E30. That wall of birdsong outside your window at sunrise has a name, a structure, and a surprising amount of drama. This week Scott talks with Dr. Dan Mennill, a professor at the University of Windsor who wires whole forests with microphones to eavesdrop on the entire neighborhood at once, about what the dawn chorus is actually for, and what it means when it starts to thin out.

In this episode:

Why dawn, why so loud, and who gets to sing first (hint: it's not about who's the best singer)
What 16 microphones and kilometers of cable revealed about birds negotiating in real time
What happened when one field site went quiet, and why that quiet is louder than it sounds

Listen now, then tell us what your morning chorus sounds like.

All audio, video, and images in this episode are either original to Okay, But... Birds (© Okay Media, LLC) or used under license/permission from the respective rights holders. Bird media from the Macaulay Library is used courtesy of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology as follows:

Soundscape contributed by Wil Hershberger, ML516838
Black-throated Green Warbler contributed by Wil Hershberger, ML79475
American Redstart contributed by Wil Hershberger, ML100804
Tufted Titmouse contributed by Wil Hershberger, ML100712
Northern Cardinal contributed by Wil Hershberger, ML191165
Northern Flicker contributed by William V. Ward, ML3
Black-capped Chickadee contributed by Bob McGuire, ML197114
American Robin contributed by Bob McGuire, ML206448
Alder Flycatcher contributed by Mike Andersen, ML132247
Savannah Sparrow contributed by Gerritt Vyn, ML137843
Chipping Sparrow contributed by Wil Hershberger, ML534466
White-crowned Sparrow contributed by Bob McGuire, ML207181
Red-tailed Hawk contributed by David McCartt, ML229578