Modern optics give birders the opportunities to feel as though they are up close and personal with the bird we watch, but nothing we experience through binoculars compares to the experience with birds that wildlife rehabbers get to enjoy. Rehabilitators not only get to know birds on the individual level, but they get broader insight into the impacts of humans on bird populations as well. Tim Jasinski is a Wildlife Rehabilitation Specialist at the Lake Erie Nature and Science Center in Bay Village, Ohio. He oins us to talk about his experiences working with birds near Cleveland.

Also, Purple Martins will be heading northward soon, but the number of landlords waiting for them continues to decline.

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2025 is the year of the Common Loon here at the American Birding Association! Our 2025 Bird of the Year artist, Sam Zimmerman, gets to appreciate these birds frequently from his home in northern Minnesota. He is an artist, author and educator whose work explores the landscapes and creatures of the western Great Lakes, with an eye towards capturing and preserving stories from his Ojibwe heritage. His Common Loon art is featured on the cover of an upcoming issue of Birding magazine. He joins us to launch the Year of the Loon with stories about his own experiences and insight into his art.

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Thanks for another great year here at the American Birding Podcast. To close out 2024 we host another This Month in Birding panel featuring Jennie Duberstein, Mikko Jimenez, and Brodie Cass Talbott who join Nate to talk about bird brains, CBC memories, and old albatrosses. Plus, we make our predictions for what to look forward to in the bird world in 2025.

Links to items discussed in this episode:

World's oldest known wild bird is expecting again, aged 74

Experiments show backyard birds learn from their new neighbors when moving house

Study suggests there's no incentive for older birds to make new friends

Subscribe to the podcast at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts and please leave a rating or a review if you are so inclined! We appreciate it!

And don’t forget to give to the ABA’s End of Year Appeal! Thanks!