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Birdsong for the Curious Naturalist: Your Guide to Listening
Birdsong made easy to understand, lavishly illustrated with color photos, and accompanied by more than 700 online recordings
From a leading expert, Birdsong for the Curious Naturalist is a basic, how-to guide that teaches anyone—from beginner to advanced birder—how to listen. In understandable and appealing language, Kroodsma explains why and how birds sing, what various calls mean, and what to listen for from the birds around us. The descriptions are accompanied by color photos of the birds, as well as QR codes that link to an online collection of more than 700 recordings. With these resources, readers are prepared to recognize bird sounds and the birds that make them. Kroodsma encourages readers to find the joy of birdsong and curiosity—to observe, listen intently, be curious, ask questions, and realize that many unanswered questions about birdsong don’t have to rely on scientists for answers but can be answered by any curious naturalist.
From a leading expert, Birdsong for the Curious Naturalist is a basic, how-to guide that teaches anyone—from beginner to advanced birder—how to listen. In understandable and appealing language, Kroodsma explains why and how birds sing, what various calls mean, and what to listen for from the birds around us. The descriptions are accompanied by color photos of the birds, as well as QR codes that link to an online collection of more than 700 recordings. With these resources, readers are prepared to recognize bird sounds and the birds that make them. Kroodsma encourages readers to find the joy of birdsong and curiosity—to observe, listen intently, be curious, ask questions, and realize that many unanswered questions about birdsong don’t have to rely on scientists for answers but can be answered by any curious naturalist.
208 pages, Hardcover
First published March 10, 2020
37 people are currently reading
117 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
February 9, 2023
This is a great book for those who want to explore or understand bird songs. I have been listening and reading a section every morning for about half an hour and have thoroughly enjoyed it. Unfortunately, I won't remember the songs, but i have a better understanding of how to listen, interpret, and enjoy. (Kroodsma it's way beyond me in knowledge, patience, and sound memory.)
Great pictures and clear writing, but it's not a quick read -- you need to listen more than read.
I made lots of notes in my book and will continue to reference it as i encounter more songs and work on memorization.
Great pictures and clear writing, but it's not a quick read -- you need to listen more than read.
I made lots of notes in my book and will continue to reference it as i encounter more songs and work on memorization.
October 13, 2020
As advanced birders see details on birds that are often invisible to beginners, Donald Kroodsma hears aspects of birdsong inaudible to most of us.
Although this book can certainly be used for IDing, if you're trying to find a simple book to identify birds by their song, you'll probably want to check your library for something specialized for your general area.
Birdsong for the Curious Naturalist goes much further and guides you not just to hear but to deeply listen to birds. Mr. Kroodsma guides you through the concepts and tools to become engaged and engrossed with the songs and calls of the birds of North America. Despite the obviously specialized language needed, he keeps the book conversational and entirely accessible to even the newest beginner.
Additionally, the accompanying website is a vital and remarkable source of information and recordings that are essential in understanding the text (don't skip them!).
Mr. Kroodsma has done something quite impressive with this book -- despite our heavily visually-biased culture, you might just come away agreeing with him that it's a shame some people are happy to tick a bird off their list after only seeing it.
Although this book can certainly be used for IDing, if you're trying to find a simple book to identify birds by their song, you'll probably want to check your library for something specialized for your general area.
Birdsong for the Curious Naturalist goes much further and guides you not just to hear but to deeply listen to birds. Mr. Kroodsma guides you through the concepts and tools to become engaged and engrossed with the songs and calls of the birds of North America. Despite the obviously specialized language needed, he keeps the book conversational and entirely accessible to even the newest beginner.
Additionally, the accompanying website is a vital and remarkable source of information and recordings that are essential in understanding the text (don't skip them!).
Mr. Kroodsma has done something quite impressive with this book -- despite our heavily visually-biased culture, you might just come away agreeing with him that it's a shame some people are happy to tick a bird off their list after only seeing it.
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June 4, 2022Great book for learning more about birds and their songs. The ebook comes with QR codes for each bird, which is easy to link to recordings so you can listen as you read, available at www.birdsongforthecurious.com. I gained an appreciation for recognizing the sounds of my Ohio mornings growing up and now Massachusetts birds in my neighborhood - including the Black-Capped Chickadee, American Robin, Red-Winged Blackbird, Northern Cardinal, Mourning Dove, Wild Turkey, Lark Sparrow, American Crow, Carolina Wren, Western Gull, and Blue Jay. Kroodsma explores many aspects of birdsong, using a few examples for each concept - showing how birds learn their songs, what types of songs they sing, how they sing, and what musical elements they have. Recommended for anyone wanting to recognize the sounds of American birds.
“We know a bird when we see one: It has feathers, flies, and maybe sings.”
“We all have our favorites, and don’t need to justify them. No objectivity is needed. Usually, the bird I am near now is my favorite… In your own growing list of favored musicians, maybe each is associated with some special time and place in your life, and that’s all it takes.”
“The pre-sunrise chorus of birdsong during the breeding season is intense, prolonged, and exhilarating… One possibility is that birds sing most then because they have just awakened and each male wants to inform everyone that he is still alive.”
