#75: Birding Under the Influence with Dorian Anderson

Jul 17, 2023

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Today we hear from Dorian Anderson, who you might recognize from episode #1 of Nature’s Archive.

Dorian has been a prominent figure in the birding world since 2014, when he bicycled nearly 18000 miles across the USA in what is known as a Big Year - an attempt to see as many bird species as possible.

Dorian loves a challenge, so his Big Year was much more than just trying to find lots of birds. His was a bicycle powered trip that didn’t use fossil fuels. He maintained a strict budget, built community as he went, and continued his personal journey of overcoming substance abuse. Amidst the trials of essentially being an extreme endurance athlete, Dorian also faced the inherent safety challenges of cycling on roads not necessarily designed with bicyclists in mind.

And today we have some exciting news - Dorian’s memoir, weaved into the story of the Big Year, is about to be released as a book titled “Birding Under the Influence”, which by the way is available for pre-sale now.

So in this episode we recap the Big Year, discuss the book and all that went into that, and how the Big Year launched a new career for Dorian as an international birding guide.

Dorian has some new stories to share. And if you aspire to be a bird guide, or just want to get some productive birding in on your next vacation, Dorian has some excellent advice and practical tips.

As for the Big Year itself, we chronicled much of this exciting story in episode 1, and the last 40 minutes or so of this episode are excerpts from that first discussion so that you can get the full story.

Find Dorian on Instagram or his photography website.

FULL SHOW NOTES

Links
People, Websites, Organizations
Chelsea Green Publishing
Dorian Anderson Photography - Dorian's photographic website.
The Speckled Hatchback - Dorian's Blog
Tropical Birding

Books
Note: links to books are affiliate links
Birding Under the Influence: Cycling Across America in Search of Birds and Recovery by Dorian Anderson [Bookshop.org link]
Awe: The New Science of Everyday Wonder and How It Can Transform Your Life by Dacher Keltner

Podcasts
Episode #1 of Nature's Archive, with Dorian! Notes that most of episode 1 is appended to this episode.

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Music: Spellbound by Brian Holtz Music
License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license
Artist site: https://brianholtzmusic.com

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Check past Nature's Archive episodes for amazing guests like Doug Tallamy, Elaine Ingham, and Rae Wynn-Grant, covering topics from bird migration to fungi to frogs and bats!