Worth a Listen: 10 Podcast Episodes About Fall Wildlife
By Joshua Smith
While we are busy watching the leaves, stacking wood, putting gardens to bed, and wondering how early the first snow might arrive, the wildlife around us is getting ready for winter too.
Birds are heading south, squirrels are filling their pantries, bears are eating seemingly everything they can find, deer are entering the rut, and some of our smallest neighbors are preparing to sleep away much of the cold season.
This week, we are listening to specific podcast episodes that help explain what is happening in the woods, fields, and skies around us during fall.
1. “Birds in September” — On the Nature Trail
A particularly good regional choice from New Hampshire Fish and Game. This episode follows chickadees, Cedar Waxwings, Broad-winged Hawks, and other birds as they gather, feed, and begin their autumn migrations.
2. “Our Black Bear Neighbors” — Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom: The Podcast
This episode actually takes listeners to New Hampshire while exploring black bear behavior. It explains how bears prepare for winter, search for food, and begin looking for suitable denning locations.
3. “The Rut” — Deer University
Wildlife professors from the Mississippi State University Deer Lab explain what triggers the whitetail rut, its different phases, and how buck behavior changes as breeding season arrives.
4. “The Fall Bird Migration” — SciStarter Podcast
Billions of birds move south each fall. Ornithologist Pete Marra explains how they make these remarkable journeys, the hazards they face, and how regular folks can help scientists track migration.
5. “Squirrels Can Find 85% of the Nuts They Hide” — Ask Us Anything from Popular Science
Those squirrels racing around the backyard have a plan. This episode explains how squirrels store thousands of nuts for winter — and how they manage to find most of them again.
6. “350: Monarch Butterfly” — Just the Zoo of Us
The monarch’s autumn journey is one of nature’s great migrations. This episode explores how generations of butterflies complete a trip that no single monarch could accomplish alone.
7. “Hibernation: Discover Nature’s Longest Nap” — I Can’t Sleep
Bears, bats, ground squirrels, and other animals use some remarkable strategies to conserve energy when winter food becomes scarce. This episode explains what actually happens during hibernation.
8. “Butterfly Migration, Ruffed Grouse, and the Porcupine” — Michigan DNR’s Wildtalk Podcast
Three fall wildlife subjects in one episode: monarch migration, the life of the ruffed grouse, and one of the woods’ most recognizable year-round residents, the porcupine.
9. “Glacier’s Bats: A Story of Grief and Hope” — Headwaters
This National Park Service podcast explores bats, including the enormous energy demands of hibernation and the threat posed by white-nose syndrome. It is a fascinating look at animals we often hear or glimpse around dusk but rarely get to know.
10. “How Do Animals Know It’s Fall?” — STEM with Dr. Owl
A family-friendly choice that asks a surprisingly interesting question: How does an animal know the season is changing? The episode explores how changes in daylight help trigger migration, food storage, and other preparations for winter.
Autumn wildlife can be easy to overlook when the foliage is stealing the show. But take a walk outside this week and there is plenty happening — overhead, underfoot, in the woods, and sometimes right in the backyard.
Don’t forget: The St. Johnsbury Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram Outdoor Edge, hosted by Gary Moore, regularly talks about the wildlife, habitat, conservation, hunting, fishing, and outdoor history of northern Vermont and New Hampshire. Find Outdoor Edge wherever you get podcasts and on the WYKR app.
New to podcasts? They are easy to try. Open Apple Podcasts, Spotify, iHeart, Amazon Music, or another podcast app on your phone. Search for the episode or podcast name and press play. If you find a show you enjoy, tap “follow” or “subscribe” and new episodes will be waiting for you when they are released.