by David and Pam Durrant ·
Friday, April 24, 2026
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As spring arrives, migratory birds are returning from their wintering grounds. Some birds return from as far away as South America; others, known as short migrants, come from Florida and other southern states. An increase in birdsong is noticeable as the weather warms.
One recent afternoon while sitting on the terrace, we opened Merlin, the bird ID app created by Cornell. The sound ID component listens and identifies bird songs. We were curious to find out how many birds the app would identify in the space of 10 minutes. The app listed 16 birds.
A few surprises were a redpoll and a blue-gray gnatcatcher. Although we did not find the blue-gray gnatcatcher, it was an opportunity to refresh our memories of its song and to look for the bird now that we know it has returned. Cornell acknowledges that the app does occasionally make mistakes. Merlin did note that a redpoll was unlikely at this time year in our location.
One usually hears a bird’s song before seeing the bird, so it makes sense to learn bird songs. One way is to find the bird and watch it singing, which helps imprint the bird with the song. With birdsongs increasing and migrants returning, we need to refresh our memory. Using Merlin is one method. Another is through mnemonics, a memory-enhancing technique that turns bird songs or calls into a phrase.
A popular one many people know is “who cooks for you,” the call of the barred owl. Cornell says it is an easy one to mimic and that barred owls are receptive and will frequently call back. Our neighbor Patti has perfected the call. We often hear barred owl calls and are never quite sure whether it is Patti or the owls talking back-and-forth with the “who cooks for you.”
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Mnemonics is helpful for the warblers returning each spring. We often hear “teacher-teacher-teacher,” the call of the ovenbird, on a walk through our woodlands. The yellow warbler sings “sweet-sweet-I am so sweet.” We identify the “witchety-witchety-witchety-witch” as the call of the common yellow throat when walking by the wet area of our lower pasture, where they often nest. One bird we consistently hear before we see it is the great crested flycatcher. The mnemonic “wheeeep, wheeeep” is a clue to look up, as this flycatcher is always found singing away in the tippy tops of trees. The song of the white-throated sparrow, “old-sam-peabody-peabody,” is one of Pam’s favorites as it brings back memories of the first time she heard and identified it while hiking in Maine woods. This sparrow, by the way, scratches through the leaves on the ground looking for insects, another reason to leave the leaves.
Early morning is a great time to listen to birds. Lying in bed with our windows open, we listen to the dawn chorus and try to identify what bird is singing. The dawn chorus usually starts with one bird singing and then others chime in. This morning a little after 5 a.m., we heard a repetitive, almost irritating call we didn’t recognize. Merlin identified it as an American robin. It was not the musical song we typically associate with robins.
The phoebes have returned right on time with their distinctive, raspy “fee-be” song. Yesterday there were 10 or 12 tree swallows hawking insects over the fields. These birds were probably what they call scouts, looking for suitable nesting places and checking the nesting boxes we have in the fields before the main flock arrives. We are now awaiting the barn swallows. We have opened the doors to the lower barn where they like to build their mud nests. The swallows do a great job of controlling mosquitoes and give us great pleasure in seeing them swooping around the fields. Soon it will be time to pull out the humming bird feeders and put out oranges for the Baltimore orioles.
David mans the desk at Fivesparks every couple of weeks. This week he was lucky to be there when they were hanging the new exhibit, “Birds!,” a curated art exhibit exploring and celebrating the wonder, diversity, and beauty of birds. If you’re interested in birds, and even if you’re not interested, this is an excellent exhibit.
David and Pam Durrant live and work at Micheldever Farm on East Bare Hill Road.