Weekend Birder

Honeyeaters don’t just sing at dawn - they listen. In our 150th episode, Andrew Skeoch returns to share what he’s learnt about honeyeater songs, and how they reveal something deeper about birds, place and belonging. Birds featured: New Holland Honeyeater, Spiny-cheeked Honeyeater, Yellow-tufted Honeyeater, White-eared Honeyeater Episode illustration: White-eared Honeyeater 🎧 Show notes and transcript - https://weekendbirder.com/podcast/ 🐦‍⬛ Instagram - https://instagram.com/weekend.birder 🦆 Facebook - https://facebook.com/weekend.birder 🔊 Recordings by Marc Anderson are licenced from https://wildambience.com 🎵 Theme music is Swing Joyful Tune by Audiosphere -- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Rarity can make a bird feel precious, but it can also change how we see everything else. Author and science journalist Justine Hausheer shares her thinking about common birds, endangered species and her book The Vanishing Wild. Birds featured: Australasian Bittern, Golden-shouldered Parrot, Rainbow Lorikeet, Regent Honeyeater Episode illustration: Regent Honeyeater 🎧 Show notes and transcript - https://weekendbirder.com/podcast/ 🐦‍⬛ Instagram - https://instagram.com/weekend.birder 🦆 Facebook - https://facebook.com/weekend.birder 🔊 Recordings by Marc Anderson are licenced from https://wildambience.com 🎵 Theme music is Swing Joyful Tune by Audiosphere -- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

At this school, it’s completely normal to stop class for a bird. Catherine Shaw shares how The Nature School helps young connect with the world around them. Birds featured: Bar-tailed Godwit, Brolga, Buff-breasted Paradise-Kingfisher, Glossy Black-Cockatoo, Golden Whistler, Lewin’s Honeyeater, Regent Honeyeater, Square-tailed Kite Episode illustration: Golden Whistler (male) 🎧 Show notes and transcript - https://weekendbirder.com/podcast/ 🐦‍⬛ Instagram - https://instagram.com/weekend.birder 🦆 Facebook - https://facebook.com/weekend.birder 🔊 Recordings by Marc Anderson are licenced from https://wildambience.com 🎵 Theme music is Swing Joyful Tune by Audiosphere -- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

At first, it just feels like a quiet hobby - then you realise how many people love it too. Natalie Kyriacou shares her insights into human relationships with nature and her new book Nature’s Last Dance. Birds featured: Kākāpō Episode illustration: Kākāpō 🎧 Show notes and transcript - https://weekendbirder.com/podcast/ 🐦‍⬛ Instagram - https://instagram.com/weekend.birder 🦆 Facebook - https://facebook.com/weekend.birder 🔊 Recordings by Marc Anderson are licenced from https://wildambience.com 🎵 Theme music is Swing Joyful Tune by Audiosphere -- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

You can learn a lot about a place by noticing which birds are still there. Kai Hill-Crofts shares stories of birds, ecology and growing up on Country. Birds featured: Eastern Osprey, Superb Fairywren, White-bellied Sea-eagle Episode illustration: White-bellied Sea-eagle 🎧 Show notes and transcript - https://weekendbirder.com/podcast/ 🐦‍⬛ Instagram - https://instagram.com/weekend.birder 🦆 Facebook - https://facebook.com/weekend.birder 🔊 Recordings by Marc Anderson are licenced from https://wildambience.com 🎵 Theme music is Swing Joyful Tune by Audiosphere -- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

