MORNING HAS BROKEN

DAWN CHORUS - Spring is the best time to experience a musical feast like no other, as birds announce the start of each new day

- Mike Dilger

GIVEN EVERYTHING WE'VE HAD TO contend with over the last two years, it's hardly surprising that a worrying deterioration in the has become a parallel pandemic running alongside Covid-19. But the one positive note to emerge from this wretched period has been a renewed appreciation of the natural world's astonishing ability to provide solace during troubled times. And there can be no finer example of nature's capacity to alleviate stress than that provided by the dawn chorus. This freely available therapy is not only accessible everywhere, but is approaching its annual peak now.

Although bird vocalisations can be heard throughout the year, bird song is at its biggest, brightest and most uplifting in spring. With a few prominent exceptions, it is mostly the males that sing - behaviour brought about by the production of the combative hormone testosterone in response to the increasingly longer days. This wondrous form of communication of course serves two main purposes for the proponents: that of holding a territory and attracting (and keeping) a mate.

Did you know? International Dawn Chorus Day takes place on Sunday 1st May. Find out about events and bird song ID guides on our website.