beakuency

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I started using Substack to post my Beakuency interviews with local bird people in the Hudson Valley.

Visit https://beakuency.substack.com to follow on the app, or subscribe and receive them as email newsletters. Every time a new interview is published, it will land in your inbox. The newsletter has an audio play button (so you can listen to the interview with just one click,) and a transcript. It can also be subscribed on podcast apps.

I will transcribe my past and future interviews and post them on Substack. My goal is to make these interviews into a coherent, searchable archive that captures the birders' community in the early 20th century Hudson Valley - who they are, what they think and do, and what's happening in the local nature conservation.

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Beakuency August 2024 Kathryn J. Schneider

Listen to this episode HERE!

Photo of Kathy by Sandra Harrington.

Beakuency welcomes Kathryn J. Schneider, a Claverack native, who has spent decades studying the behavior, ecology, and distribution of birds. An award-winning author, teacher, and conservationist, she is a past president of the New York State Ornithological Association. We discuss her book Birding the Hudson Valley, a thorough guidebook that provides all the knowledge you need to start birding including where to go, what to bring, and how to join the birders community, and more. Her insights give us a deeper understanding of the natural landscapes that are home to the birds we see, and encourage us to support positive changes in conservation work.

Bird-inspired music of the month: Every Bird by the local artist David Garland, the musical score for the film Larksong by Nick Jordan and Jacob Cartwright (Folklore Tapes, UK), and The Birds by Guy Richardson (AEMC Records, Netherlands.)

Upcoming bird walk led by Kathy Saturday, September 21, 2024 8 am at Nutten Hook https://www.alandevoebirdclub.org/AboutCalendar.htm

Birding 101 (Alan Devoe Bird Club x Rheinstrom Hill Audubon Sanctuary) Talk: Thursday, September 5, 2024 6:30 – 7:30 p.m. at Roe Jan Library

Walk: Sunday, September 8th at 8 am at Rheinstrom Hill Audubon Center & Sanctuary

RSVP https://tickets.audubon.org/hudsonvalley/events/9026ac89-f4bd-79d5-027e-a0aefa21707f

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Beakuency July 2024 Christopher Funkhouser

Listen to this episode HERE!

Beakuency welcomes Christopher Funkhouser, a writer, musician, and multimedia artist based in Staatsburg, Dutchess county. Chris hosts the POET RAY’D YO radio program at WGXC. His latest project “Media Safari” documents his walks in the woods alongside the Hudson River. The natural sounds he captures that feature many birds and his writing on these “safaris” remind us to cherish each unique and ephemeral moment we experience in nature. He shares how curiosity and technology help us become more attentive and expand our perceptions.

Bird-inspired music of the month: Most Serene Congress, the improvisational musical ensemble, of which Chris is a member.

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Beakuency June 2024 Ben Nickley (Berkshire Bird Observatory)

Listen to this episode HERE!

Beakuency welcomes Ben Nickley, the executive director of Berkshire Bird Observatory, a bird conservation nonprofit in Egremont, MA. In this interview, we hear about BBO’s Kestrel Nest Box Project which provides nest sites to American Kestrels, the smallest falcons in North America whose population is in steep decline. The project spans southern Berkshire County and bordering counties in New York State, and Ben shares how the collaboration with farmers, local non-profits, town and state governments not only bolsters kestrel populations in our region, but also helps the community build relationships with one another.

Bird-inspired music this month: An eagle-tune by Stephan Micus, a brand new release by Canadian field recordist & musician Dalton Alexander, and Kuş Dili: The Language of Birds by DÜNYA ensemble, a musicians’ collective based in Boston, MA.

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Beakuency May 2024 Heidi Bock (Columbia Land Conservancy)

Listen to this episode HERE!

In this episode, we dive into the heated topic of unleashed dogs in nature areas. When birding, I often run into people who seem nice and friendly, yet  their dogs are unleashed in the fields where it’s prohibited. I want to tell them about grassland birds disturbed by their dog without making them feel hurt or angry, but haven’t figured out how. This has led me to wonder whether we can just have a conversation, not a confrontation.

