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Explore our latest coverage of environmental issues, climate change and more.

Outdoor Radio: The Unique Crossbill Beak

In this episode of Outdoor Radio, biologists Kent McFarland and Sara Zahendra are way up in the Northeast Kingdom at Moose Bog in Ferdinand. They're joined by avid birder Tom Berriman in search of crossbill birds. The beak on these birds is actually crossed, allowing them to pry open the scales on pine cones and pick out the seeds inside. A crossbill can consume 3,000 seeds a day! There are several species of crossbills; the White-winged and Red Crossbills are most common to Vermont, but they are rarely spotted.

Check out these links for more information about Crossbills:

Outdoor Radio is produced in collaboration with the Vermont Center For Ecostudies with support from the Jack and Dorothy Byrne Foundation. 

 

Chris was Vermont Public Radio Audio Engineer for more than 20 years. In addition to his work for VPR, he has supervised the sound for television documentaries for the Discovery Channel, Turner Broadcast, and the Arts and Entertainment Network. Chris retired in December, 2020.
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