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Season Watch

Why birds' ears change with the seasons

By Charlie Mitchell,
Chelsey Perkins
Published March 12, 2026 at 8:29 PM CDT
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A graphic represents the different hearing types of fall and spring chickadees. The fall chickadee is attuned to fine-scale variations in song, while the spring chickadee is better able to distinguish pitches.
KAXE
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Graphic by Charlie Mitchell. Original photography by Courtney Celley/USFWS via Flickr.
A graphic represents the different hearing types of fall and spring chickadees. The fall chickadee is attuned to fine-scale variations in song, while the spring chickadee is better able to distinguish pitches.

In this episode, hosts Charlie Mitchell and Chelsey Perkins revisit dinosaur songs and discuss inadvertent scientific discoveries.

Send us a voice memo through Speak Pipe!

We know that birds' songs change with the seasons, but did you know their ears change too?

Co-hosts Chelsey Perkins (news director, captain of reporters) and Charlie Mitchell (phenology coordinator, nature nerd) discuss fear of large birds, revisit dinosaur songs, and marvel at inadvertent scientific breakthroughs.

In addition, we hear from Pam Perry, wildlife biologist, and students from Linwood Elementary in Wyoming, MN.

Attributions

  • Neanderthal imitation from "High-pitched voice theory - Neanderthal - BBC science" on the BBC YouTube channel.
  • Northern Saw-whet Owl call by Peter Mundale, XC982746. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/982746.
  • Southern Cassowary call by Peter Boesman, XC1066432. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/1066432.
  • Sandhill Crane call by Jonathon Jongsma, XC111490. Accessible at www.xeno-canto.org/111490.
  • Trumpeter Swan call by iNat user kimcwren.
  • Pam Perry's interview, John's phenology report and the Linwood Elementary phenology report originally aired on KAXE.

Love the podcast? Have any inadvertent discoveries to share? Let us know! Send us a voice memo through Speak Pipe!
Or, you can email us at seasonwatch@kaxe.org.

Tags
Season Watch KAXENorthern MinnesotaPhenologySpring Phenology
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Charlie Mitchell
Charlie Mitchell (she/they) joined KAXE in February of 2022. Charlie creates the Season Watch Newsletter, produces the Phenology Talkbacks show, coordinates the Phenology in the Classroom program, and writes nature-related stories for KAXE's website. Essentailly, Charlie is John Latimer's faithful sidekick and makes sure all of KAXE's nature/phenology programs find a second life online and in podcast form.<br/><br/><br/>With a background in ecology and evolutionary biology, Charlie enjoys learning a little bit about everything, whether it's plants, mushrooms, or the star-nosed mole. (Fun fact: Moles store fat in their tails, so they don't outgrow their tunnels every time conditions are good.)
See stories by Charlie Mitchell
Chelsey Perkins
Chelsey Perkins became the News Director in early 2023 and was tasked with building a new local newsroom at the station. She is based in Brainerd and leads a team of two reporters covering communities across Northern Minnesota from the KAXE studio in Grand Rapids and the KBXE studio in Bemidji.
See stories by Chelsey Perkins
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