Life List: A Birding Podcast
Birdy. Proudly nerdy. Detailed. Not-so-subtly obsessive. Delve into all things birding and birding culture with George Armistead, Alvaro Jaramillo, and Mollee Brown. Join us for light-hearted conversations on birds, conservation, travel, and more.
Episodes
111 episodes
Global conservation and the Birdfair that started a movement with Tim Appleton
This episode, we're catching up with Tim Appleton: co-founder of Global Birdfair and lifelong conservationist...and who possibly has the UK's best yard list.Highlights of our chat include:How one idea became the world’s large...
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Season 6
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Episode 9
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55:27
Deep-diving wild India: backyard leopards & a king-cobra's hiss with Surya Ramachandran
We caught up with our friend Surya Ramachandran: Indian naturalist, author, big-cat tracker, and awesome guy.Highlights of our chat include:Home patch leopards: Surya’s Nilgiri backyard hosts a multigenerational family...
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Season 6
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Episode 8
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56:57
Weird science and birding through life changes
Our travels have recently taken us across Costa Rica, Cuba, Argentina, Chile, and Tanzania — so it's high time for a catch-up! In this episode, George, Alvaro, and Mollee swap stories from the field, from color-changing marlins to Galápagos rai...
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Season 6
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Episode 7
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59:56
Birding travels, timberdoodles, connecting through nature in prison
Our travels have recently spanned Costa Rica, Cuba, Argentina, Chile, and Tanzania, so it's high time for a catch-up! We swap favorite moments from the field, talk birds with many names (hello, timberdoodles), and updates from our homes, too.&n...
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Season 6
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Episode 6
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59:57
Geographic clues to hybridization and the evolution of birding field guides
George and Alvaro have an evening chat about the evolution of field guides with notable quirks in a few editions, Alvaro discusses how he used location-based evidence to theorize about gull hybridization, and more.
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Season 6
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Episode 5
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56:49
Bird conservation on the Chatham Islands and beyond with Mike Bell
George and Alvaro took some time during their Subantarctic Islands cruise to chat with Mike Bell, ornithologist for the Chatham Islands Landscape Restoration Trust. Make sure to <...
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Season 6
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Episode 4
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58:49
Birding the world versus major sporting events
We're catching up on our tales around the world and wondering...how close does birding get to a major sporting event? Join us in our usual banter. The book that Alvaro thinks of is called
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Season 6
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Episode 3
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59:38
The heart of seabird diversity: Subantarctic Islands
Welcome to our first episode covering our recent Subantarctic Islands cruise out of New Zealand. We're diving into the islands we visited, including ...
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Season 6
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Episode 2
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1:00:52
Birding Asia X3: India, Thailand, and Japan
Hey there, we're back! Listen to us catching up on our recent travels throughout Asia in India, Thailand, and Japan. Are you tempted to join us in India next year?
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Season 6
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Episode 1
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1:04:40
Declaring a species extinct and sampling the world's coolest birding events
It's our final episode...but only for this season, don't worry 😉We're chatting about birding festivals near and far, the multinational process of declaring a species extinct, and (literal) nightmares about birding tours.Don't mi...
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Season 5
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Episode 19
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1:03:36
Defending Ecuador’s rarest species: Jocotoco’s on-the-ground efforts
Jocotoco Conservation works in the field throughout Ecuador and the Galapagos to conserve birds, wildlife, and habitats. Today, George is digging into their efforts and goals. Learn mor...
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Season 5
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Episode 18
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55:28
Your guide to Life List episodes and highlights
Welcome to our 100th episode! We're celebrating by chatting about some listener favorites - and ours! - as well as all that's changed in the birding world since we started Life List. Thanks for being a part of our podcast family!
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Season 5
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Episode 17
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59:36
Gull mysteries with Amar Ayyash
This week, we're not just talking about Amar's highly anticipated book, The Gull Guide—we're chatting about the discoveries and controversies...
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Season 5
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Episode 16
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1:07:57
Fall birding highlights (so far!)
Alright, we're back! George and Alvaro talk about unusual sightings and behaviors they've seen so far this fall along with takeaways from afar from the AOS conference.If you haven't already, be sure to read
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Season 5
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Episode 15
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1:00:30
Comparing thermal scopes, Hurricane Helene effects, and the beauty in the unknowns on pelagics
We're continuing conversations with our listeners on the air as we share updates from our home fronts. We have lots of links to share this week!Check out
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Season 5
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Episode 14
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1:05:21
Brazil's legendary lands and lesser-known gems
George is just back from the Pantanal, and today, we're chatting about that. But first...The oldest photo in eBird? Looks like it's this (now extinct) Laughing Owl!
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Season 5
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Episode 13
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1:05:42
We're answering your birdy questions!
We're back with a listener question episode! We mention Project Phoenix—check out the details here. Subscribe to our news...
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Season 5
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Episode 12
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1:08:11
Deep dives and Easter eggs in the new Stokes finch guide
This week, we're joined by Lillian Stokes and Matt Young to share in the laughs, research, and stories behind their jam-packed new book, The Stokes Guide to Finches of the United States and Canada.
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Season 5
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Episode 11
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1:06:56
Conflict in chasing rare birds & what it feels like to be on pelagics
We're three busy birders this week with tales ranging from the backyard to the wonders of the deep oceans. Grab a drink and enjoy this classic Life List chat with us—tangents and all.
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Season 5
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Episode 10
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1:08:42
Wacky tales and unique habitats with Phil Chaon
Phil's been there, done that, and has the stories to prove it. This week we chat about his recent oceanic expeditions and upcoming book.Have a taste of western Australia and the Lesser Sundas via Phil's recent
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Season 5
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Episode 9
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1:00:12
Ornithological careers and accompanying global adventures with Holly Garrod and Billi Krochuk
Holly and Billi have spanned continents in their incredible career feats. Today, we're chatting about the challenges and adventures that they've had along the way.Meet Holly via
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Season 5
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Episode 8
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1:09:09
How Alvaro's bar chat led to a new species of storm-petrel
Here's a story with some drama, discovery, and mysteries yet unsolved! Hear all about the background of discovering the Andean Storm-Petrel (Oceanites barrosi), straight from the source! Here's the paper that was published:
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Season 5
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Episode 7
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1:09:26
Decreasing the pressure and increasing the joy in birding with Jason Hall and Dexter Patterson
Jason and Dexter bring all the joy this week!Check out Jason and Dexter on InstagramLearn about...
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Season 5
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Episode 6
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1:05:57