Name That Tune

Take On The Challenge Of Identifying Birds By Their Sweet Melodies. It’s Easy With These Expert Tips.

- Kenn and Kimberly Kaufman

Step into the backyard on a summer morning and you’re likely to be greeted by a chorus of chirps and trills. Robins are caroling and chickadees are singing chickadee-dee-dee-dee. Suddenly, a different tune, a snappy wichity-wichity, stands out from the others. A search along the hedge behind the garden reveals a yellowthroat, a new bird for your yard!

Almost all birds make some kind of sounds, and most give both calls and songs. Calls are usually short notes, like the tchip from a cardinal, and you may hear them in all seasons. Songs are usually longer and more complicated, and they’re typically heard in spring and summer. Any time is a good time to begin birding by ear.

sweet-sweet-sweet, I am so sweet!

Start with Your Backyard Friends

Because learning all the songs may seem overwhelming at first, remember that you don’t have to master every one at once. A good way to narrow it down is to begin at home, focusing on the songs of your most common backyard visitors. Spring and summer are when birds are most vocal, so make plans to spend extra time outdoors in those seasons. Watch the chickadees, nuthatches, goldfinches and jays in your yard, but listen to them, too. After learning to recognize backyard feathered friends by voice, build on that baseline knowledge to identify other birds in your area.

Branch Out