Birds, for Non-birders - raquel c. zaldivar | visual journalist

BIRDS, FOR NON-BIRDERS

Birds, for everyday people. A show geared towards people who notice birds, not necessarily birders. This short form vertical video series digs into bird facts and behavior, appealing not only to an audience of avid birders, but to all who are curious about the natural world around them.

I am on the team that produces this series and I host many of the episodes, which are published on the Our New England Instagram account. Each video is also a collaborative post between that account and various local New England public media station accounts as well as occasionally NPR's Instagram account.

One of our most successful episodes focused on how pigeons are sophisticated aviators. They have to be in order to outrun predators — like the peregrine falcon.

They can take off vertically like a helicopter to get out of harm’s way. And sometimes you can see them dive- bomb off tall buildings, with their wings pulled tight.

The published episode is available here.

When it comes to bird behavior, things are not always as they seem. Killdeer will pretend to have a broken wing if a threat gets too close to its nest.

This time of year, birders flock to places like Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge, Mass. to catch a glimpse of birds during the spring migration season.

The current outbreak of the avian flu is affecting birds at alarming rates.

The tourists were gone, but the birds were abundant. We went on a quest to see birds at Wellfleet Town Pier in Cape Cod.

When snowy owls fly to New England for the winter, it’s kind of like they’ve arrived on another planet.

The Northern Cardinal is a quintessential backyard bird in New England. But they weren’t always a common sight here.

Chickadees have extraordinary spatial memory — they can remember where they stored food based on landmarks in their surroundings.

Anticoagulant rodenticides are commonly used to control mice and rat populations. But poisoned rodents make an easy meal for birds of prey.

Wild turkeys and farm turkeys are actually the same bird! But all turkeys are known for their intelligence, good eyesight and social skills.

Yes, birds can get drunk. It’s unclear how common this phenomenon is, but when it does occur it can be dangerous for the birds.

When it comes to bird behavior, things are not always as they seem. Killdeer will pretend to have a broken wing if a threat gets too close to its nest.

This time of year, birders flock to places like Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge, Mass. to catch a glimpse of birds during the spring migration season.

The current outbreak of the avian flu is affecting birds at alarming rates.

The tourists were gone, but the birds were abundant. We went on a quest to see birds at Wellfleet Town Pier in Cape Cod.

When snowy owls fly to New England for the winter, it’s kind of like they’ve arrived on another planet.

The Northern Cardinal is a quintessential backyard bird in New England. But they weren’t always a common sight here.

Chickadees have extraordinary spatial memory — they can remember where they stored food based on landmarks in their surroundings.

Anticoagulant rodenticides are commonly used to control mice and rat populations. But poisoned rodents make an easy meal for birds of prey.

Wild turkeys and farm turkeys are actually the same bird! But all turkeys are known for their intelligence, good eyesight and social skills.

Yes, birds can get drunk. It’s unclear how common this phenomenon is, but when it does occur it can be dangerous for the birds.

When it comes to bird behavior, things are not always as they seem. Killdeer will pretend to have a broken wing if a threat gets too close to its nest.

This time of year, birders flock to places like Mount Auburn Cemetery in Cambridge, Mass. to catch a glimpse of birds during the spring migration season.

The current outbreak of the avian flu is affecting birds at alarming rates.

The tourists were gone, but the birds were abundant. We went on a quest to see birds at Wellfleet Town Pier in Cape Cod.

When snowy owls fly to New England for the winter, it’s kind of like they’ve arrived on another planet.

The Northern Cardinal is a quintessential backyard bird in New England. But they weren’t always a common sight here.

Chickadees have extraordinary spatial memory — they can remember where they stored food based on landmarks in their surroundings.

Anticoagulant rodenticides are commonly used to control mice and rat populations. But poisoned rodents make an easy meal for birds of prey.

Wild turkeys and farm turkeys are actually the same bird! But all turkeys are known for their intelligence, good eyesight and social skills.

Yes, birds can get drunk. It’s unclear how common this phenomenon is, but when it does occur it can be dangerous for the birds.

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