The past few days I've woken up (involuntarily!) at 5:00 and noticed that the birds are really going to town with their chirping. I go back to sleep, and an hour later when the alarm goes off and I roll out of bed, I only hear sporadic bird noises.
I always assumed I didn't hear the birds because I was too distracted, but I've recently learned it's not me; the birds really do sing more energetically, louder and more frequently in the early morning hours. There's an actual name for the phenomenon -- Dawn Chorus, which has been scientifically studied.
Now I know.
Five years ago today: Evaluation
Our dawn chorus has a drummer! The red-bellied woodpecker loves to drum on the corner gutter. UGH!!
ReplyDeleteOh, that's the worst! Fortunately the woodpeckers around here tend to drum only during mating season.
DeleteWe live in a fly-way with a number of ponding basins for migrating birds so we get all kinds of birds at different times of the year. For awhile, in March, we had a group of birds who flew in every morning around 5:30 to just sing and sing. Then they flew on and we got a different group of birds who sang a bit later. Sometime during the summer we will get a bird that calls around 1 - 2 am. It's a very unique sound so I always distinguish it when it arrives.
ReplyDeleteOur subdivision is approximately 25 years old, so we're just getting mature trees and a significant bird population. Last year for the first time I noticed a nighttime singer. Wonder if it will be back this year?
DeleteI ma sorry to her you woke up so early but it must have been amazing to hear the birds singing. I guess they are early risers.
ReplyDeleteYes, it's nice to hear the birds--I love having the windows open so I can really hear them! They've been soothing me back to sleep.
DeleteYep, they really are loudest just before dawn!
ReplyDeleteYou take so many pictures of birds, I bet you're an expert in all things avian :-)
DeleteGosh! I didn't know that either. I'll have to pay attention.
ReplyDeleteLet us know if it's the same in Hawaii, too
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