What happens when fashion, natural history, conservation, and art collide?

In this episode of Bird Joy, we’re joined by New York City’s premier licensed professional taxidermist, Divya Anantharaman, an award-winning artist whose work spans museums, galleries, fashion houses, and natural history institutions. Divya specializes in birds, small mammals, and anatomic anomalies, blending scientific precision with emotional storytelling and symbolic design. Check out her work here [http://www.gothamtaxidermy.com/].

Divya’s path wasn’t linear. She left the corporate fashion world to pursue her love of natural history, becoming the resident taxidermist at the Morbid Anatomy Museum and building a global following for her taxidermy, skeletal, and entomology displays, as well as jewelry and wearable art rooted in wonder.

Divya shares insights from her feature in the documentary Rearranging Skin, her book Stuffed Animals: A Modern Guide to Taxidermy, and her collaborations with institutions, artists, and conservation groups like NYC Bird Alliance [https://nycbirdalliance.org/] and NYC Plover Project [https://nycploverproject.org/].

At its heart, this conversation explores the human-animal relationship, conservation, legacy, memory, and what becomes possible when science becomes art.

If you’ve ever felt the pull of curiosity toward feathers, form, history, or preservation, this episode is for you.

Science. Style. Wonder. And a whole lot of Bird Joy! 



BIPOC Birding Club of Wisconsin [https://www.bipocbirdingclub.org/]

In Color Birding Club [https://www.incolorbirding.org/] 

Science, Style, and Wonder with  Divya Anantharaman

In this episode, we sit down with Trentön Schulz-Franco, founder of the Special Bird Service Society [https://specialbirdservice.wixsite.com/website]in Canada. SBS is an outdoor community rooted in Victoria and Vancouver that is redefining what belonging in nature can look like. Special Bird Service centers Black, Indigenous, and other people of colour, as well as 2SLGBTQIA+ folks, creating intentional spaces where people feel safe, seen, and genuinely welcome outdoors.

Our conversation explores the difference between access and belonging, the personal journey that led Trentön to build SBS, and the responsibility outdoor leaders carry when guiding people on colonized land. We talk about healing, joy, storytelling, and the power of community-led spaces to transform our experience of nature. Trentön shares affirming moments from SBS gatherings, the challenges of growth, and what it takes to protect a community’s soul while expanding its reach.

This episode is a reminder that birding and outdoor culture can be places of care, accountability, and connection when community comes first. If you’ve ever wondered what it looks like to build a space where people truly belong, this conversation is for you.

BIPOC Birding Club of Wisconsin  [https://www.bipocbirdingclub.org/]

In Color Birding Club  [https://www.incolorbirding.org/]

Community, Belonging, and the Wild: A Conversation with Trenton Schulz-Franco

Today we’re joined by Vikas Bhatia (Vikas Wildlife [https://www.instagram.com/vikaswildlife/]) — wildlife filmmaker, photographer, and composer whose work blends sound and image into immersive stories from the Amazon to the Arctic [http://www.vikaswildlife.com/].

We talk about what it means to make the environment a main character, how his background playing in bands shaped his editing rhythm, and the creative leap of composing original music for his wildlife films. Vikas shares field stories from extreme habitats, the patience required to capture animal behavior, and how he balances brand collaborations with his artistic voice.

We also dig into gear, risk, creative burnout, and advice for emerging storytellers trying to find their lane in a noisy, algorithm-driven world.

This episode is about storytelling as craft, adventure as discipline, and creating art that honors wild places.



BIPOC Birding Club of Wisconsin  [https://www.bipocbirdingclub.org/]

In Color Birding Club  [https://www.incolorbirding.org/]

Sound, Story, and the Wild: A Conversation with Vikas Wildlife 

In this episode of the Bird Joy Podcast, we’re joined by Sam DeJarnett, creator and host of the Always Be Birdin’ Podcast [https://www.instagram.com/alwaysbebirdin_podcast?igsh=ODBobDcwYm55Yjd4], for a powerful conversation about joy, resistance, and collective liberation through birding. Sam shares her journey into birding through wildlife rehabilitation and her experiences with exclusion in traditional birding spaces. These experiences pushed her to build something new rather than walk away.

We explore how birding can serve as protest and community care, how dominant narratives in conservation have excluded Black and Brown birders, and what becomes possible when knowledge is shared horizontally rather than through gatekeeping. Sam also unpacks her mycelium metaphor for community, offering a vision of birding spaces as interconnected networks where supporting one another strengthens the whole.

