Best time of day for nightingales (1 Viewer)

[James Lowther]

i am planning an imminent evening trip (morning is more difficult) to look/listen for nightingales. Can anyone tell me the peak time for song/when it starts in the evening? (Assume i know nothing )
James

 

[JSB]

i am planning an imminent evening trip (morning is more difficult) to look/listen for nightingales. Can anyone tell me the peak time for song/when it starts in the evening? (Assume i know nothing )
James

James - I can only go by my own limited experience which is that nightingales sing all day. However after about 20:00hrs there is less distracting noise from other bird calls(not a bad distraction obviously) or traffic noise. They don't seem to call as much when it gets colder either.
Hope you have better luck than I have in actually seeing the bird. Six trips now, beautiful sound, but no views at all.

John

 

[James Lowther]

Thanks John

 

[David Pedder]

I'm no expert James but agree that they do sing all day, certainly in May. I have heard it said that the best times to hear them are either dawn or dusk.

Good luck!

 

[Bushcrafter]

Warm mid afternoons laying in a medow staring up to see where the little bugger is springs to mind here to see one perched is probably rare, ive seen them scatter as ive walked a field and aloft singing but sadly never perched,one day eh, good luck mate..

 

[Reader]

I must admit that I have always found that early mornings are best. Mind you I had a Nightingale perched in a bush at Minsmere at 9am last Sunday.

Where was you thinking of going to?

 

[hannu]

Here in Finland best time to listening nightingales are from late evening 10 p.m. to early in the morning (before 8-9 a.m.). I don't know your local light conditions, because we have here very light nights now and this morning I heard that some birder has heard first nightingale this morning in my area here in East Finland.
I agree with others, that birds singing all day. So if you want to see bird, best time is early in the morning.

 

[Karl J]

Don't know about the 'best time' but i certainly heard them between 8 and 11-ish last weekend down near Dunwich

 

[James Lowther]

Thanks everyone, I took the plunge and went out last night and heard 3 nightingales (plus lsr whitethroat, garden warbler - didn't see anything of course!) at a local site. Heard my first one about 8pm, but they might have been singing in that area earlier. One of the three birds gave about 6 seconds of song in total in about 25mins waiting, so maybe it wasn't 'peak' time. Maybe next time i'll try an early morning visit.
Thanks again,
James

 

[Runcorn Birder]

Try Paxton Pits in Cambridgeshire (just south of Huntingdon on A1). I was there on May bank holiday and finally ticked the b*gger on my UK list. Had wonderful perched views for a good minute or so (the bird was shaking as it sang). There were a good number of calling birds as well.

Saw another in Turkey (near Safak Pansions in Demirkazik) last year and it was right out in the open for ten minutes or so.

 

[James Lowther]

I've seen them singing at virtual point blank range in Croatia, also hopping around in the open in france and turkey, but they seem much more skulking in britain.

 

[trealawboy]

I've seen them singing at virtual point blank range in Croatia, also hopping around in the open in france and turkey, but they seem much more skulking in britain.

Heard them load and clear at Cotswold Water Park a couple of weeks ago at 8:30am onwards. Trying to actually see them is a challenge though. I swear we were only a few feet away from at least 4 birds along one of the lanes there and couldn't see any of them.

 

[GiG]

As has been mentioned any time of the day during May. I've heard several this year near to where I work during my lunchtime excursions (on bike), to Bromeswell Heath and Common, Sutton Heath and two at Sutton Hoo seemingly having a singing contest either side of the path - needless to say I did not see either of them.

Gi

 

[Touty]

i am planning an imminent evening trip (morning is more difficult) to look/listen for nightingales. Can anyone tell me the peak time for song/when it starts in the evening? (Assume i know nothing )
James

I'm lucky enough to have one singing in the scrub at the end of garden (it was none last year and 3 in 2003 so you can imagine the racket). In any case we have to shut the window to sleep properly.

They sing on and off 24/7 but the quietest times are between 11 and 3, both day and night though you can set them off at night with a noise such as a barking roe deer. The most intense song (IMHO) has to be between 3am and dawn before the other birds have got going when the males are trying to attract overflying females still on migration.