Night Singer

Waking up at dawn to the singing of the Northern Mockingbird is a regular event in South Carolina, but never have I had one serenade me after dark until last week at Sullivan's Island when the singing would begin about 11:30 and last most of the night. He didn't bother me at all and even though I am a light sleeper, I went right to sleep after a short listening session and would only notice him briefly when I would wake in the night. I think the morning singing is more annoying to me because it serves as sort of an alarm clock. " It's daylight and we're singing so you had better get your lazy self up." There was something soothing about this night singing...sort of like a lullaby. It is something I have never heard before so I had to do a little research on night singers. I knew Mockingbirds were supposed to be very intelligent and remembered a study where a person was made to prowl around a Mockingbird nest and then later, the bird could remember and pick that prowler out of a large crowd of people to harass. I figured there must be a good reason for night singing.

All adult make male mockingbirds sing during the day, but only a bachelor will sing at night. If you are a single female Mockingbird and you hear singing at night, there's no mistaking that the message is for you. So it was a love song I heard. As soon as he finds a mate, the singing will stop. I would think he should have already begun nesting by April, so he must have lost his original mate, or maybe he's starting nest two. I hope there is an eligible bachelorette for him on the island. The sound repertoire of this bird is amazing and the reason is, unlike most birds, who learn all the songs they will sing in the first year of life, the Mockingbird builds his song catalogue throughout his life. They will imitate most anything: other birds, car alarms, and in night singer's case, even crickets and frogs.

Judging from the other Internet sites, many people don't find the night singers to be nearly so pleasant. There are numerous posts on how to get rid of them and John van der Linden, author of Eastern Birding Central FAQ says 25 to 50 percent of his e-mail questions are how to deal with annoying Mockingbirds. I suspect it could be their own irritation that keeps people awake more than the birds. Thankfully, Mockingbirds, like all US migratory birds, are protected by Federal law. They are also protected by "Atticus' law"who told us in Harper Lee's To Kill A Mockingbird, that "it is a sin to kill a Mockingbird because they don't do anything except sing their hearts out for us." Keep on singing night singer and I hope you find a mate soon.

Pretty Mockingbird eggs...they remind me of the Easter candy, Malted Speckled Eggs.