a broader, more truthful picture of a deeply flawed yet important human being and his contemporaries.

Lincoln's Sparrow May 14, 2024

Show notes

Laura's been in love with a pretty little sparrow since she first saw it in 1977.

My favorite spring arrivals May 07, 2024

Show notes

With birds, as with her children, Laura has trouble picking a favorite.

Rat Poison May 03, 2024

Show notes

Yet more owls have died, this time in Chicago, from rat poison.

May Day! May 02, 2024

Show notes

Not much is happening in Laura's yard yet, but things will be popping within the coming week or two. (Lang Elliott recorded the Carolina Wren's rolling trill. Laura recorded the wren's song.)

Don't Count Your Chickens... May 01, 2024

Show notes

Chickens haven't established themselves as wild, feral birds in most places in the world, but they're still the most abundant bird on the planet.

Here come the chickens! Apr 18, 2024

Show notes

If chickens found their way to Hawaii on their own, things would have worked out okay for everyone. Unfortunately, they brought humans along, too.

The Sapsucker–Hummingbird Connection Apr 17, 2024

Show notes

During spring migration, Ruby-throated Hummingbirds usually arrive a couple of weeks after Yellow-bellied Sapsuckers do, for a very good reason.