When a bird straightens and cleans its feathers with its own beak, it’s preening. If one bird is doing the same thing for another, that action is called allopreening. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “Allopreen” If you see somebody...
A listener in Evansville, Indiana, wonders: Why do we say when something is undesirable that it’s for the birds? This is part of a complete episode. Transcript of “For the Birds” Hello, you have A Way with Words. My name is Doug Moore, and I’m...
Among paragliders, the expression the locals refers not to humans, but to birds. If the locals are able to soar without flapping their wings, then paragliders know that conditions are good for flying. This is part of a complete episode. Transcript...
A woman in Mandeville, Louisiana, wonders about a term her grandfather used when someone hogged all the ice cream or took more of their share of cookies: “Don’t be a gorby!: This term may derive from the Scots word gorb, meaning “glutton.” Her...
A baseball yakker is a curveball with a dramatic break, the kind that seems to swerve in defiance of common sense. The slang term apparently comes from yawker, a nickname for the yellowhammer bird, whose swooping flight offers a tidy image for the...
A caller from East Tennessee swears that he’s heard ducks imitating the sounds of some nearby geese, and he’s probably right. Animals do indeed have the ability to mimic the sounds and behaviors of other species, but that doesn’t mean the animals...
