A Sylvan Symphony
New Inspire(d) writer, Craig Thompson, a conservationist and bird aficionado based out of Onalaska, Wisconsin, gets us ready to take in the sounds of spring as birds make their voices known once again in the Driftless.
BY CRAIG THOMPSON • ILLUSTRATIONS BY LAUREN BONNEY
early april
Robins
spending the winter in southern states. Wetland denizens, male Redwings stake out a patch of cattails and utter their trademark “ee-olay” throughout the day, simultaneously flashing scarlet shoulders. Those with the sweetest song may end up having young with several females. That’s a hefty responsibility! Song Sparrows, on the other hand, are decidedly monogamous. Clad in soft browns and grays with thick chocolate streaks on a white breast, this widespread but secretive bird is most often seen singing from a sapling or shrub along a forest edge or in an overgrown field. Their rich song begins with three clear notes and descends into a
jumble of trills and buzzes guaranteed to make a heart happy. In early April, the dawn chorus is amplified by newly arrived species setting up shop. Robins, those pugnacious thrushes incessantly scanning our yards for worms, win the “early bird” award. They sound off by 4 am, well before the sun remembers to rise. Even Pavarotti would appreciate a chorus of robins singing “cheerily – cheer – cheer- cheerily” during their bleary-eyed recital. Continued on next page
Sylvan - one that frequents groves or woods iloveinspired.com \ Spring 2020
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