May is a Time for Songbirds

by Kevin Strauss

May is a busy month for many bird species. Having just arrived from their winter homes in the south, many birds have to establish their territories, build their nests, lay eggs and raise their young all in the space of a couple months. With all of that work to do, it is no wonder that they occasionally get vocal about it.
In the morning, I awake to several species singing in my backyard, including chickadees, redwing blackbirds, robins and white-throated sparrows.

Many male birds are singing to establish their breeding territory for the year (and chase out other males). Those songs, and the male’s often bright-colored feathers, conspire to attract a mate (or several mates) for the breeding season.
Since bird songs are so prevalent in the spring, this is a good time to learn how to identify some of the more common calls.

“Spring’s here, spring’s here” (Black-capped chickadee, Parus atricapillus)
This two-note black capped chickadee song is a change from the “chickadee-dee-dee” song that they sang during the winter. Chickadees actually started to change their songs in February, long before Spring was actually here, but perhaps they are the eternal optimists. This call is a way for chickadees to say “O.K. all you other male chickadees, this is my territory, all of you other males, get lost!”

“Konk-la-reeeeee” (Redwing blackbird, Agelaius phoeniceus)
The rattling call of the male redwing blackbird is a distinctive as its black and red plumage. While we often think of redwings as “wetland” birds, they can range into dry meadows and pastures as well in their search for insects and seeds.

“Cheery-up cheery-oh, cheery-up cheery-oh” (Robin, Turdus migratorius)
This high-pitched robin song is one that we often associate with the start of spring. When you see robins hopping around on your lawn and cocking their heads to one side. Observers might conclude that this means that a robin is “listening” for it’s food. Actually, since their eyes are on the sides of their heads, robins cock their heads to one side to help them look for their worm food.

“Oh-oh Canada Canada Canada” (White-throated sparrow, Zonotrichia albiocollis)
The high clear song of the white-throated sparrow seem to almost echo throughout the woods. These sparrows, distinctive with their black and white striped heads and white throats may not be seen, but they are often heard. White-throated sparrows can be found singing in most northwoods habitats, but the seem to prefer areas with new growth after a burn or logging. They will call at most any time of the day, and in some cases, the night.
Like any new skill, identifying bird calls works best if you work on it in small pieces. Listen for these four calls the next time you are outside. Once you have these down, listen for calls you can’t identify and then look them up in books or bird call tapes or CDs.

The Ely Timberjay