To tackle this, Beakuency welcomes Heidi Bock, the vice president of conservation at Columbia Land Conservancy. The Columbia Land Conservancy is a non-profit land trust that works with the community to conserve the farmland, forest, and wildlife habitats of Columbia County. Heidi shares examples of wildlife that people can help thrive by leashing their dogs, including ground nesting bird Bobolinks.  She also discussesCLC’s signages and educational programs designed to encourage learning and compassion for wildlife and people we meet on the trails.

Bird-inspired music of this month: Bobolink-tunes by Sara Lula MacClellan, a professional whistler from the 1920s, and Australian guitarist Tim Cunningham. Also Osprey and Bittern by Scottish folk musician Bert Jansch.

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Beakuency April 2024 Justin Schmidt

Listen this episode HERE!

Beakuency welcomes Justin Schmidt, a wildlife photographer and Red Hook resident. He has been documenting a family of Peregrine Falcon nesting on a local bridge in Dutchess County, and put  numerous photographs of them he took last year into a beautiful book titled Trestle Peregrines. He shares the challenges the falcon chicks faced, his experience of working with local rehabbers, and the joy of taking time to observe all the creatures around us while respecting  boundaries.

Also on the show: bird-inspired music by Bruce Haack, 808 State, CHANGES TO blind, Harold Budd & Brian Eno, and Hifiklub + Jad Fair + kptmichigan.

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Beakuency March 2024 Julie Hart (New York Breeding Bird Atlas)

Listen to this episode HERE!

Beakuency welcomes Julie Hart, the Project Coordinator for the New York Breeding Bird Atlas, a citizens’ science project that aims to build an inventory of all the birds breeding in New York State. She gives a progress report on the project in the Hudson Valley and shares the actions we can take now. NYBBA is open and accessible to anyone interested in birds. Julie tells us about the apps and tips that help beginners to enjoy birding, and how such technology has changed the way we survey from the time of the first NYBBA in the 1980s to now.

Bird-inspired music of this month is “Bird Nest Bound” by Charlie Patton. Also traditional folk music from Okinawa, Japan: 鷲の鳥節, a song about Crested serpent eagles successfully raise their chick, performed by 大浜安伴、後間儀雄、宮良康正, and 下千鳥 (Plover) a farewell song, performed by 嘉手苅林昌.

https://ebird.org/atlasny

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Beakuency February 2024 Drew Hopkins (New York State Department of Environmental Conservation)

Listen to this episode HERE!

Beakuency welcomes Drew Hopkins, an environmental educator and project coordinator at New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. He is leading the Alan Devoe Bird Club’s Shrike Search on Sat March 2, and tells us about this cute little bird’s brutal hunting behavior. He also shares the joy of nurturing students’ curiosity in wildlife through programs he facilitates at the Five Rivers Environmental Education Center in Albany, and his unique way of approaching Big Year, a personal challenge among birders to see as many species as possible within a calendar year.

Also on the show: music by English poet and musician Molly Drake, a sparrow-inspired composition by a 10-year-old Hudson Valley based artist Violet Upham-Smith, a swift song by Bristol UK-based folk musician Rachael Dadd, and a sparrow song by Canadian folk quartet Stranger Still. 

Five Rivers Environmental Education Center dec.ny.gov/places/five-rivers-center

Friends of Five Rivers friendsoffiverivers.org

Alan Devoe Bird Club www.alandevoebirdclub.org

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Beakuency January 2024 Bill Cook (CGCC Natural History Museum) & Chris Franks (Alan Devoe Bird Club)

Listen to this show HERE!

Beakuency welcomes Bill Cook, Claverack-native, Professor Emeritus of ornithology, and curator of the Columbia-Greene Community College Natural History Museum. Bill is not only an expert birder himself but also a huge supporter of the local birder community. He has helped others to become better birders and find careers in the environmental field for nearly 50 years. He shares stories of his birding trips, his work as an ornithologist, and his encounter with “The Feather Thief” as a teacher.

On Feb 10th, the public is invited to the Museum’s open house. This rare opportunity to view its ornithological collection is organized by the Alan Devoe Bird Club in Columbia County. Chris Franks, the coordinator from the club, joins the conversation to discuss details of the event, the scientific value of the collection and some oddities in the exhibits.

