Wild About The Dawn Chorus

If you’re a very early riser, an annual spring treat is in store: the wonderful cacophony of birdsong that signals the start of an avian mating game. Tiffany Francis explains how and where to enjoy it

WHILE the warm days of spring offer up a thousand joys each year, the dawn chorus is one of the most powerful and captivating. So often missed by heavy sleepers and late risers alike, from four o’clock onwards the gardens, hedgerows and woodlands of Britain erupt into a wild cacophony of birdsong, as every male bird attempts to seduce a partner with the greatest opera of their little lives. They time their breeding season to coincide with the warmest part of the year, when food is plentiful and any eggs laid by the females will have a better chance of survival.

The blackbird begins the hullabaloo with deep and fruity notes, followed closely by the bold melodies of wrens and robins. Next comes the chaffinch, greenfinch, bullfinch, song thrush, starling, dunnock, goldfinch and sparrow, each adding their voice to the beautiful chaos until mates are chosen, the sun rises and business continues as usual – all before our first guzzle of coffee.