Birdsong foretells spring
A Pennsylvania groundhog didn’t cast a shadow after sunrise on Groundhog Day, foretelling an early spring — at least for Northeasterners.
Houston doesn’t have groundhogs. Instead, we look to birds to announce the arrival of spring by filling the morning air with song.
They started singing around the time the groundhog failed to see its shadow.
American robins begin their chortling calls before the sun can cast a shadow across the lawn, and they continue at the break of day with a tune that sounds like “cheerily-cheerilywake-up-wake-up” — just in case your bedside alarm doesn’t go off.
Pine warblers sing a sweet, high-pitched musical trill with more than 30 continuous notes, lasting merely 2 seconds. The birds sing even in winter but tune up their songs to concert vigor with the approach of spring.
A male northern cardinal will perch conspicuously in a tree as the morning sun spotlights his rich red plumage. Then he’ll throw back his head and sing a resounding song sounding like “dear-dear-dear, pretty-pretty-pretty.” Talk about a flirt.
No matter how delightful, a bird’s song has nothing to do with entertaining us. It’s all about the serious business of males announcing breeding territories and attracting mates.
Male bluebirds, for instance, sang heartily on their breeding territories after Groundhog
Day. They’ve already attracted mates and together are building nests in our backyard bluebird boxes. They’ll have chicks before we have bluebonnets.
Not to be outdone by bluebirds, Carolina wrens sing voluminous songs claiming breeding territories. Yet these little wrens stay with their mates all year and generally remain on the same breeding territory — so what’s up with their vociferous songs?
Wrens demonstrate that birdsong is about something beyond territorial defense and luring a mate. A male’s vigorous song activates the reproductive hormones in the female and thereby becomes the truest of love songs.
Carolina chickadees don’t have the operatic songs of wrens. They’re crooners, with a soft, high-pitched melody sounding like “see-see-SEE-bay” sung mostly in spring. Their familiar sounding “chick-a-dee-dee” is actually a series of call notes more so than a song.
As we listen to the ever increasing bird songs, let’s remember to register for upcoming nature festivals to celebrate the beauty and diversity of birds.