Identifying 'birds' by their songs (2 Viewers)

[Peewit]

Hi there

I have to admit learning about bird song is a whole new experience for any keen bird watcher. There is another whole learning 'song pattern' to find out about

We all rely on the RSPB site (or other sites) a lot to listen, and work out each bird song from each species, to each group of birds.
So the big question here is how good are we at identifying individual bird songs?
Can we easily work out one member from a group of birds to another? Say for example 'a particular song' from a member of the the 'Tit' family from another.?

It takes a lot of experience, patience, and time. So as bird watchers would we consider 'bird song' a high priority to hear over seeing the bird and ID-ing it in the ususal way?

What are peoples views on this subject?

Just interested, as I am listening to bird song now more so, as I feel it is useful to know about as part of the learning process. :-O

 

[Clive A]

One of the most satisfying aspects of birding for me is to hear a song, or call, and from that be able to identify the bird.

 

[Keith Dickinson]

Recognition of bird songs and calls is crucial to doing the BTO surveys that I contribute to. As I've been doing them over the years the number of unknowns has dwindled to less than a couple of birds per survey visit, which I think is great, as when I started birding there were hundreds of bird noises that were labelled unknown.

 

[Peewit]

Recognition of bird songs and calls is crucial to doing the BTO surveys that I contribute to. As I've been doing them over the years the number of unknowns has dwindled to less than a couple of birds per survey visit, which I think is great, as when I started birding there were hundreds of bird noises that were labelled unknown.

Hi Keith

I could well imagine the BTO craving for definate bird songs, and yes, the bird song does work each time for your surveys. So good to hear about for definate answers.

To think that the just hearing the birds, (rather than seeing them) as an addition would be the icing the cake for BTO sightings. If only things where that simple. o

Thank you for letting us know Keith. Question is do you find bird songs easy to ID now from your experience! o
What are the most difficult bird songs to work out whether it be garden birds, to related birds, or otherwise?

Love to know your experiences

Hi Clive: It is good to know that you can ID calls. Is there a bird you struggle with at all?

 

[Keith Dickinson]

Birdsong is something that I refresh myself with every year at this time.... got some CD's that go in the car and I listen to them on the way to work..... that way I get Garden warbler and Blackcap sorted before I hear them for real...they are a couple of the hard ones to distinguish.
Recognising the songs comes easier as time goes on, there are some birds that I no longer need to refresh myself on.... song thrush and mistle thrush for instance...got them nailed so to speak.
Hardest ones are the less common birds as I'm not 'exposed ' to them that often so it takes longer for the song to stick in my brain.

 

[Gill Osborne]

It's taken me a few years but I can now recognise most of the birds I'll come into contact with up here. The only exceptions are the warblers - I like to refresh my memory each spring (as Keith does) by listening to cd's before the birds actually arrive :king:

Mind you, knowing bird songs tends to irritate the hell out of my husband at times because I'll be watching a movie with him and telling him ''There's a blackbird...and a robin and a blackcap......collared dove...'' :-O

 

[Peewit]

It's taken me a few years but I can now recognise most of the birds I'll come into contact with up here. The only exceptions are the warblers - I like to refresh my memory each spring (as Keith does) by listening to cd's before the birds actually arrive :king:

Mind you, knowing bird songs tends to irritate the hell out of my husband at times because I'll be watching a movie with him and telling him ''There's a blackbird...and a robin and a blackcap......collared dove...'' :-O

hi Gill,

Yes, a refresh of the memory does no harm and because we are getiing older(OH and I) we need to be reminded of what we are hearing a good bit of the time.

Well done for you getting to grips with those songs, Gill.

I hear a bird, and all the frustations start from my OH. To me nothing like a 'braw' blackbird singing his heart out on any film set.
To my OH it is trying to work out what is what on any filmset, or wildlife programme. He just tries his best. :gh::gh::gh:

 

[mr.sim]

I find that experience is the key. At this time of year I like getting up to listen to the dawn chorus, as it is really starting to build up now. I find this helps me relax before school (!) and strengthens my knowledge of birdsong.
Birds I am still a bit rusty on are Blackcap/Garden Warbler, Willow Tit/Marsh Tit and Blue Tit/Great Tit. The latter pair I am finally getting to grips with, but the tapes normally only have one or two calls on each species - this doesn't help much with Great Tit - but this is where experience comes in!
Nightingale is my favourite song by the way :t:

 

[SemolinaPilchard]

I would highly recommend getting a CD to help you learn the calls. I was lucky that my dad had a couple of old vinyl bird call records which I listened too a lot when I first became really 'keen' on birds. I still need help with a lot of calls, so (like other's have said) I listen to a good CD to refresh my memory quite a lot.
Recognising bird song is so rewarding though and I really enjoy going 'birdlistening' when walking the kids to school!

