Hello and welcome.

This is the Science of Birds.

I am your host, Ivan Philipson.

The Science of Birds podcast is a lighthearted exploration of bird biology for lifelong learners.

In this episode, which is number 96, I'll be answering questions sent by my listeners. So this is what we would call an Ask Me Anything episode.

I really like doing these, and it's really interesting to see what sorts of questions people have about birds.

The listeners who get to contribute questions for these Ask Me Anything episodes are members of my community on Patreon.

There are several tiers of support that people can join, and at the helpful hornbill and

the awesome osprey levels, one of the perks is getting to ask questions for episodes like

this one.

So if you'd like to have me answer your bird questions in a future episode, consider signing up at patreon.com

slash science of birds and become a helpful hornbill or an awesome osprey.

I got a lot of participation this time and some great questions.

Many of the questions submitted are about things that I hadn't thought about before.

Some of them are sort of out of left field, which is cool. The curiosity and unique perspectives of my listeners, you guys, drive me to

expand my own understanding of birds. And I love that. Because honestly, with many of these

questions, I don't have the answers pre-packaged and already rolling around in my brain.

To figure out the answers, I have to do some homework, some research.

And even then, there isn't always a definitive answer.

Sometimes these questions bring our attention to some unanswered bird mysteries.

And that, too, is super cool, I think.

All right, we have a lot to talk about, so let's get started.

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