Birdsong Begins in Mid-Winter

Birdsong returns to the region in late January and February, even when it’s cold and snowy and the deciduous trees are leafless. “It’s always exciting to hear birdsong in winter,” says Stephanie Beilke, senior manager of conservation science at Audubon Great Lakes, with headquarters in Chicago. It’s also a good time for beginning bird watchers to start learning songs, because fewer species are singing.

A black-capped chickadee sings its three-syllable song in winter. Photo by Don Blecha

The birds that sing in mid-winter live in the Chicago region year-round or are short-distant migrants returning to set up territory. Year-round birds include northern cardinal, black-capped chickadee and mourning dove. Changing hormones and lengthening days inspire them to sing. Birds give both calls and songs. The calls, which can be heard any time of year, are used to keep in contact with one another and alert them about predators.

Bird song is used to attract mates or set up nesting territories. “Think of vocalizations done from one spot and out in the open as bird song,” says Dave Enstrom, Ph.D., a retired Illinois Natural History Survey ornithologist. “The line between a call and what’s a song is usually determined by context, but sometimes it’s really hard,” Enstrom notes. “It’s definitely not how repetitive or elaborative it is. Calls can be extremely elaborate.”

Consider the black-capped chickadee. This puffball-sized bird with black head and throat is named after its call, not its song. When it calls, “Chickadee, dee, dee,” it’s communicating with its brethren, not looking for a mate or chasing off another male from its territory. “A study showed the chickadees increased the number of ‘dee’ syllables based on the level of threat they are sensing,” Beilke says. “If you hear a small flock of chickadees calling, ‘dee, dee, dee, dee, dee,’ a predator is likely nearby.”

The chickadee song is a whistling sound in three syllables, with the last two syllables about a minor third lower than the first. “Sometimes you don’t hear the break between the last two notes, and it can sound like two syllables instead of three,” Beilke advises.

Chickadees may occasionally sing in winter, but come February, they start in earnest because it’s time to set up nesting territory. Male and female chickadees have the same plumage.

The northern cardinal also starts singing in February to claim territory before it begins nesting in early April. With most birds that breed in the Chicago region, only the male sings. But with the cardinal, both males and females sing. “It’s a rarity among temperate zone songbirds,” says Enstrom, who researched cardinal song. “But it’s really common in the tropics for male and female to sing.”

What’s interesting, he says, is that northern cardinals can be found south all the way to the Yucatan. “They’re a southern species, really. They’ve moved up north steadily. They’ve been here (in Illinois) a very long time.”

Both male and female cardinals, each with different plumages, can sing for hours each day during territory establishment and courtship. Enstrom has recorded at least 30 different sounds or syllables that male cardinals use to produce song. Females make about 24 distinct syllables. Some are unique to each gender, but others are given by both sexes. Some of the songs sound like, “Cheer, cheer, cheer,” or “Birdie. Birdie. Birdie. Birdie,” or “Right here, cheer, cheer cheer.”

“It varies among individuals,” Enstrom explains.

Early risers can hear the cardinal give its full repertoire of song, he says. On a given day, cardinals sing several different song types, but not their entire catalog of songs. “If you listen closely, you may notice when a bird shifts from one song type to another,” Enstrom says. Typically, the male is seen more easily when singing, because he sits on a perch to advertise to the female. She also is singing, but likely situated in a lower, more concealed location.

“In central Illinois, the first male cardinals start singing as early as January, and then the females will kick in come February,” Enstrom says. “They’ll sing when its 25 degrees out. It’s pretty wonderful.” As nesting season progresses, females sing less because they’re incubating eggs or feeding young.

Another common February songster is the mourning dove, a robin-sized bird with a gray-brown body and long tail, black spots on the wing and pink legs and feet. Females and males look alike. “It’s a common mistake to think the mourning dove’s song is an owl,” Beilke says. That’s because it gives a melancholy, five-syllable, “Hoo” song in a minor key. “But it’s quieter than an owl,” she says. “It sounds like they are in mourning. It’s a sad sound.” Year-round, mourning doves create sounds with their wings when they fly to or from a perch.

The red-winged blackbird returns to the region in late February to stake claim in a cattail marsh, giving its loud “onkalee” song. Photo by Don Blecha

When February comes to a close, the red-winged blackbird male starts singing, “Onkalee,” from cattails. “They’re such a common bird, but when you hear the first one of the season, it’s always such a joy,” Beilke says. “A few overwinter in the area, but are dispersed in small groups. They’ll come back on territory at the end of February.” The all-black birds with red and yellow on their wings arrive before the females, which are brown and streaked throughout most of their bodies.

White-breasted nuthatches also start singing early. They give their, “Yank, yank, yank,” call year-round. In late winter, the nuthatch sings a rapid repeated series of notes. “They’re another year-round resident and another early spring breeder,” Beilke says. These birds have white bellies, light blue backs and blue heads. The male’s head is much darker blue than the female’s.

Birdsong documents the presence of many different species, and is an important tool in scientific research. In Chicago, volunteers are documenting the songs and calls of nuthatches as part of Audubon’s Climate Watch program. “All volunteers go out once in winter and once in spring to count nuthatches by sight or sound,” Beilke says. “The data will inform scientists whether climate change predictions are right on that species. We started in Chicago in 2018, and we have people who go out who don’t have experience with bird song. Learning the nuthatch calls and song is all they need to participate in the survey.”

Come March, American robins, song sparrows and other short-distant migrants will add their songs to the chorus.

Sheryl DeVore has written six books on science, health and nature, as well as nature, health and environment stories for national and regional publications. Read more at SherylDeVore.wordpress.com.

Photo by Don Blecha

Learning Early Bird Songs

To listen to online songs of the birds that start singing in February, visit Cornell Lab and hear songs and calls of the northern cardinal, chickadee, mourning dove, red-winged blackbird and white-breasted nuthatch. Focus on those songs and then go outdoors to listen for the same sounds. Record the singing bird, if possible, to compare with online songs.

Beginning Bird Song Class

An eight-week introductory online bird song class is scheduled from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Wednesdays from February 2 through March 23. A Zoom link to join the sessions will be sent to registrants for a fee of $85. To register, visit ChicagoWilderness.org/events/EventDetails.aspx?id=1576648&group.