View From The Shed by Shaun Finnie - DON'T BORE US

DON’T BORE US

If you’re of a certain age (like me) you might remember a popular Swedish pop/rock duo by the name of Roxette. They performed catchy tunes such as ‘Joyride’, ‘The Look’ and ‘Dressed For Success’. These all had catchy melodies and were incredibly easy to sing-along with. Fittingly, when it came to releasing a greatest hits album they named it, ‘Don’t Bore Us, Get To The Chorus!’ and it sold by the shedload. In a very tenuous, Radio Two-style link, that lines me up nicely for this week’s blog, as the best time to hear birds singing is when they all join together in a glorious wake-up ensemble at the start of the day. Of course, I’m talking about the fabled dawn chorus, full of such joyous outpouring of notes that even Roxette could never have dreamed of.

It’s one of the natural world’s greatest delights and it’s just outside your door, tomorrow morning. The best news of all is that right now is the best time of year to experience it. The only problem is that you have to be up before the birds are so that you can be ready for their performance, and the birds like to get up early. Really early. No, even earlier than that. Dawn at this time of year in our part of the world is around 5-45 am. Who knew that the clock’s fingers reached that position twice in a day? At the start of May the birds are really hitting their stride with the majority of singing species being at the peak of their abilities, so it’s the perfect time to hear them. In fact, the first Sunday of May has been designated International Dawn Chorus Day. This year it falls on May 5th, during the May Day long weekend. 

But why do birds sing? It takes such a huge effort for such a small creature to make such a loud sound - and that’s only taking into account the notes that our human ears can detect. Some of their output is far beyond our hearing spectrum. Well the obvious and easiest answer is, they sing to attract a mate. The male with the best song (and ‘best’ can vary wildly between species) is most likely to attract a partner to have chicks with. If he sings well, the theory goes, then he’s probably in peak fitness and health. This means that his offspring will have a better chance of survival and be prime examples of their kind, so females will look upon him as a good mating choice. Which mother wouldn’t want the best for their youngsters?

But it’s not quite that simple. Part of the song is just him announcing that he’s managed to survive the night. Part of it is a declaration of his territorial claim. Again, these are all signs of a fit and healthy bird. “I’m well enough to sing wonderfully like this. Guys, you don’t want to mess with me!”

And why choose before dawn for this recital? Yes, some birds sing all day long but for most the dawn chorus is their prime performance. Well, singing when it’s still pretty much dark is a great idea for several reasons. 

1. Songbirds can’t feed until they can see their food, so if they have to make time to sing, it’s more productive to do it when it’s not impacting precious feeding hours.
2. All this loud singing will give away a bird’s location to a predator. As not all hunters can see well in the relative darkness then it makes sense that they attract attention to themselves when the chances of predation are lessened.
3. Sound travels further in the clear, early morning air. Any singer knows that good acoustic conditions will help their performance. Research has shown that dawn birdsong can be heard up to 20 times further than the equivalent sound at midday.

Many birds also have a better sense of light detection than we humans do. That’s why they sing at ‘their’ dawn, which in some species might be an hour or so before we notice the slightest hint of daylight. To them, the sun is already well on its way to rising. Also, and this might seem obvious but it’s still worth stating, most birds sleep high up in a tree. The angle from there to the horizon means that the sunlight hits their little eyes several precious minutes before we notice it at ground level. 

Blackbirds, Robins and Song Thrushes are usually the earliest risers. Next up are the Warblers, with Wrens and Chaffinches joining shortly after. Goldfinches and Sparrows are some of the latest risers, possibly as they have smaller eyes than the early birds. It’s all triggered by light detection.

And the widely held belief that only male birds sing is a fallacy. In around 65% of the world’s bird species, both males and females have the ability to vocalise. It’s just that the ladies usually sing at a lower volume than their male counterparts and less frequently. Hence, human scientists have historically ignored them even if they have managed to notice them. Silly humans.

So why not make a date with a garden, a warm drink and an open ear, and try to make an effort to enjoy the dawn chorus this holiday weekend. You can always go back to bed later.