At first, it just feels like trees - then something moves. Ecologist Emi Arnold shares how to read a woodland habitats and identify the birds that live there. Birds featured: Brown Treecreeper, Diamond Firetail, Glossy Black-Cockatoo Episode illustration: Diamond Firetail 🎧 Show notes and transcript - https://weekendbirder.com/podcast/ 🐦‍⬛ Instagram - https://instagram.com/weekend.birder 🦆 Facebook - https://facebook.com/weekend.birder 🔊 Recordings by Marc Anderson are licenced from https://wildambience.com 🎵 Theme music is Swing Joyful Tune by Audiosphere -- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Birdwatching can quietly change how you see yourself. Mia Grundy shares how everyday birding and photography has helped her through tough times and shaped her identity. Birds featured: Rainbow Bee-eater, Sacred Kingfisher Episode illustration: Rainbow Bee-eater 🎧 Show notes and transcript - https://weekendbirder.com/podcast/ 🐦‍⬛ Instagram - https://instagram.com/weekend.birder 🦆 Facebook - https://facebook.com/weekend.birder 🔊 Recordings by Marc Anderson are licenced from https://wildambience.com 🎵 Theme music is Swing Joyful Tune by Audiosphere -- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Little Penguins come ashore each night - but there’s a lot we don’t see. This encore episode with researcher Paula Wasiak explores penguin behaviour, conservation and life on Phillip Island. Birds featured: Cape Barren Goose, Little Penguin, Short-tailed Shearwater Episode illustration: Little Penguin 🎧 Show notes and transcript - https://weekendbirder.com/podcast/ 🐦‍⬛ Instagram - https://instagram.com/weekend.birder 🦆 Facebook - https://facebook.com/weekend.birder 🔊 Recordings by Marc Anderson are licenced from https://wildambience.com 🎵 Theme music is Swing Joyful Tune by Audiosphere -- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sometimes the moment you miss is the one you remember most. Wildlife filmmaker Jeremy (jeremyfilmsthings) shares how filming birds has changed the way he sees and listens to the living world. 🎧 All links here - https://www.weekendbirder.com/143-filming-what-we-miss 📸 Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/weekend.birder 🦆 More at - https://www.weekendbirder.com Birds featured: Satin Bowerbird, Superb Lyrebird Bird illustration: Superb Lyrebird (male) -- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Lyrebirds are famous for their mimicry and their role in the forest is even more amazing. Here's a special feature episode from Next-Gen Hills Naturalists podcast, hosted by Coen and Evie. Dr Alex Maisey shares how Superb Lyrebirds shape the ecosystem of Sherbrooke Forest, the sounds they can mimic and the science behind these remarkable birds. 🎧 Subscribe to Next-Gen Hills Naturalists in your podcast app 🌳 All links here - https://nextgenhillsnaturalists.org/ep-8-superb-lyrebirds-with-alex/ -- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Every bird sighting is a mystery waiting to be solved. 13-year-old bird lover Coen Pearson shares his journey from noticing little brown birds at Wilsons Promontory to launching a podcast and conservation group in the Dandenong Ranges. 🎧 All links here - https://www.weekendbirder.com/142-next-gen-hills-naturalists 📸 Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/weekend.birder 🦆 More at - https://www.weekendbirder.com Bird illustration: Rufous Fantail -- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mitch Kenny visited a Blue Mountains lookout five times before he finally spotted a Peregrine Falcon. The Penrith Panthers player shares how birdwatching has become a vital mindfulness practice and a way to find a sense of calm during a hectic NRL season. 🎧 All links here - https://www.weekendbirder.com/141-birding-between-games 📸 Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/weekend.birder 🦆 More at - https://www.weekendbirder.com Bird illustration: Peregrine Falcon -- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Most of us live closer to owls than we realise. Beth Mott introduces us to Australia’s owls and their unique behaviours, and what we can do to help them survive. 🎧 All links here - https://www.weekendbirder.com/140-australian-owls 📸 Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/weekend.birder 🦆 More at - https://www.weekendbirder.com 🎵 Recording by Marc Anderson, licenced from https://www.wildambience.com Birds featured: Australian Boobook, Barking Owl, Christmas Island Boobook, Eastern Grass Owl, Eastern Barn Owl, Greater Sooty Owl, Lesser Sooty Owl, Masked Owl, Powerful Owl, Rufous Owl and Tawny Frogmouth (not an owl). Bird illustration: Australian Boobook -- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A Powerful Owl was there the night Ben Cullen lost everything. He shares his deep commitment to birds, and the work he now does with Trust for Nature to protect habitat on private land. 🎧 All links here - https://www.weekendbirder.com/139-making-space-for-birds 📸 Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/weekend.birder 🦆 More at - https://www.weekendbirder.com 🎵 Recording by Marc Anderson, licenced from https://www.wildambience.com Bird illustration: Powerful Owl -- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Your questions kept coming! Dr Claire Greenwell returns to answer listener questions about leg colour, juvenile plumage, and how to photograph fast-moving seabirds with confidence. 🎧 All links here - https://www.weekendbirder.com/podcast/137-terns 📸 Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/weekend.birder 🦆 More at - https://www.weekendbirder.com Bird illustration: Fairy Tern -- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Australia’s terns are fast, fascinating and full of subtle differences. Dr Claire Greenwell shares how to tell Fairy Terns from Little Terns, what makes seabirds so unique and why community action is critical for their conservation. 🎧 All links here - https://www.weekendbirder.com/podcast/137-terns 📸 Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/weekend.birder 🦆 More at - https://www.weekendbirder.com Birds mentioned in this episode: Arctic Tern, Bridled Tern, Caspian Tern, Crested Tern, Fairy Tern, Gull-billed Tern, Lesser Crested Tern, Little Tern, Roseate Tern, Sooty Tern, Whiskered Tern, White-winged Black Tern Bird illustration: Fairy Tern -- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jonah Lafferty shares why Cairns is kingfisher heaven - from Little Kingfishers at the Botanic Gardens to Buff-breasted Paradise Kingfishers up on the Tablelands - plus his favourite local hotspots for birdwatching in Far North Queensland. 🎧 All links here - https://www.weekendbirder.com/podcast/136-kingfishers-in-cairns 📸 Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/weekend.birder 🦆 More at - https://www.weekendbirder.com Birds mentioned in this episode: Blue-faced Parrot-Finch, Buff-breasted Paradise Kingfisher, Double-eyed Fig Parrot, Little Kingfisher, Sacred Kingfisher, Silvereye, Yellow-billed Kingfisher Bird illustration: Little Kingfisher -- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

