On Second Thought For Monday, April 30, 2018

The Carolina Parakeet was a wild bird in lots of senses of the word; it flew throughout the Southeast and Midwest, including along the Georgia coast. Revolutionary War soldiers and Manifest Destiny explorers journaled about their bright green plumage and “disagreeable screams.” And they were thought to be poisonous, because they ate cocklebur seeds that were harmless to them but toxic to cats hoping for a feathered meal. The birds went extinct at the beginning of the 20th century. Now, researcher Kevin Burgio is using their migration patterns and physiology as a means to explore how we can save at-risk species today.

On Second Thought for Monday, April 30, 2018.

Spring brings with it the Persian New Year, Nowruz. Earlier this month, Atlanta's Persian community celebrated the new year with vibrant music, delicious food and Middle Eastern dance. On Second Thought producer Fenly Foxen went to the Atlanta Persian Festival at Piedmont Park, and she brought back an audio postcard.

Across the country, record numbers of women are running for elected office in this year’s midterms — and a lot of them are running for the first time. In Georgia, the highest-profile race is the Democratic race for governor, which is pitting Stacey Abrams against Stacey Evans. Elsewhere in the state, more women are running for legislative seats than in years past. To break down the shift and what it’s like to be a female candidate in this political climate, GPB’s Leah Fleming spoke with Sarah Riggs Amico, who’s running for lieutenant governor; state Sen. Kay Kirkpatrick and State Reps. Bee Nguyen and Mary Margaret Oliver.

Stuart Eizenstat has worn many hats: U.S. ambassador to the European Union, Deputy Secretary of the Treasury, international lawyer. He was also President Jimmy Carter's chief domestic policy adviser, a position which served as the basis for his new book, "President Carter: The White House Years." In the history, Eizenstat details what he says is the underappreciated legacy of the Carter administration. Eizenstat joined us on the line from Washington, D.C.

April 30 is International Jazz Day. To celebrate the occasion, we invited local jazz singer Virginia Schenck to add two songs to our growing Georgia Playlist.