Once abundant around San Francisco Bay, the Ridgway’s Rail — formerly known as the California Clapper Rail — is now endangered. In the 19th Century, unregulated hunting plundered the species. In the 20th Century, rampant development reduced salt marsh habitat by 85%. But in the 21st Century, the Ridgway’s Rail has allies. Restoration is under way to increase healthy saltmarsh habitat for these endangered birds. Also, efforts to control the number of predatory cats are improving the chances for the Ridgway’s Rail to survive. More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Superb Fairy-wrens teach their embryonic chicks a secret code. This "incubation call" contains a special note that will later serve as a password. When the chicks have hatched, this password enables the adult birds to identify their babies in the darkness of their domed nest. A species of Australian cuckoo lays its eggs in the wren’s nest, hoping to pawn off the task of parenting. But wren chicks learn their mother’s song and incorporate the password note into their begging calls. More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Today is the last day of our on-air pledge drive. BirdNote is an independent nonprofit that relies on financial support from listeners like you. Recurring donors ensure that there is a steady source of funding to keep making sound-rich stories that inspire, entertain and educate about the remarkable lives of birds and the natural world. This week, we are asking you to support the show by making a donation now. More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

BirdNote Daily is a two-minute show that takes a lot more than two minutes to create. Each episode weaves together an informative script, lively narration, immersive sound design, and our catchy theme song. BirdNote Daily is not just about one element, it’s many things working together that makes it great. The same is true for BirdNote funding, which makes the show possible. It’s not about what any one person does, it’s all of us giving what we can to support BirdNote’s mission. This week, we are asking you to keep BirdNote on the air by making a donation now. More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Birds do lots of things together, including hunting, nesting and raising young. This week, we’re asking BirdNote listeners to come together and support the show by making a donation now. More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Whether you’re planting natives or filling your feeders every day, your backyard birds know they can rely on you for a meal. And we’re relying on recurring donors to support BirdNote’s future. This week, we are asking you to join our flock by making a donation now. More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Songbirds in winter flocks benefit from having other birds nearby. They can recognize warning signals from other species and follow them to sources of food. We think of BirdNote’s audience as our flock, and we’re much stronger together than as individuals. BirdNote is an independent nonprofit organization that relies on support from listeners like you. This week, we are asking you to keep us flying strong by making a donation now. More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Let’s talk about nests. Every spring, robins build their cup-shaped nests using grass and mud. Orioles weave a hanging sack. It’s hard work, and yet once the chicks fledge, the structures probably won’t be reused. But bigger birds, such as herons, hawks, and eagles, often reuse a nest for many years. Europe’s migratory White Storks — like those pictured here — get the award for best reuse. One nest site, still used in 1930 and likely seeing many repairs, dated back to 1549. That’s a continuous series of stork pairs nesting in one spot for 381 years! More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Keas are large alpine parrots from New Zealand. Intelligent and social, they have olive-green plumage, a red rump, and a long, curved beak. Keas produce a distinct warbling call, a “play call,” that sounds — and functions — much like a human’s contagious laughter. Scientists made recordings of captive Keas making warbling calls, then played them for wild Keas. They began playing harder and even engaged birds that hadn’t been playing. Hearing it seemed to put them in a playful mood, even when they were alone. More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In this episode, ornithologist J. Drew Lanham reads a letter he has written to an Olive-sided Flycatcher, a beloved bird that he pleads with to visit the dead pine tree on the edge of his home by a mountain lake. More info and transcript at BirdNote.org. Want more BirdNote? Subscribe to our weekly newsletter. Sign up for BirdNote+ to get ad-free listening and other perks. BirdNote is a nonprofit. Your tax-deductible gift makes these shows possible. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.