“After a long winter (the “Big Silence”), our spirits are renewed by the lengthening days and the surge of birdsong in spring. Most often it is the male who rises to the treetops to voice something relatively long and loud and complex, as if he is eager to broadcast his important message far and wide. We hear the beauty and music in his efforts and say he is “singing.””
“Birdsong inspires great music, as in Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, where the return of spring birds and their songs is celebrated by the solo violinist… Birdsong transcribed into human music can be traced back to the thirteenth century, and by the early 1400s one can find in European compositions the songs of skylarks, song thrushes, and nightingales.”
“Improvising musicians extemporaneously create new pieces, often responding to other musicians with techniques or emotions that in the moment feel appropriate, thus inventing new and unique melodies or rhythms or harmonies. It is entirely possible that some birds do exactly that.”
“The consensus is that birds sing to defend a territory and attract a mate…. The song is for her” is the best educated guess as to why male birds sing so much. A territorial bachelor seeking a mate will sing all day long. Once paired, he sings far less, often then restricting his singing to an intense effort during the dawn chorus.”
“Perhaps he improvises his songs because sedge wrens in North America are somewhat nomadic, never reliably breeding in the same place from year to year, so there is no incentive for a male to invest a lot of energy in the precise imitation of males at one location.”
“The categories of “song” and “call” are only our best human attempt to place bird sounds into two bins that make sense to us.”
“Some birds have stored in their brains just one song, others hundreds or even thousands. Why some birds need so many songs while others are content with so few is yet another mystery of birdsong.”
— Birdsong For The Curious Naturalist: Your Guide to Listening by Donald Kroodsma
https://a.co/ivk2DaS
“We know a bird when we see one: It has feathers, flies, and maybe sings.”
“We all have our favorites, and don’t need to justify them. No objectivity is needed. Usually, the bird I am near now is my favorite… In your own growing list of favored musicians, maybe each is associated with some special time and place in your life, and that’s all it takes.”
“The pre-sunrise chorus of birdsong during the breeding season is intense, prolonged, and exhilarating… One possibility is that birds sing most then because they have just awakened and each male wants to inform everyone that he is still alive.”
“After a long winter (the “Big Silence”), our spirits are renewed by the lengthening days and the surge of birdsong in spring. Most often it is the male who rises to the treetops to voice something relatively long and loud and complex, as if he is eager to broadcast his important message far and wide. We hear the beauty and music in his efforts and say he is “singing.””
“Birdsong inspires great music, as in Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, where the return of spring birds and their songs is celebrated by the solo violinist… Birdsong transcribed into human music can be traced back to the thirteenth century, and by the early 1400s one can find in European compositions the songs of skylarks, song thrushes, and nightingales.”
“Improvising musicians extemporaneously create new pieces, often responding to other musicians with techniques or emotions that in the moment feel appropriate, thus inventing new and unique melodies or rhythms or harmonies. It is entirely possible that some birds do exactly that.”
“The consensus is that birds sing to defend a territory and attract a mate…. The song is for her” is the best educated guess as to why male birds sing so much. A territorial bachelor seeking a mate will sing all day long. Once paired, he sings far less, often then restricting his singing to an intense effort during the dawn chorus.”
“Perhaps he improvises his songs because sedge wrens in North America are somewhat nomadic, never reliably breeding in the same place from year to year, so there is no incentive for a male to invest a lot of energy in the precise imitation of males at one location.”
“The categories of “song” and “call” are only our best human attempt to place bird sounds into two bins that make sense to us.”
“Some birds have stored in their brains just one song, others hundreds or even thousands. Why some birds need so many songs while others are content with so few is yet another mystery of birdsong.”
— Birdsong For The Curious Naturalist: Your Guide to Listening by Donald Kroodsma
https://a.co/ivk2DaS
April 23, 2022
I’ve been birding (bird watching and listening) for a few decades. Birdsong for the Curious Naturalist: Your Guide to Listening by Donald Kroodsma caught my eye, but I was worried it might be too basic. I shouldn’t have worried! The text is clearly written, accompanied by beautiful photographs and online audio tracks. I learned a lot about bird behavior and started noticing things about bird song that I hadn’t previously noticed. If you are interested in birdsong and want to take it to the next level, this is the perfect book!
December 9, 2020
Great resource for those wanting more depth in their birding experience.
February 22, 2024
This is the perfect book for anyone who is learning about birds. Birdsong expert Donald Kroodsma includes QR codes for the songs of each bird he includes in the book.
What I learned:
Not all songbirds sing, and not all singing birds are songbirds.
The long winter is called the “Big Silence.”
It is usually the male who starts singing in spring.
Songs are distinguished from calls.
Some birds sing only one song while others sing many.
Some birds are born knowing a song, and others mimic others.
What I learned:
Not all songbirds sing, and not all singing birds are songbirds.
The long winter is called the “Big Silence.”
It is usually the male who starts singing in spring.
Songs are distinguished from calls.
Some birds sing only one song while others sing many.
Some birds are born knowing a song, and others mimic others.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews