Explore these pages and click on the arrows to hear a selection of songs and calls, mostly recorded on a mobile phone!
If you have a recording you’d like identified, send it to me by e-mail to enquiries@learnbirdsongs.co.uk and I’ll let you know what I think it is. Also, I’d be pleased to receive recordings that you would be happy to donate to help other people learn. There are lots of gaps and some of the recordings are not that good; hopefully we can improve the collection over time.
| Black redstart | |
|---|---|
| Call | |
| These weet-tack-tack calls are similar to the stonechat and common redstart | |
| Song | |
| The song is a much more familiar sound in Europe | |
| Song | |
| In the UK you could hear one at a power station, ruined castle or in this case, a hospital – thank you Matthew Renshaw! | |
| Blackbird | |
| Song | |
| Often described as mellow, it’s not repetitive like the song thrush | |
| Song | |
| It’s relaxed and unhurried | |
| Alarm | |
| This is the ‘chinking’ alarm call – maybe there is an owl or cat nearby | |
| Alarm | |
| This is the ‘rattling’ alarm call | |
| Blackcap | |
| Song | |
| Typically powerful, fluty song | |
| Song | |
| This recording also has some of the harsh ‘tack’ alarm calls near the beginning | |
| Black-headed Gull | |
| Call | |
| Typical calls of this widespread species | |
| Calls | |
| A more vocal bird, perhaps during the breeding season | |
| Blue tit | |
| Song | |
| Typical song of the male | |
| Song | |
| Another variant but still easily recognisable as blue tit | |
| Call | |
| Commonly heard calls in UK gardens and woodland | |
| Brent goose | |
| Call | |
| Here you can hear individual birds ‘growling’ while bathing | |
| Call | |
| Several birds calling together make a wonderful sound in winter | |
| Brambling | |
| Call | |
| This call is difficult to pick out, but quite distinctive | |
| Song | |
| You may hear this plain, repetitive song in April before they fly to Scandinavia to breed | |
| Bullfinch | |
| Call | |
| You could probably whistle these soft notes yourself | |
| Buzzard | |
| Call | |
| Typical mewing of a bird flying overhead | |
| Call | |
| This one has a distinctive two-tone call | |
| Call | |
| And this one, probably a young bird, is more shrill | |
| Canada goose | |
| Call | |
| The loud, honking calls are more musical than those of the greylag goose | |
| Call | |
| These are much quieter conversational calls | |
| Carrion crow | |
| Call | |
| Crows usually repeat their calls two, three or more times | |
| Call | |
| At close range you may hear various croaks and other notes, especially if several birds are together | |
| Cetti’s warbler | |
| Song | |
| It’s a short, but explosive song | |
| Chaffinch | |
| Song | |
| Imagine a bowler in a cricket match running up to the crease, and bowling the ball | |
| Song | |
| Songs vary between individual birds but the rhythm is still the same | |
| Call | |
| The standard ‘pink’ call – easily confused with a great tit | |
| Calls | |
| Chris Piper found this bird combining two different notes in a repetitive ditty | |
| Call | |
| Chaffinches have a wide range of notes that they repeat for for several minutes at a time – we call this the ‘rain-call’ | |
| Call | |
| Another note repeated continuously, recorded by Mandy Cowlishaw | |
| Chiffchaff | |
| Song | |
| The standard rhythmical chiff, chiff, chiff… | |
| Song | |
| This bird has some double notes | |
| Song | |
| This song includes some some quieter, more hesitant notes | |
| Call | |
| This confident call is an alarm call – and could be described as ‘almost monosyllabic’ | |
| Calls | |
| Here you can hear both recently fledged young and the alarm notes of an adult | |
| Coal tit | |
| Call | |
| These high-pitched calls are typical of the coal tit (note the singing great tit in the background) | |
| Call | |
| A different call, but still the right ‘tone of voice’ for a Coal Tit | |
| Song | |
| Although only a half-hearted attempt, this song is much higher pitched than the great tit | |
| Song | |
| This two-note song sounds a bit like a great tit but is higher pitched | |
| Song | |
| Here’s a five-note variation | |
| Collared dove | |
| Song | |
| Collared doves typically have a three-note song | |
| Common sandpiper | |
| Song | |
| This constant trilling could be heard over the sound of a Scottish river as the displaying bird flew round and round in circles | |
| Coot | |
| Calls | |
| These loud, single notes are typical of the coot | |
| Corn bunting | |
| Song | |
| Often described as a bunch of jangling keys | |
| Crossbill | |
| Song | |
| A complex song which incorporates the chupping call notes | |
| Call | |
| These confident ‘chup, chup, chup’ calls made either from a perch or in flight can be heard above other woodland noises | |
| Dartford warbler | |
| Call | |
| A harsh, angry call | |
| Dunnock | |
| Song | |
| Tweedly, tweedly, tweedly? | |
| Song | |
| Different, but still: tweedly, tweedly, tweedly? | |
| Firecrest | |
| Song | |
| High pitched, accelerating and rising in pitch | |
| Song | |
| A different (slower) bird, but still the same basic format | |
| Garden warbler | |
| Song | |
| An attractive and full song with relatively short breaks between phrases | |
| Song | |
| Note the lack of powerful fluty notes typical of the blackcap | |
| Call | |
| These are the harsh alarm notes | |
| Goldcrest | |
| Song | |
| High pitched, jerky and ending with a slight flourish | |
| Call | |
| As high pitched as the song but without the structure and flourish | |
| Goldfinch | |
| Song | |
| An attractive twittering mixture of hurried notes | |
| Great spotted woodpecker | |
| Call | |
| The sharp ‘pick’ carries well through the woodland canopy | |
| Drumming | |
| Drumming is short-lived but often powerful, increasing slightly in speed, but quickly fading in volume | |
| Drumming | |
| The drum roll is so short you can almost count the number of pecks – maybe 8-15 of them | |
| Alarm and calls | |
| This recording by Paul Walton starts with the alarm call. Short ‘kick’ calls follow and lastly two drum rolls | |
| Nestling calls | |
| The young often call incessantly from their hole just before fledging | |
| Nestling calls | |
| These young birds sound hungry! | |
| Great tit | |
| Song | |
| A typical, lively two-note ditty | |
| Song | |
| Two notes again, but to a different rhythm | |
| Song | |
| Yet another two-note song | |
| Song | |
| A more varied song, but still lively and repetitive | |
| Green woodpecker | |
| Call | |
| Loud notes with a hint of the laughing quality so characteristic of the territorial song | |
| Greenfinch | |
| Song | |
| A bold series of trills at different pitch | |
| Call | |
| This bird sat perched making this whining call for ages | |
| Hawfinch | |
| Call | |
| A poor recording, but most of the ‘seeping’ and ticking notes are typical hawfinch calls | |
| Herring gull | |
| Calls | |
| These are adult birds in full territorial mode | |
| Call | |
| These are the begging calls of a young bird | |
| Hobby | |
| Song | |
| This strident call is usually given by an adult around the time the young leave the nest | |
| House sparrow | |
| Call | |
| Probably the closest a male house sparrow gets to a song! | |
| Jackdaw | |
| Calls | |
| These are adult birds – do they say ‘jack’ (for jackdaw)? | |
| Call | |
| Young birds have a slightly different call, but still say ‘jack’ | |
| Jay | |
| Call | |
| The typical angry, tearing, screeching sound | |
| Lapwing | |
| Song | |
| These wonderful notes are given in a swooping display flight over the nesting ground | |
| Lesser redpoll | |
| Call | |
| These alternating buzzing and trilling notes are usually given in flight | |
| Lesser spotted woodpecker | |
| Call | |
| This is the ‘pee, pee, pee’ call. It can be quite loud and piercing. | |
| Drumming | |
| Fast and sustained (not the shorter, slower and quickly fading version that the great spotted gives) | |
| Drumming | |
| A different pitch created by a different branch but still the typical lesser spotted drum roll | |
| Drumming | |
| Yet another location, but the same long, even drums and short intervals between them. There is a second bird replying in the background, which could be a female or a rival male. | |
| Drumming | |
| Here there are five drum rolls among the other bird species | |
| Drumming | |
| There are 37 pecks here – far more than in a great spotted woodpecker’s drumming. Thanks to Matthew Renshaw for the recording. | |
| Female drumming | |
| This rather quiet recording is of a female | |
| Drumming | |
| Here a lesser spotted woodpecker is followed by a great spotted woodpecker | |
| Nestling calls | |
| In late May and early June listen for the begging calls of young birds before they fly | |
