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★★★★★

4.5

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189 reviews

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Songbirding takes you on an auditory journey through the songs of birds. Recorded entirely outdoors, a variety of songbird species from the Great Lakes region of North America are featured. Each episode provides listeners with a unique and immersive experience, as they listen to the beautiful melodies and calls of different birds in their natural habitats. Along with the sounds, birding guide Rob Porter shares interesting facts and insights about the birds, providing a deeper understanding of their behaviour and significance in the ecosystems they inhabit. Twice nominated as best Science Podcast in the Canadian Podcast Awards. Season 1, "The Bruce Peninsula" was recorded in July of 2019, in various locales of the Bruce Peninsula in Ontario. Season 2, "Midsummer" was recorded in July and August of 2019, in Hamilton, Waterloo, and Cambridge. Season 3, "Spring of Solitude" was recorded in spring of 2020, in the Hamilton, the Niagara Region, and Norfolk County. Season 4, "On Territory" was recorded throughout 2020 & 2021, in various places in Ontario. Season 5, “In The Quietude” was recorded in 2021 through 2023 in Bruce Peninsula National Park. Season 6, "Allegheny National Forest" was recorded in 2022 through 2024 in Allegheny National Forest and surrounding areas in Pennsylvania and New York states. Season 7 is forthcoming and was/is being recorded in Kananaskis Country, Alberta in 2023 through 2025. For those with high-frequency hearing loss, please search for "Songbirding Under 5kHz" Credits Recorded, engineered, narrated and created by Rob Porter. Cover art by Lauren Helton - https://tinylongwing.carbonmade.com/

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Check latest episodes from Songbirding: A Birding-by-ear Podcast podcast

Lusk Ridge Forest Trail, Part 3

2026/06/08

It’s almost two years later and I’m back again at this mountain forest, but this time in the evening. Earlier in the bird breeding season, many species will make a special effort to be heard before the sun sets, to make one last proclamation of territory before everything goes dark. Credits Songbirding: Kananaskis Country is a Songbirding Studios production. Recorded, engineered, narrated and created by Rob Porter. The Songbirding cover art (Townsend's Warbler) is by Lauren Helton: https://tinylongwing.carbonmade.com/projects/5344062 Creative Commons music is from Bluedot Sessions. Learn how to support the show at https://songbirding.com/support

Lusk Ridge Forest Trail, Part 2

2026/06/01

The conclusion of a hike through this forest off of Sibbald Trail in Kananaskis in July of 2023. Credits Songbirding: Kananaskis Country is a Songbirding Studios production. Recorded, engineered, narrated and created by Rob Porter. The Songbirding cover art (Townsend's Warbler) is by Lauren Helton: https://tinylongwing.carbonmade.com/projects/5344062 Creative Commons music is from Bluedot Sessions. Learn how to support the show at https://songbirding.com/support

Lusk Ridge Forest Trail, Part 1

2026/05/25

Off the Sibbald Trail, just west of Sibbald Meadows Pond, I found a small pull-over and hiking trail leading into the woods to explore. With just a few hours until my flight back for this first trip I decided to pop in for a quick listen, to hear what might be singing in this unnamed mountain forest. (I still don't know a name for this trail, but it is part of the Lusk Ridge hills.) Credits Songbirding: Kananaskis Country is a Songbirding Studios production. Recorded, engineered, narrated and created by Rob Porter. The Songbirding cover art (Townsend's Warbler) is by Lauren Helton: https://tinylongwing.carbonmade.com/projects/5344062 Creative Commons music is from Bluedot Sessions. Learn how to support the show at https://songbirding.com/support

Opal Day Use Area, Part 2

2026/05/18

I’m continuing my exploration of Opal Day Use area along the main highway of Kananaksis Trail. This location is alongside a river and seems to be abundant with warblers, sandpipers, Columbian ground squirresl and more. Credits Songbirding: Kananaskis Country is a Songbirding Studios production. Recorded, engineered, narrated and created by Rob Porter. The Songbirding cover art (Townsend's Warbler) is by Lauren Helton: https://tinylongwing.carbonmade.com/projects/5344062 Creative Commons music is from Bluedot Sessions. Learn how to support the show at https://songbirding.com/support

Opal Day Use Area, Part 1

2026/05/11

One thing I’ve learned from years of birding is not to ignore a good roadside birding location. It often seems counterintuitive to me as a sound recordist — I do want to be away from traffic sounds, of course. But often roadside stops consist of edge habitats that songbirds love to occupy. And, also in this case, Columbian Ground Squirrels. You’ll hear them in this episode, but I wasn’t aware they were called Colombian Ground Squirrels at the time. Credits Songbirding: Kananaskis Country is a Songbirding Studios production. Recorded, engineered, narrated and created by Rob Porter. The Songbirding cover art (Townsend's Warbler) is by Lauren Helton: https://tinylongwing.carbonmade.com/projects/5344062 Creative Commons music is from Bluedot Sessions. Learn how to support the show at https://songbirding.com/support