Also on the show: “Compositions ornithologiques”, a 1996 release by Bernard Fort, a French composer and ornithologist.

CGCC Natural History Museum

Alan Devoe Bird Club

To register for the event, email Chris at info1@alandevoebirdclub.org or contact via Facebook page.

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Beakuency December 2023: The Wren Day, and looking back the 1st year of Beakuency

Listen to this episode HERE!

Photo: St Stephen's Day, Wren Boys : Three wren boys in road, Athea, Co. Limerick. (1947) from UCD Digital Library. "The custom of hunting the wren on St. Stephen's day is known throughout most of Ireland. Groups of people dressed in disguise go from house to house, singing and playing music and asking for money in return. In former times the wren-boys carried a dead wren on a bush and asked for money to "bury the wren".

Happy Wren Day! The December episode of Beakuency featured “The Wren Song” by The Clancy Brothers & Tommy Mackem, and two “Hunt the Wren” recordings: instrumental version by Manx Folk Dance Society, and a song version by Sharron Kraus.

It has been one year for this radio program Beakuency. I have learned a lot from every local bird person I spoke with for this show, but particularly inspiring were the conversations with biologists. So we listen back to excerpts from two interviews with them: Anne Bloomfield of Hudson Valley Farm Hub, and Erik Kiviat of Hudsonia.

Listen to the full interviews:

Anne Bloomfield on Beakuency March 2023 episode

Erik Kiviat on Beakuency September 2023 episode

Also on the show: bird-inspired music released in 2023, including “Birds of Spring” by Simon Joyner, Michael Krassner & Fred Lonberg Holm, “The Dream Island Of Birds” by Mike Cooper, “Pigeon Tones for Eggflute” by Ecka Mordecai & Malvern Brume from a bird-inspired compilation Synthetic Bird Music (Mappa 2023), and Jim Denley “With Weather Volume 2: Gadigal Country” (Splitrec 2023).

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Beakuency November 2023: Lesley Doyel (Roeliff Jansen Historical Society)

Listen to this episode HERE!

In this episode, Mayuko speaks with Lesley Doyel, the president of the Roeliff Jansen Historical Society. Lesley’s kind and loving observations of wildlife in her backyards remind us to appreciate the here and now. The here and now is also the culmination of people’s lives before us. Lesley shares how the New Deal-era environmental improvement program restored the trees we see now in Copake Falls. The trees had been devastated by Copake Iron Works, an iron extraction and production operation that played a crucial role in local development.

Bird-inspired music of the month: Lesley and her husband Nick are also the people behind Lyrichord Discs, a renowned record label specializing in music from around the world and early classical music. We will hear bird-themed songs recorded in Asia from its catalog. Plus a brand-new field recording piece by Jean-Baptiste Geoffroy (forms of minutiae 2023.)

Roeliff Jansen Historical Society https://www.roeliffjansenhs.org/

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Beakuency October 2023: Justin Wexler (Wild Hudson Valley)

Listen to this episode here!

Excited to air this sincere, informative, and very fun interview with Justin Wexler of Wild Hudson Valley. Justin is a local ethnoecologist and the co-creator of Pumusiitookw waak Kulustaakw, Wave Farm's soundwalk that honors the native people of the region and their ancestors. Justin shares birds’ names and their significance in  Lunaapee folklore, indigenous people’s ancient knowledge of nature such as bird migrations and natural medicines, and discusses the importance of cultural and linguistic diversity.

Also on the show: Robin Song by Theresa Bear Fox, and bird songs by Teyuna Mamos and Zaga of the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta. Both are released by Underwater Panther Coalition, a record label created to represent Indigenous voices run by Matthew O'Neill, the host of Panther Mountain Sound on WGXC (3rd Wed 10am ET.) 

Wild Hudson Valley

Pumusiitookw waak Kulustaakw : an Indigenous Soundwalk at Wave Farm

Underwater Panther Coalition

Panther Mountain Sound

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Beakuency September 2023 Erik Kiviat (Hudsonia)

Listen to this episode HERE!

