2 May 04

The Sound of Home

A note for the Ecotone Wiki topic on sound of place.

This morning there was a black-headed grosbeak singing in the yard from the treetops, and a Swainson’s thrush singing from lower down. Both species are migrating through the Central Valley, and won’t be here in the summertime. The song of the grosbeak is bright, cheery, and resonant. The Swainson’s thrush has a beautiful flute-like song that cascades up through the octaves.

They remind me of home. There is a little canyon below the house where I grew up, just north of Berkeley. Both species nest in the canyon, and their songs would resonate through the canyon splendidly. I’d occasionally see the grosbeaks in nearby treetops, but the thrushes would always be singing from the bottom of the canyon, far out of sight.

Posted by at 09:19 PM in Nature and Place | Link |
  1. I’ll never forget the first time I saw a grosbeak. He was rose-breasted, and had staked a claim in a small tray of seed I had left on the deck here in the mountains of North Carolina. It began to snow. He settled into the middle of the tray until it was covered with snow. When I had to leave my observation post, he was still there. Now we have several permanent families of them right here. What a gift.

    — Beth W.    3. May 2004, 02:36    Link
  2. I just discovered your blog from Ecotone. I love your posts about birds. Living in Florida, we have our own special bird population, and I often write about them under the categories of Florida Life and Florida Garden. I look forward to more visits!

    — Denny    4. May 2004, 06:09    Link

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