Life List: A Birding Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Interpreting migration data, cataloging our backyards, and El Niño predictions Jun 22, 2026

Show notes

Mollee, Alvaro, and George are catching up in a classic hangout episode. Join us in conversations about why we call this podcast Life List, the birds and other wildlife in our home patches, and a preview of what might come from El Niño in future months now that it's officially been declared.

Get more Life List by subscribing to our newsletter and joining our Patreon for bonus content. Talk to us and share your topic ideas at lifelistpodcast.com.
Thanks to Kowa Optics for sponsoring our podcast! Want to know more about us? Check out George's company, Hillstar Nature; Alvaro's company, Alvaro's Adventures, and Mollee's company, Nighthawk Agency, to see more about what we're up to.

How we became bird guides: Alex Harper interviews George, Mollee, and Alvaro Jun 06, 2026

Show notes

This week, we’re turning the tables. Instead of interviewing a guest, Alex Harper takes over hosting duties and puts the Life List Podcast hosts in the hot seats to chat about how they became professional birding guides, what they do and don't like about their profession, and what their jobs are like.

P.S. Thanks to our friends of the pod in this episode's cover photo - Jeff, Angela, and Surya!

Our biggest spring migration birding surprises May 23, 2026

Show notes

Birds - crabs - fish - mammals...oh my! Spring birding gets us out there and finding all sorts of things. Alvaro, Mollee, and George are catching up on stories from their time in the field and their backyards throughout May.

The expanding science of avian perception with Ed Yong May 11, 2026

Show notes

If you've read anything by Ed Yong, you know that he tackles the challenge of explaining some of the most difficult-to-grasp concepts in the animal world in ways that humans can (nearly) imagine. In this episode, we're chatting with Ed — Pulitzer Prize–winning science writer and bestselling author — about migration, animal senses, and seeing the world differently through nature.

Birding the Eastern Himalayas, a backyard Long-eared Owl, and safari adventures with Jason Hall Apr 25, 2026

Show notes

Jason Hall is back on the podcast to talk about mid-April spring migration, backyard adventures, and time on the other side of the world in Arunachal Pradesh and Assam, India.

An evolutionary biology perspective on pair bonding - in birds and humans - with Bryony Angell and Wenfei Tong Apr 11, 2026

Show notes

Another classic Life List episode: a recipe of biological and ecological facts, rabbit holes, and a healthy dose of talk about life! Bryony Angell wrote The Migratory Suitor for a recent issue of BWD magazine, and she joined us along with Wenfei Tong, an evolutionary biologist, to discuss how pair bonding in birds could relate to that in humans. This is a fun one!

Helpful links:

Read The Migratory Suitor here as a free PDF download
Wenfei's main book that we referenced throughout the episode is Bird Love: The Family Life of Birds
More about Bryony and her work on her website
More about Wenfei and her work on her website

One correction for this episode: It's prolactin that is involved in crop milk let down, not oxytocin 🙂

Middle East birding, missiles, and Mollee's long way home Apr 02, 2026

Show notes

Mollee sat down with Alvaro to recount her visit to the UAE that was cut short when the US/Iran war broke out. From here, she talks about the journey to get out of the Middle East that ended up involving travel to three countries, closed airspace and canceled flights, a missed birding tour, and experiences missiles being intercepted overhead...plus exploration of dramatic wadis, the pyramids, and Ramadan across three unique cultures.

Tour mishaps, life bird tales, and combining concerts and birding with Bonner Black Mar 17, 2026

Show notes

Bonner Black is back! If you need a little quality hang with your birding friends, we've got you covered.

A few links:

Check out all of Bonner's music and more on her website
Plus, don't miss Beasts of Birdin on YouTube
And thanks to Lars Lachmann via Xeno-Canto for the Great Bustard recording!

Ship-assisted birds, South American travel, and watching winter shift Feb 21, 2026

Show notes

George and Alvaro are chatting about recent birds in their backyards, ABA rarities, sparrow speciation, recent South American travels, and more!

At the end of this episode, Alvaro cites a new paper about genetic expression with wheatears as the example species. Start here to dive into this research: https://www.the-scientist.com/variation-at-a-single-gene-controls-songbird-plumage-73606

Why visible migration matters: migration counts and seawatch tales with Allison Vilag Feb 07, 2026

Show notes

Allison has worked coast to (Great Lakes) coast for years, and today, we're chatting about tales from the field and lessons learned from endless days of visible migration experiences.

Come for the high counts...stay for the simple joys of watching the world go by!