Music to Your Ears When Birding

Although pre-recorded audio tapes depicting the sounds that birds make can be quite relaxing, they are really not necessary once you learn how to recognize a bird's tune. Birds are often quite loud during the morning hours, but unless you have a trained ear you may not recognize them at all.

There are many things that make birds so special, but a bird is spectacularly equipped with excellent hearing and sight. Therefore, birds often sing as a form of speech, and all animals for miles around understand what a bird is trying to say simply through the pitch of its song. Since humans are, technically, animals as well, we have the ability to understand birds almost as well as those beasts that make the forest their home. The thing is, most humans simply do not take the time to learn the bird song.

If communicating with the birds interests you, start by purchasing a good field guide. Instead of obtaining a printed bird song book, buy a bird CD that depicts the differing sounds of each bird. Many expert birders recommend making your own noise according to the sounds that you hear. For example, many people tend to think that the chickadee has a hankering for a cheeseburger when it sings "cheese-burger" every summer morning. Of course, the chickadee isn't actually ordering a Happy Meal, but it helps to place a word that you will recognize in place of a bird's actual song.

Once you begin to identify each bird with a particular phrase or word, your backyard will become a virtual chorus of birds. In fact, if you really want to treat yourself, place a microphone in your yard, and listen to the birds sing early in the morning. As you drift somewhere between dusk and dawn, your personal songstresses will sing to you softly. Or, you can simply open your window a crack, which will work fairly well.

The amazing part of training your ears to hear every bird that surrounds you is that you will actually hear more birds that you see. Some birds hide high upon a tree's top, and you may never see them, but you will certainly hear them should you listen carefully. As your hearing becomes more acute, you may also learn that birds sound differently when they are in danger; when they become alarmed; or when something happens that is out of the ordinary. For the adventurous birder, knowing what sort of warning sound a bird makes may mean saving yourself from wild animals as well.

Birds are all around you, so why not start to learn their beautiful music today? As the notes fluctuate and the singers take center stage, all you need to do is sit back and listen in order to enjoy nature's own musical symphony.

Rick Chapo writes for NomadJournals.com - makers of rugged and fine bird watching journals for life list.

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