The Little Big Year: Recent Episodes
Brandon Brywczynski
The year is 2022. The Brywczynski's have decided to do a Big Year. But what is a Big Year? Well stop reading this and start listening to find out!
What a year! The girls and I worked hard to see as many birds as we could in 2022. In this episode Audrey and I wrap up the year in a short discussion about our last day of The Little Big Year.
Well...it's been a while. More than a month in fact since we added our last bird to the Big Year list. But guess what? We ain't done yet. Tonight we added bird #210. And it was a good one. Listen in to hear about the adventure. A special thanks to Paul Jacyk for our episode art.
So this weekend cousin Brynn is hanging out with the Brywczynski's. Affectionately dubbed Beefcake, Brynn and Uncle Brandon are buds. Give a listen to find out the origins of Brynn's nickname, and to see what new bird we added to the list today!
With one more quarter to go this year, Brandon and a very crazy 11 year old takes a look at the year list and breaks down the numbers.
Some days we go birding and see a bunch of birds. Some days we see zilch. Our friend Greg Links almost never has a birdless day. Why is that? Well...he's got a secret weapon.
The school year is several weeks old. Homework is a thing for some. Others have to deal with grading papers. Birding is just really not happening. Even so, we managed to get bird #200 today. Give a listen as Audrey and Brandon share the details of this momentous milestone.
It's been a while since we caught up with our buddy Tom Kemp so we thought we'd check in with him and see how his Big Year is going. Ruby had her questions ready to go as we enjoyed a breezy afternoon on Tom's back deck. Give a listen to see how a Big Year is really done.
It's official. Bird calls have been replaced by cicadas. This....is July. The doldrums of a Big Year. So during this slow period we decided to have a little discussion about migration timing and a plump little shorebird who's pole to pole migratory path is the stuff of legends.
As new birds get harder and harder to find, Brandon and the girls contemplate adjusting the time table of their Big Year. Does it really have to be the whole year? Thanks to our friend Joe Hildreth for the episode art.
Today my wife and I had the pleasure of birding with a friend from work, Stephanie Pippin, and her sister Jamie. We ended our morning with 60 species at Oak Openings Preserve Metropark, but the best bird pictured for this episode. Can you tell what it is from the horrible cell phone pic? Listen in to today's episode to hear the call for an extra clue. Ruby almost guesses correctly.
With the peak of spring migration in the rear view mirror, the Brywczynski's try to figure out ways to stay motivated over the least exciting part of the year for birding: Summer. Brandon proposes a photo contest of sorts, and he and Audrey update everybody on their progress on the Big Year.
It's officially May and the warblers are arriving in Northwest Ohio. Today Brandon, Ruby, and Audrey discuss one of the coolest birds in the warbler family: the blue-winged warbler. Listen in for some useful info on how to identify this beautiful bird.
Birders in Northwest Ohio are anxious. Migrants are starting to trickle in...day list numbers are going up...but we still haven't seen the flood gates open yet. But we know it's only a matter of time. Late April and the first two to three weeks of May constitute some of the best birding we'll have all year. Until then, Brandon and the girls are going to keep chipping away at that list. Listen in to see what they found today!
Brandon tries to be a good influence on his daughters. That mind set has a lot to do with the fact that his parents had a good influence on him. In this episode he sits down with his dad, Carl Brywczynski, to talk about birding and why it's so special.
Brandon is grumpy. Just ask his kids. Grumpy Dad. But what really gets this curmudgeon going is when non-birders say ridiculous things. Things like "Did you see the American bald eagle?" Good grief. Listen in to see what else grinds his gears.
For this episode the Brywczynski's venture outside their Big Year area to travel north to Kensington Metropark with Uncle Matt, Aunt Ashley, and cousins Brynn and Macie. Listen in to see what new bird some of them got to feed by hand!
Most non-birders may tend to associate migration with late April and early May, but the truth is many species start migrating much earlier. After some horsing around with some friends at the Oak Openings, Audrey and Brandon sit down to talk about these early birds.
What do you get when you take a mid-March walk in Northwest Ohio, a curious little bird, and a random sunflower seed buried at the bottom of you coat pocket? Well you're just gonna have to listen to find out!
Where can you find a wayward South American falcon, a senior citizen camper, and chicken eating gulls? In Episode 6 of The Little Big Year of course! In this episode Ruby interviews a friend of ours who's doing a legitimate Big Year. Now this is how it's really done!
Obviously doing a Big Year requires birders to record what they see. But a Big Year list isn't the only kind of list birders like to keep. In this episode Brandon interviews several birders who are extremely dedicated to a slightly different record of observations: The Yard List
A resident product reviewer takes a look at several field guides and shares her thoughts on the pluses and minuses of each one.
Well...after two episodes...dad has been kicked off the podcast. In this episode the girls discuss backyard birding and what to feed the birds. Also, they enlist your help in finding those sometimes elusive winter finches.
Due to the impending doom of Christmas Break coming to a close, this may be the last time you hear from us for a while. We were able to scare a couple good birds today, including a cute little goose!
Today we started the 365 day quest known as the Big Year. Find out what the Big Year is and how we did on Day 1.