This episode centers on birding as joy, birding as resistance, and birding as a tool for imagining more inclusive, liberatory futures, all wrapped up in a fun and thoughtful Bird Joy Lightning Round that captures Sam’s philosophy and heart.



BIPOC Birding Club of Wisconsin  [https://www.bipocbirdingclub.org/]

In Color Birding Club [https://www.incolorbirding.org/]

Birding as Joy, Protest, and Collective Liberation with Sam DeJarnett

In this episode of the Bird Joy Podcast, we’re joined by Casey Girard [https://www.instagram.com/caseygirard], an autistic artist, illustrator, naturalist, educator, and birder based in Asheville, North Carolina, whose work lives at the intersection of art, birds, science, and community care. Casey shares how art and birding became sources of refuge, how early experiences in illustration and education shaped their visual storytelling, and why representation through projects like their Black Birders illustrations matters so deeply.

We explore how neurodivergence influences creative practice and sensory connection to nature, the role of art in supporting mental health, and how birds can offer grounding and hope during difficult times. Casey also reflects on their recent collaboration with the Feminist Bird Club of Asheville [https://www.instagram.com/fbc.asheville/], which raised over $11,500 for BeLoved Asheville after Hurricane Helene [https://www.belovedasheville.com/rebuilding-hope-after-hurricane-helene/], an inspiring example of art as mutual aid.

This heartfelt conversation centers art as refuge, birds as teachers, and the power of creativity and community in moments of challenge and care, capped off with a fun, art-focused Bird Joy Lightning Round.



BIPOC Birding Club of Wisconsin  [https://www.bipocbirdingclub.org/]

In Color Birding Club [https://www.incolorbirding.org/]

Art and Birds with Casey Girard

In this episode of the Bird Joy Podcast, we’re joined by Liz Lopez, also known as @browngirlbiologist, for a wide-ranging conversation about field biology, curiosity, and belonging in science and outdoor spaces. Liz shares her journey into biology, how identity and mentorship shaped her path, and what it really means to work as a biological monitor protecting threatened species across California.

We dive into her love of snakes and how education can transform fear into understanding, explore the realities of monitoring, compliance, and conservation work, and discuss how moving between ecosystems, from land to sea, sharpens observation and adaptability. Liz also reflects on the importance of communication, teamwork, and empathy in field science, and her connection to Latino Outdoors as a source of community and representation.

The episode wraps with a fun Bird Joy Lightning Round that highlights Liz’s curiosity, humor, and deep respect for the natural world.

BIPOC Birding Club of Wisconsin  [https://www.bipocbirdingclub.org/]

In Color Birding Club [https://www.incolorbirding.org/]

Snakes, Science, and Belonging: Field Biology, Culture, and Curiosity with Liz Lopez

In this episode of the Bird Joy Podcast, Dexter and Jason are joined by Tarik Shahzad, a Chicago-based birder who made history in 2024 by recording 294 bird species in Cook County, setting a new county record during what’s now known as the Tarik Big Year.

Tarik shares how growing up in Chicago as a birder of Pakistani and Bosnian descent shaped his relationship with nature, identity, and belonging in outdoor spaces. The conversation explores what makes Chicago birding so special from neighborhood green spaces to the unpredictable magic of Lake Michigan and how birding has transformed the way Tarik experiences the city every day.

The episode dives deep into Great Lakes birding, including gull identification, open-water scanning, and the joy of “gull frolics,” as well as the perspective-shifting moment of discovering a Short-tailed Shearwater, a Pacific seabird never before recorded in Illinois. Tarik also reflects on balancing joy and pressure during a Big Year, and how the experience deepened his understanding of conservation through his work in environmental policy with The Nature Conservancy.

The conversation wraps with a look ahead at what’s next for Tarik and a classic Bird Joy lightning round touching on Lake Michigan migration, gulls, and warblers.

Whether you bird the Great Lakes or your local park, this episode is a reminder that wonder is always waiting when you slow down and look closely.

Birding the Windy City: Lake Michigan, Gulls, and the Tarik Big Year

Today on the Bird Joy Podcast, we welcome Jody Allair—an avid birder, naturalist, and communicator who has been living a full-on bird life for decades and still brings curiosity, joy, and humanity to everything he does. Jody began birding and banding as a teen at Long Point Bird Observatory and now serves as Director of Communications at Birds Canada, where he leads media efforts, co-edits BirdWatch Canada magazine, produces the Warblers Podcast, and helps coordinate eBird Canada.