From its eyebrow to its shimmering wing panel, there is lots to learn about the Pacific Black Duck. Scientist and conservationist Jason Graham does a deep-dive (pun intended) into this impressive bird and provides insights into a large conservation story unfolding in Tasmania. 🎧 All links here - https://www.weekendbirder.com/podcast/135-pacific-black-duck 📸 Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/weekend.birder 🦆 More at - https://www.weekendbirder.com Birds mentioned in this episode: Little Wattlebird, Pacific Black Duck, Mallard Bird illustration: Pacific Black Duck -- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Artists Jane Ruston and Bridget Farmer share the story behind The 700 Birds Project - a long-term plan to travel in short trips and draw every bird they encounter. From Gluepot to Hattah-Kulkyne and Chiltern, they talk birding misadventures, advice about field sketching and why birds keep pulling them back into new places. 🎧 All links here - https://www.weekendbirder.com/podcast/134-the-700-birds-project 📸 Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/weekend.birder 🦆 More at - https://www.weekendbirder.com If you want to help the people and wildlife affected by the 2026 Victorian bushfires: Trust for Nature Bushfire Recovery Appeal - https://trustfornature.org.au/campaign/bushfire-support/ Harcourt Progress Relief Fund - https://www.gofundme.com/f/harcourt-progress-relief-fund Zoos Victoria Emergency Wildlife Fund - https://www.zoo.org.au/donate/emergency-wildlife-how-we-help/ Birds mentioned in this episode: Gang-gang Cockatoo, Regent Parrot Bird illustration: Regent Parrot -- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dr Gráinne Cleary explains what birds are really doing when they sing. Along the way, she shares simple ways to tune your ear and hear birdsong as communication, not background noise. 🎧 All links here - https://www.weekendbirder.com/podcast/132-wingmate 🎵 Recordings by Marc Anderson, licenced from https://www.wildambience.com 📸 Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/weekend.birder 🦆 More at - https://www.weekendbirder.com Birds mentioned in this episode: Australian Magpie, Magpie-Lark, Noisy Miner, Superb Fairywren, Zebra Finch Bird illustration: Noisy Miner -- Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.