Kananaskis Lake

2026/05/04

This is my second try at finding birds to record at Kananaksis Lake, the first being a couple years earlier and being only of moderate success. I’m hoping despite the clinging of the last vestiages of winter, I might have some success finding some birdsong at cold climate lake. Credits Songbirding: Kananaskis Country is a Songbirding Studios production. Recorded, engineered, narrated and created by Rob Porter. The Songbirding cover art (Townsend's Warbler) is by Lauren Helton: https://tinylongwing.carbonmade.com/projects/5344062 Creative Commons music is from Bluedot Sessions. Learn how to support the show at https://songbirding.com/support

The Rae Glacier Trail (Tennessee Warbler)

2026/04/27

The Tennessee Warbler is a small, drab warbler with a thin pointy bill and a short tail. They breed mostly in the Boreal Forest in Canada, but can also be found here in mountains of Kananskis Country. Their song is a very (very) loud jumble of rapidly accelerating very high pitched notes that can sound like "ticka ticka swit sisisisisisi”. Credits Songbirding: Kananaskis Country is a Songbirding Studios production. Recorded, engineered, narrated and created by Rob Porter. The Songbirding cover art (Townsend's Warbler) is by Lauren Helton: https://tinylongwing.carbonmade.com/projects/5344062 Creative Commons music is from Bluedot Sessions. Learn how to support the show at https://songbirding.com/support

Elk Pass, Part 2

2026/04/20

I’m continuing my hike along the Elk Pass Trail in Kananaskis Country, close to BC border. It’s a quieter and cooler climate than I’m used to, but the crossbills, wrens, thrushes and more don’t seem to mind the weather. Credits Songbirding: Kananaskis Country is a Songbirding Studios production. Recorded, engineered, narrated and created by Rob Porter. The Songbirding cover art (Townsend's Warbler) is by Lauren Helton: https://tinylongwing.carbonmade.com/projects/5344062 Creative Commons music is from Bluedot Sessions. Learn how to support the show at https://songbirding.com/support

Elk Pass, Part 1 (Pacific Wren)

2026/04/13

The Pacific Wren is a tiny-yet-loud brown bird that can be found all year round in much of its West Coast range, though some of the more northern deeper interior populations in Canada make a short migration sound. Their songs are a loud and tumbling cascade of bright musical phrases, lasting anywhere from 5 to 10 seconds on average, and sometimes even longer. The species has a couple very similar sounding cousins around the world, namely the Winter Wren found more east in North America, and the Eurasian Wren in other parts of the world. Credits Songbirding: Kananaskis Country is a Songbirding Studios production. Recorded, engineered, narrated and created by Rob Porter. The Songbirding cover art (Townsend's Warbler) is by Lauren Helton: https://tinylongwing.carbonmade.com/projects/5344062 Creative Commons music is from Bluedot Sessions. Learn how to support the show at https://songbirding.com/support

Sibbald Meadows Pond, Part 4

2026/04/06

The morning is beginning to draw to a close and I am wrapping up my first exploration of the Sibbald Meadows Pond. Things may be a bit quieter but that does allow for me to focus more on the sounds of individual birds. Credits Songbirding: Kananaskis Country is a Songbirding Studios production. Recorded, engineered, narrated and created by Rob Porter. The Songbirding cover art (Townsend's Warbler) is by Lauren Helton: https://tinylongwing.carbonmade.com/projects/5344062 Creative Commons music is from Bluedot Sessions. Learn how to support the show at https://songbirding.com/support

Sibbald Meadows Pond, Part 3 (Common Yellowthroat)

2026/03/30

The Common Yellowthroat is a loud and lively warbler found along the edges of marshes and wetlands. It is one of the few warblers found nearly everywhere across North America every summer. Males are known for their broad black masks, and unmistakable "witchety-witchety-witchety" song. In this episiode, we continue our hike around Sibbald Meadows Pond. Credits Songbirding: Kananaskis Country is a Songbirding Studios production. Recorded, engineered, narrated and created by Rob Porter. The Songbirding cover art (Townsend's Warbler) is by Lauren Helton: https://tinylongwing.carbonmade.com/projects/5344062 Creative Commons music is from Bluedot Sessions. Learn how to support the show at https://songbirding.com/support

Sibbald Meadows Pond, Part 2

2026/03/23

It’s a sunny mid-July morning and I’m continuing my exporation of the Sibbald Meadows Pond: a secluded wetland surrounded in all directions by mountains, and abundant with bird song. Credits Songbirding: Kananaskis Country is a Songbirding Studios production. Recorded, engineered, narrated and created by Rob Porter. The Songbirding cover art (Townsend's Warbler) is by Lauren Helton: https://tinylongwing.carbonmade.com/projects/5344062 Creative Commons music is from Bluedot Sessions. Learn how to support the show at https://songbirding.com/support

