Saturday, January 26, 2008

Birdlistening*

I reckon I'd have blogged about this even if it hadn't been big garden birdwatch day, although because I'm not Bill I can't be knowledgeable or produce a relevant photo. But I was entranced today by a wonderful 3-way conversation among three birds, all by their song the same species, one of which was balanced on our phone line. I was hampered by myopia, floaters and lack of specs, so all I can tell you was that the bird was small, had a slender little beak and had his/her mouth wide open to sing this passionate-sounding and totally wonderful aria of repeated patterns, warbles and intervals, each differing from the last in mood and complexity. And the second bird seemed to echo our bird's song, while a third, more distant, joined in less often with a variant on the subject. Our bird seemed to turn occasionally, as if to project in the direction of each of the other birds. A magical moment, totally useless from the birdwatching point of view but electrifying none the less.

I hope to be seeing some birds (which again, I won't recognise unless I'm tellt) in Madeira, where I'm heading off to in the hope of some sun. At the moment of writing this, the webcams make it look jolly tempting. I may feel moved to moblog ... but then again, I may switch off completely.

*As opposed to birdwatching.

2 comments:

  1. Birdsong was kind of spoiled for me when I heard a bird expert on the radio a few years back... I thought I'd share it and perhaps spoil it for others too. Look away now if you want to continue enjoying their singing...
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    Still here? The bird chap noted how most people enjoyed birdsong and how beautiful it sounds to us. However, he said that birds sing to protect territory or attract mates. So the are either being really aggressive and shouting, "Go away you bunch of scum! This is my bit!" or being really boastful, "Hey lay-dies. Check me out! Am I the perfect male specimen or what?"

    We think, "How pretty!", birds think, "Come and have a go if you think you're hard enough!" I still try to enjoy, but I can't help but wonder what they're really saying. :-(

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  2. Erm ... thanks for sharing!

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