| Lesser whitethroat | |
| Song | |
| Each phrase ends in a characteristic rattle on one note. Often the introductory warble is missing. | |
| Linnet | |
| Calls | |
| Not the best of recordings but the cheerful chirps and twitters are characteristic | |
| Call | |
| Single, double or multiple chirps, often uttered in flight | |
| Little grebe | |
| Song | |
| This far-carrying whinnying call passes for a territorial ‘song’ | |
| Marsh tit | |
| Call | |
| Marsh tit calls are often just two short notes, the second being a clipped ‘chu’; this bird adds some additional notes at the end | |
| Mute swan | |
| Wing-noise | |
| Of the three swans that regularly occur in the UK, only the mute makes this noise in flight | |
| Nightingale | |
| Song | |
| A rich variety and ever-changing series of phrases, usually made from dense undergrowth | |
| Nightjar | |
| Song | |
| This bird churred for a full three minutes – and ended with this characteristic wing-clapping | |
| Raven | |
| Call | |
| Characteristic gruff croaks | |
| Redstart | |
| Song | |
| Is this like a cross between a chaffinch and a robin? Better suggestions welcome! | |
| Call | |
| A double ‘weet-tack’, with variants | |
| Reed bunting | |
| Song | |
| Simple, faltering counting? | |
| Reed warbler | |
| Song | |
| A methodical, repetitive, constant series of notes that can continue for a long time – difficult to get a word in edge-ways | |
| Song | |
| This one has more variety but still has the basic reed warbler tone of voice | |
| Robin | |
| Song | |
| The typical contented, relaxed song | |
| Rook | |
| Call | |
| Each ‘caw’ is an individual note, even if it’s repeated | |
| Sand martin | |
| Call | |
| Unremarkable, dry buzzing notes, here uttered in flight | |
| Siskin | |
| Song | |
| Hurried, broken-glass twittering and in this case with a good long wheeze! | |
| Song | |
| Another bird – no wheeze here | |
| Call | |
| Typically whining notes | |
| Skylark | |
| Song | |
| A continuous torrent of notes from a song flight, a perch or in this case the ground! | |
| Song thrush | |
| Song | |
| A competent songster, that clearly repeats notes within each phrase | |
| Sparrowhawk | |
| Call | |
| This mewing in usually associated with a recently fledged family | |
| Spotted flycatcher | |
| Call | |
| These little kisses are easy to miss | |
| Starling | |
| Song | |
| A very varied song, sometimes with mimicry – some good whines here | |
| Song | |
| … and some nice cracking notes | |
| Song | |
| … plus various whistles! | |
| Tawny owl | |
| Song | |
| The typical hooting sound made either to attract a mate or to mark out the territory. Thanks to Julian Clegg and BBC Radio Solent for this recording | |
| Call | |
| These are the squeaky calls of young birds begging for food | |
| Teal | |
| Call | |
| The male has a distinctive sonar-like piping | |
| Call | |
| The female’s call is like a small, high-pitched mallard | |
| Tree pipit | |
| Song | |
| The ‘seeya seeya seeya’ notes carry a long way – here interrupted by a blue tit! | |
| Song | |
| A slightly longer recording. The tree pipit sings either from a tree or in flight, rising up from, and then down to, a tree | |
| Treecreeper | |
| Call | |
| Thin, high-pitched calls: ‘treee – treee -treee’? | |
| Turtle dove | |
| Song | |
| We go to Martin Down to find the purring of the turtle dove | |
| Whitethroat | |
| Song | |
| Typically short and scratchy | |
| Song | |
| Longer phrases like this are usually given in a short song flight above scrub | |
| Willow warbler | |
| Song | |
| Does this bird sings its name: ‘willow willow willow’? | |
| Wood pigeon | |
| Song | |
| Although this bird is a bit faltering, the song is usually a 5-note cooing rhythm: take two coos Taffy, take two coos Taffy, take two coos Taffy, take | |
| Wood warbler | |
| Song | |
| The main song is a trill, said to be like a spinning coin coming to rest | |
| Song | |
| This very different song is a series of ‘tew’ notes | |
| Call | |
| The call is reminiscent of the second song, but each call is a separate note | |
| Wren | |
| Song | |
| A powerful and competent delivery of a well-practised series of trills and churrs | |
| Yellowhammer | |
| Calls and song | |
| This recording combines the short calls (perched) with the traditional ‘little bit of bread and no cheese’ song, ending with the flight call | |