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Learning the Birds
This feature is no longer broadcast but an extensive archive is available for listening below

Ruth Beasley shares what she's learned about the science, lore and literature of birds of the High Plains, adding hand-crafted soundscapes meant to help listeners learn and remember the songs and calls of featured birds.
Contact Ruth Beasley about the program.

Latest Episodes
  • Towhees are solitary ground-dwellers often described as a small-scale American Robin. Eastern and Spotted Towhees can both be found in the High Plains,…
  • A Cardinal is one type of Grosbeak – a Blue Grosbeak is another. We learn to identify this deep-blue High Plains bird with brick-red bars on its shoulders.
  • Is the Looney Tune character Daffy Duck based in reality? The overall physical characteristics of black feathers, orange webbed feet, and white ring are…
  • The High Plains is a haven for many a mixed flock of Bluebirds. We learn how to identify one member, the Western Bluebird, and consider what sets this…
  • Big-headed blue-and-white Kingfishers rule a watery kingdom, diving headfirst into the water after prey and digging elaborate burrows for raising young.
  • Anting is a bizarre inter-species ritual of birds and ants that results in a beneficial dose of formic acid for the birds. We explore why 200 different…
  • Tanagers are brilliant tropical birds that spend their lives in the treetops, gracing the summer air with lyrical song. We investigate the several…
  • Those who hanker after certain birds may find themselves hunkering down in a marshy soggy bottom for the chance to see or hear the remarkable American…
  • Horned Larks are perhaps one of the most exquisite yet least appreciated prairie birds. Learn to recognize a song “like jingling coins in a pocket” that’s…
  • Roadrunners both funnier and more interesting than their own cartoons have mad skills like killing rattlesnakes and running 20 miles per hour.