Listen up: 10 podcasts for birders

Until recently, listening to a podcast was a now-and-then thing for me. Now I can’t get enough. Podcasts about birds and birding are my new toy.

Getting hearing aids was a catalyst. When I reluctantly acquired them in 2024, I didn’t appreciate their full utility. I knew that I might hear the birds a little better, but using the aids as a wireless connection to my smartphone was a bonus. Accessing music and podcasts via Spotify is easy. Why wasn’t I doing this sooner?

Below is an annotated list of my favorite shows so far, a solid 10-pack. I’m trying my best to keep up with new episodes and play ones I missed. Interviews with birding community personalities and authors are my biggest weakness.

The American Birding Podcast, produced every Thursday by the American Birding Association, features newsy updates and lively bird chat with expert guests. ABA’s Nate Swick, host of the podcast from its beginning in 2016, is engaging and properly obsessed. Recent show topics: best bird books of 2025; inside the success of Cornell’s Merlin app; and a brief-but-fun segment about weird bird stuff inside our homes. Episodes start with a rare bird report, reminding us of birding’s unpredictability.

Talkin’ Birds stands apart from other podcasts because it begins as a live radio program every Sunday morning. Ray Brown, the affable host, started the 30-minute show in 2006. And it really is a “show,” complete with commercials, sound effects, and regular features like Featured Feathered Friend and a brief Q&A with Mike O’Connor from Bird Watcher’s General Store. The heart of each episode is Ray’s interview with a special guest, a role I was honored to fill in November. Talkin’ Birds sends out a conservation vibe that further unites the show’s loyal community of listeners.

The Bird Joy Podcast, started in 2024, is perfectly named. Enthusiastic hosts Dexter Patterson, based in Madison, and Jason Hall, from Philadelphia, share a joyful message about getting outside, birding as we wish, and sharing nature with others. Importantly, they are helping expand the hobby in non-white communities with honest conversations about equal access and inclusivity. This show presents birding as a connector with life-changing potential, where we are all “homies” with a common bond.

Life List: A Birding Podcast is a freewheeling, loosely structured, biweekly conversation between three prominent birders: George Armistead, Alvaro Jarmillo, and Mollee Brown. All three guide worldwide birding tours, so travel is a regular theme. The podcast, now in year six, is lighthearted and “proudly nerdy” as advertised. The well-connected hosts also attract all-star guests. A recent episode with the filmmaking brothers behind “Listers” is required listening.

The Mindful Birding Podcast promotes the wellness benefits of watching birds. It’s a warm, generous, and calming program that might just change your approach to the hobby. Hosts Holly Merker and Holly Thomas, along with well-chosen guests, discuss the importance of slowing down and fostering a heightened “in the moment” awareness of birds and nature. Get started at themindfulbirdingnetwork.com.

I didn’t know about The Real Birding Podcast until recently, and I’m glad I found it! The hosts, who mostly call each other “dude,” are Will Keller (perched in North Carolina) and Caleb Putnam (in Michigan). Their birdy banter is a nice mix of entertainment and education with useful tips. I like their forays into birding culture, such as a recent episode about social media’s impact on the hobby (and the Discord app in particular). This is also a video podcast so, if you wish, you can watch the boys talk shop.

Backyard birders should check out Nature Centered from the retail chain Wild Birds Unlimited. Podcast host Brian Cunningham delivers professional advice on upping your yard game to develop a closer connection with birds and nature. The show is not overly commercial despite its connection with WBU. Recent guests were authors Amy Tan (“The Backyard Bird Chronicles”) and Holly Merker (“Ornitherapy”).

Warning: the Spark Bird Podcast is addictive. Actually, so are the other podcasts mentioned here. But this one is all interviews with people inside the birding community, some quite famous. Hosts Jenn Lodi-Smith and Janet McNally start by having each guest describe how they got into birding. The “spark stories” alone are interesting and the follow-up conversations often reinforce how birds can become a career focus and lifelong passion. The podcast extends The Spark Bird Project, a community science initiative headed by Lodi-Smith and supported by the Roger Tory Peterson Institute in Jamestown, N.Y. You can register your own spark bird story at spark-bird.org.

Hannah and Erik Go Birding is a practical resource for birders who travel. The hosts — a bird-obsessed married couple from coastal Oregon — love a fun adventure, not to mention good food and local beer. Their podcast, born in 2018, usually recaps a recent trip to a birding festival (where they serve as guides) or some other birding hot spot. Hannah operates two other excellent podcasts under the Go Birding umbrella: Bird Nerd Book Club and Women Birders Happy Hour.

Finally, for a quick fix, BirdNote Daily is essential. The two-minute public radio show aims to “give listeners a momentary respite from the news of the day,” delivering inspired storytelling about birds and conservation. You are guaranteed to learn something. Miss today’s piece on NPR? No worries, just cue the podcast where you can play multiple episodes back-to-back. BirdNote’s logo, a Varied Thrush, reflects the show’s Seattle origin in 2005. Now it’s heard around the world.

Happy listening, and I hope a few of these podcasts become a regular part of your birding life.

Jeff Reiter’s column appears regularly in Neighbor. Contact him at jreiter@wordsonbirds.com.