Species in Focus: Lincoln's Sparrow

2026/03/16

The Lincoln’s Sparrow is a very secretive songbird that looks almost like it’s got a tailored plumage: complete with the stripes, spots, and the streaks of typical brownish North American sparrow. Most notably its chest is buffy coloured and has visible fine streaks. The song of the Lincoln’s Sparrow is a song of jumbled notes, and to me is reminiscent of an abbreivated House Wren song. This species is found almost everywhere in Canada except for southern Ontario, the south central prairies and the arctic. It can also be found in limited parts of the western United States. For this species in focus episode I’ll be sharing my recordings of the Lincoln’s Sparrow from Sibbald Meadows Pond, Jumpingpound Demonstration Forest, and the Fullerton Loop Hiking Trail. Credits Songbirding: Kananaskis Country is a Songbirding Studios production. Recorded, engineered, narrated and created by Rob Porter. The Songbirding cover art (Townsend's Warbler) is by Lauren Helton: https://tinylongwing.carbonmade.com/projects/5344062 Creative Commons music is from Bluedot Sessions. Learn how to support the show at https://songbirding.com/support

Sibbald Meadows Pond, Part 1

2026/03/09

In Alberta, many road and highways are actually called trails. One such trail I’ll be exploring at lot is the Sibbald Creek Trail, a very wide, winding gravel road that passes through a diversity of mountain habitats. One of those habitats is the Sibbald Meadows Pond, a popular fishing spot surrounded on all sides by mountains, which also happens to be a fantastic birding location. For the next few episodes I’ll be sharing my experiences at this location during my first trip here in mid-July of 2023. Credits Songbirding: Kananaskis Country is a Songbirding Studios production. Recorded, engineered, narrated and created by Rob Porter. The Songbirding cover art (Townsend's Warbler) is by Lauren Helton: https://tinylongwing.carbonmade.com/projects/5344062 Creative Commons music is from Bluedot Sessions. Learn how to support the show at https://songbirding.com/support

Kananaskis Dawn

2026/03/02

About an hour’s drive west of Calgary, Alberta in the foothills and front ranges of the Canadian Rocky Mountains is an area known as Kananaskis Country. Within this nearly 1 million acres of land are towering mountains, alpine meadows, glaciers, forests, lakes, wetlands, grasslands, and thickets. Over 130 species of birds nest in Kananaskis Country, including many songbirds. I’ve felt a draw to return to this place ever since I first camped here when I was 13. The imagery of the mountains, sky, and forests have never left me. But I didn’t remember much about how it sounded. Now, 30 years after I first visited Kananaskis Country, I’m back once again, this time with some field recorders and the skills and knowledge to help me identify the birdsongs I hear. Credits Songbirding: Kananaskis Country is a Songbirding Studios production. Recorded, engineered, narrated and created by Rob Porter. The Songbirding cover art (Townsend's Warbler) is by Lauren Helton: https://tinylongwing.carbonmade.com/projects/5344062 Creative Commons music is from Bluedot Sessions. Learn how to support the show at https://songbirding.com/support

Podcast reviews

Read Songbirding: A Birding-by-ear Podcast podcast reviews

4.5 out of 5

189 reviews

★★★★★

Kaibloo 2026/06/30

This is what I’ve always wanted

Thank you for providing such peaceful, sensory friendly content! I feel more connected to nature after listening, and it inspires me to get out there ...

★★★★★

I really like cheese 🧀🫕 2026/06/16

I love this podcast!! 😁😁

If u have trouble sleeping, GET THIS PODCAST!! NOW!!!! I love relaxing to bird sounds as I peaceful fall asleep. The end.

★★★★★

PendORielle 2026/06/10

Idaho Birder

I read comment about how relaxing this podcast is, I agree. I am a birder and I love this podcast. Thanks

★★★★★

Alexandria H27 2026/06/03

So relaxing, wow

I am a very beginner birder, so I thought this podcast could help me learn bird songs. I think the audio is very clear! I’m really enjoying this and I...

★★★★★

Zaia207 2026/05/05

Nice

I love this concept. As a person who primarily birds by ear I love the idea of this podcast. I had trouble getting into it though because I could bare...

★☆☆☆☆

nowhere65 2026/04/23

Annoying walking sounds

Annoying walking sounds need to be edited

★★★★★

Bean Machine🤩🤩🤩 2026/04/17

Wow

I misclicked on this podcast but then it put me to sleep in 2 minutes and for some reason I dreamed that I was a bird so yeah 4 stars I guess 👍

★★★★★

kkbats 2026/03/27

Who knew?

Who knew a podcast about listening to a guy birding could be so exciting?! Love it. Keep it up!

★★★★★

BirdWatcher777 2026/01/06

This is amazing!

I am surprised you can pull this off; it’s so comforting as well.

★★★★★

Marg P. 2024/11/30

Rare

It’s a rare person who can pull off a podcast like this one. Rob Porter takes up only as much space as he needs to and lets the birds singing their so...

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