itched warbling song with lots of constantly changing notes; listen out for sounds like ‘twiddle-de-dee’ with long pauses in between.
You know that soft, hooting noise you used to think was an owl when you were a child? That’s actually a wood pigeon. Once you know, it’s a very easily identifiable, repetitive song – it’s often described as sounding like ‘my toe hurts, Betty!’ over and over again!
The song of the starling is just as vibrant as the technicolour sheen of its plumage. Starlings sing an amazing variety of bubbling trills, whistles and creaks, and they are amazing mimics too – they have been known to mimic the sounds of mobile phones and even car horns!
A great way to get you started on your birdsong ID journey, the great tit’s classic song sounds like ‘teacher, teacher’, usually repeated many times with a clear, ringing tone. But it doesn’t end there – great tits have a huge repertoire, with more than 70 different calls having been recorded.
For such a relatively plain bird, the blackbird has a lovely, melodious song. It is mellow, unhurried and elegant, like someone playing a flute. The song is also quite chatty, like they’re having a conversation. They love to sing from the tops of trees or houses at dawn and dusk – so listen from your bed!
This beautiful bird is a rainbow of colour, with a vivid red face and bright gold flashes on the wings. Another social bird – gathering together in loose colonies called ‘charms’ – their song is a lovely, fluid melody of twitters and chirps.
The house sparrow’s song is a fairly simple repetition of sharp ‘chirrup’ notes. It has a friendly, chatty quality – sometimes it almost sounds like a laugh!
The small, elegant bird has a soft, twittering song which can be heard from spring when they return to the UK. They are almost always on the wing, so you’ll hear their song mid-flight. Their unusual mud nests are often found below the eaves of buildings.
This bird’s song is as brassy as its pink and blue plumage! Listen out for a stuttering start, confident trills becoming faster with a final flourish – like someone falling down the stairs, or a cricketer coming up to bowl. The final flourish is a little ‘diddieoo’ at the end – what a performance! u
Visit ywt.org.uk/actions for different ways to encourage more birds to visit your garden this summer.