 

[Steve Babbs]

I find that experience is the key. At this time of year I like getting up to listen to the dawn chorus, as it is really starting to build up now. I find this helps me relax before school (!) and strengthens my knowledge of birdsong.
Birds I am still a bit rusty on are Blackcap/Garden Warbler, Willow Tit/Marsh Tit and Blue Tit/Great Tit. The latter pair I am finally getting to grips with, but the tapes normally only have one or two calls on each species - this doesn't help much with Great Tit - but this is where experience comes in!
Nightingale is my favourite song by the way :t:

I suspect more birders than would admit to it are rusty on blackcap/garden warbler. I remember reading somewhere (I'm afraid I've forgotten where) that someone done a study of people employed (using the term literally) to do bird surveys. They were played recordings of both species and asked to name them. Statistically they were no more likely to get it correct then if they'd picked one of the two at random!

 

[Capercaillie71]

Quite a few times when I've been doing BTO atlas timed visits, I've realised that at the end of my 1 or 2 hour visit, I've hardly used my binoculars at all, because I am using calls and songs constantly to identify species. Yet it is only in the last 5-10 years that I have got to grips with this, despite having an interest in birds since I was six years old!

Even so, there are some species that I still struggle with - even common species such as Mistle Thrush/Blackbird and Blue Tit/Great Tit (calls rather than songs) and Robin/Wren (calls), but I am improving with these all the time. Last year I decided I had finally nailed Blackcap/Garden Warbler, but no doubt I will be caught out again in a couple of month's time!

Learning to identify birds by song and call is definitely to be recommended, but it is still surprising how many 'serious' birders I have met who can't do it.

 

[Clive A]

Hi Clive: It is good to know that you can ID calls. Is there a bird you struggle with at all?

I am sure there are loads!

 

[Steve Babbs]

Anyone who is determined to improve their id and understanding of bird songs/calls should read: The Sound approach to Birding by Mark Constantine - it's very highly recommended. He admits to getting garden warbler/blackcap wrong at least once.

 

[mikfoz]

I've just about started to identify common birds by their song reliably and while I get it wrong sometimes I had the happy experience of telling my wife that the bird singing nearby was a Chaffinch and then being proved right once it showed itself. Score one to me!

It's kind of fun to give it a go.

 

[TomW]

My first post so Hi to everyone.

I've always tried to find the bird whose song I can't identify, that way it sticks in your mind much better than listening to a cd and then trying to find the bird in the field.

I am also red-green colour blind so subtle colour shades are lost on me, so I rely more on shape, pattern and sound to identify a bird.
My current bogeys are reed and sedge warbler, unfortunately even when I see them I'm not much wiser.
Cheers
tom

 

[davercox]

Lots of good advice on this thread Peewit.

Mr.Sim is right, now is the ideal time to learn bird songs, when they are just tuning up for the Spring. Leave it till May and you could get very confused.
My eyesight is rubbish so I've always relied on my ears for a lot of my bird finding and id.
And, like and Keith Dickinson & Capercaillie71, most of my survey records are 'heard'.

Use CDs, whatever, as much as you like, but the best is to hear a song or call you don't recognise or are not sure of, try to work out what it might be, then get it confirmed (or not) either by seeing it or having someone with you who knows.

It's a huge part of birding, very enjoyable, and makes the woods come alive.

Go for it !

 

[Clive A]

Someone sold me the "Teach yourself bird sounds" set of casettes, a few years ago, and they helped me lots. I used to keep them in the car and just play them over and over. Unfortunately my slightly more modern car only has a cd player, anyone know if these tapes are available on CD?

 

[Keith Dickinson]

I'm not sure about them being available on CD Clive but it is a relatively easy job to put them on CD if you have a CD/DVD burner in your PC.
Link a cassette deck up to the line in on the PC, use a sound management program like Audacity to record the sound digitally and then burn the file to CD.

Someone sold me the "Teach yourself bird sounds" set of casettes, a few years ago, and they helped me lots. I used to keep them in the car and just play them over and over. Unfortunately my slightly more modern car only has a cd player, anyone know if these tapes are available on CD?

 

[Clive A]

I'm not sure about them being available on CD Clive but it is a relatively easy job to put them on CD if you have a CD/DVD burner in your PC.
Link a cassette deck up to the line in on the PC, use a sound management program like Audacity to record the sound digitally and then burn the file to CD.

Cheers for that Keith,not sure as I will be able to manage to do that though as I am a total muppet with computers, but I may know someone who could do it for me.

 

[davercox]

Another thing: just as experts tell you to really get to know your Chiffchaffs, Herring Gulls etc so that you'll be sure when something different comes along, it's a good idea to really listen to your local Robins, Blackbirds, Song Thrushes, Wrens, Starlings etc - then you should be able to pick up Dunnocks, Mistle Thrushes, Greenfinches and Goldfinches; then you'll know 'that's something different' when the warblers start to arrive.