In this episode, we explore Jody’s origin story and how early banding experiences shaped his conservation ethic. We talk about finding joy while doing serious bird work, from bald eagles to nocturnal owls, and why storytelling across radio, podcasts, TV, and print is so powerful for connecting people to birds. Jody also dives into springtime warbler madness, offers advice for turning warbler confusion into joy, and reflects on the role of community science in building belonging. Plus, stories from birding tours, a playful lightning round, and reflections on what still brings him bird joy after 20+ years.



BIPOC Birding Club of Wisconsin  [https://www.bipocbirdingclub.org/]

In Color Birding Club [https://www.incolorbirding.org/]

A Life in Birds, A Life in Joy with Jody Allair

In this episode of the Bird Joy Podcast, Dexter Patterson and Jason Hall sit down with photographer Angela Ledyard for a robust conversation about creativity, presence, and belonging in nature.

Angela shares how photography became a lifelong relationship rooted in curiosity and care, beginning with watching her grandparents document everyday life in Cleveland. She reflects on learning the craft across film, studio work, photojournalism, wildlife photography, and her perspective as an FAA-certified drone pilot. Throughout the episode, Angela speaks candidly about showing up as a Black woman in outdoor spaces, finding calm and awareness through wildlife photography, and how birds, nature, and image-making continue to shape her sense of joy and healing.

This episode is about claiming space, trusting your eye, and honoring photography as both a creative practice and a way of being present in the world.

Topics include:

 * Early creative roots and learning to see differently
 * Building confidence through technical skill
 * Navigating nature spaces as a Black woman
 * Patience, presence, and wildlife photography
 * Birds that inspire joy and curiosity
 * Nature, healing, and creative renewal
 * Seeing the world from above through drone photography

Listen in for a thoughtful, grounding conversation that reminds us that joy, creativity, and care belong to all of us.

BIPOC Birding Club of Wisconsin  [https://www.bipocbirdingclub.org/]

In Color Birding Club  [https://www.incolorbirding.org/]

Photography, Nature, and Bird Joy with Angela Ledyard

Season 4 opens with Dexter and Jason celebrating their return to the Bird Joy Podcast and reconnecting with the Bird Nerd community. They reflect on how much they missed recording together, hearing from listeners, and sharing the energy of building a birding community.

The hosts catch up on fall birding highlights, from the simple joy of being back in the field to meaningful milestones like Dexter’s book launch [https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/dexter-patterson/birds-of-the-great-lakes/9781643263816/]. Dexter shares how powerful it was to hear readers’ stories—especially those inspired to slow down, notice birds, and bird with their families.

Fall migration and “weird duck season” take center stage with standout sightings including Harlequin Ducks, scoters, loons, tundra swans, and more. Jason and Dexter also reflect on fall outings with the In Color Birding Club, emphasizing the joy and purpose found in community-led birding.

The conversation shifts to winter birding, backyard activity after snowfall, and simple tips for staying warm and patient in cold weather. They also preview the Christmas Bird Count, sharing why it remains one of their favorite community birding traditions.

The episode closes with reflections on first-time birders, hopes for Season 4, and gratitude for the Bird Nerd community, ending with excitement for the season ahead!



BIPOC Birding Club of Wisconsin [https://www.bipocbirdingclub.org/]

In Color Birding Club [https://www.incolorbirding.org/]

Welcome to Season 4

Welcome to the Bird Joy Podcast – where birding meets community, curiosity, and connection! Hosted by Dexter "The Wisco Birder" Patterson and Jason "The Birding Beardsman" Hall, this is your go-to show for all things birds, nature, and the joy they bring.

Whether you're a beginner birder, a backyard birdwatcher, or a seasoned avian enthusiast, Bird Joy is your destination to explore the beauty of birds, the importance of conservation, and the power of inclusive outdoor spaces.

What to Expect:

 * Birding tips for beginners and pros alike
 * Inspiring stories from birders, naturalists, and STEM professionals
 * Deep dives into urban birding, green spaces, and conservation efforts
 * Honest conversations about equity, access, and inclusivity in nature
 * Updates on birding trends, tech, and tools

Each episode celebrates how birds connect us to nature, to science, and one another. With expert guests, heartfelt stories, and a shared love for our feathered friends, Bird Joy is more than a podcast—it's a movement.

Discover the magic of birding. Build community. Find your flock.

Subscribe to the Bird Joy Podcast today—because everyone deserves a little more joy, and a few more birds, in their life.

The Bird Joy Podcast

Dexter Patterson's Show

Welcome to the Bird Joy Podcast hosted by Dexter Patterson and Jason Hall. 

Dexter Patterson

Shows