On this episode, Mayuko speaks with Erik Kiviat, a life-long resident of Hudson Valley who has studied the plants and animals of the region for 45 years. He is the executive director and co-founder of Hudsonia, a not-for-profit institute founded in 1981 for research, education, and technical assistance in the environmental sciences. Erik shares how the information that has been collected by Hudsonia can help us make decisions or ask the right questions that help our community thrive while protecting the bird habitats and natural environment. 

Also on the show: New music by Ireland based artist Natalia Beylis recorded with chickens and ducks, Pigeon by The Durutti Column, and Bird Forms, an early site-specific sound installation by Steve Roden created for a courtyard with trees at the center of the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles in 2001.

Visit Hudsonia website

Alan Devoe Bird Club Event Calendar

John Burroughs Natural History Society Event Calendar

Photo (C) Hudsonia

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Beakuency August 2023 Eric Losh

Listen to this episode here!

On today’s episode, Mayuko speaks with Eric Losh, a Hudson-based freelance illustrator and art director. His love for wildlife as a child led to his commitment to educate and inspire audiences about the natural world through his art. He discusses his collaborative works with NGOs, the role his art plays in nature conservation, and his ongoing project at the Queens Zoo.

Also on the show: Song of the Blackbird by Vietnamese National Song and Dance Ensemble and "Songbirdsongs" for piccolos, ocarinas, flutes and percussion, composed by John Luther Adams based on his observations and studies of bird songs and performed by The Callithumpian Consort.

Visit Eric Losh website

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Beakuency July 2023 Larry Federman (Northern Catskills Audubon)

Listen to this episode here!

On today’s episode, Mayuko speaks with Larry Federman, a former Audubon Society Education Coordinator and President of the local Audubon Chapter, Northern Catskills Audubon. Larry is also a life-long musician. He discusses his music career, and how his musical ears help him observe the pitch and intervals of bird songs. You can subscribe to his mailing list by contacting him at birderlarry@verizon.net to receive information on his upcoming bird walks and talks.

Also on the show: Jerry Garcia, Laura Zarougian, and “The Birds World of Song” (1961), bird sound analysis by Hudson and Sandra Ansley who used a two-speed tape recorder as a sound microscope.

Links:

Gray Matter

Dorraine / Thunder Ridge

Laura Zarougian

The Birds World of Song (Folkways)

Photo (C) Gray Matter

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Beakuency June 2023 Laura Cannamela

Listen to this episode HERE!

On this episode, Mayuko speaks with Laura Cannamela, a birder and artist based in Columbia county. Her handcrafted paper reliefs are informed by many sources, including Genji Monogatari, a novel from 11th century Japan, and natural elements such as topographic maps and waterfalls. Laura shares her inspirations, and how birding has led her to more environmentally friendly art practice. Her art show 千重 A Thousand Layers is on view through July 22, 2023 at The Hammond Museum in North Salem, New York.

Also on the show: A piece by Shane Sater, a Montana-based writer who hosts Wild With Nature, a storytelling project exploring the natural world. This month’s bird-inspired music includes 迦陵頻 (“Karyobin” also known as “鳥 Bird”) a Gagaku track from the Heian Period (794-1185), and Robin Saville’s new release Lore. (2023, Morr Music)

Laura Cannamela lauracannamela.com 

The Hammond Museum hammondmuseum.org 

Cut Me Up cutmeupmagazine.com 

Wild With Nature wildwithnature.com 

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Beakuency May 2023 Wendy Tocci (New York Breeding Bird Atlas)

Listen to this episode here!

On today’s episode, Mayuko speaks with Wendy Tocci, the regional coordinator for the New York Breeding Bird Atlas, a citizens' science project that aims to build an inventory of all the birds breeding in New York State. Wendy shares how to join Atlas, discusses the joy of appreciating everything around you through Atlasing, and closes with a night-time birding tip.

Also on the show: bird-inspired music released in 2023 by Margaret McKee: The Queen of Whistlers from 1920s (Canary Records), Chicago-based percussionist Matt Espy (Drag City), and a piece featuring field recordings by New Zealand's Maxine Funke (Disciples).

New York Breeding Bird Atlas Event Calendar