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This Birding Life

Hosted by Bill Thompson, III

This Birding Life is a podcast from the folks at Bird Watcher's Digest. And like the magazine's content, the topics covered by This Birding Life range far and wide -- from the backyard to the tropics, from bird feeding to bird chasing, from authors reading from their books to birders talking about their "spark" bird. This Birding Life is guaranteed to make you think, laugh, and want to spend more time out there with the birds. It's all about this wonderful hobby we share: watching and enjoying wild birds. Welcome to This Birding Life!

Featured Episodes

Episode #18: Phoebe and The Young Birder's Guide

Posted on December 12, 2008

Episode Duration: 16 minutes, 0 seconds

In 2006, Bill Thompson started working on a field guide for young birders between the ages of 8 and 12. He immediately realized that he needed some expert advice to do the job right, so he asked his daughter Phoebe’s elementary school class to help with the book. The class worked with Bill on the book for the second half of their fourth-grade school year, all of their fifth-grade year, and part of their sixth-grade year. The result was The Young Birder's Guide to Birds of Eastern North America. Bill says that he couldn’t have done it without the kids’ help, and that this is his favorite among all the books he has written or edited.

In this episode of This Birding Life, Bill interviews his daughter, Phoebe Linnea Thompson – now a seventh grader – about the book, how the class reacted to the project, and life as the child of avid bird watchers.

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Episode #17: Adventures in Birding With Bryan Bland

Posted on October 9, 2008

Episode Duration: 29 minutes, 26 seconds

Bryan Bland from Sunbird Tours is a legend among birding tour leaders. His adventures and experiences in some of the most remote parts of the planet almost make Indiana Jones seem like a day-tripping tourist. During a trip to Guatemala, This Birding Life host Bill Thompson, III, asks Bryan to recount memorable travels to India and beyond.

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Episode #16: Capsized by Rogue Wave

Posted on August 28, 2008

Episode Duration: 17 minutes, 55 seconds

To celebrate the centennial of Roger Tory Peterson's birth and the release of The Peterson Field Guide to Birds of North America, Lisa White from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt reads an excerpt from All Things Reconsidered, by Roger Tory Peterson and edited by Bill Thompson, III.

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Episode #15: Birding the World With Victor Emanuel

Posted on August 11, 2008

Episode Duration: 21 minutes, 34 seconds

Victor Emanuel Nature Tours was founded over 30 years ago, with the owner, the company's namesake, taking collegues and guests on trips to see birds. Now "VENT," as the business is referred to, offers well over 100 different birding and nature tours a year and hosts an annual youth birding camp. In this episode, TBL host Bill Thompson, III, sits down with the founder of the famous bird tour company. He discusses his inspiration for VENT and the pleasures of the natural world.

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