While hoping to hear a rare Chuck-wills-widow that showed up in New York last week, a group of birders and I heard a bird singing in the night. We had no idea what bird species that song came from. But a very knowledgeable birder among us knew what it was, the nocturnal song of the Ovenbird.
The ovenbird is a large member of the warbler family that can be found in forests through the eastern half of North America. A brownish bird with black stripes on a white belly and a orange stripe bordered by brown on the top of its head.
Turns out, this forest warbler doesn’t only sing during the day, but at night also, a song specifically for the night, different from its typical ‘teacher teacher teacher’ song.
This song is called their flight song, it starts with a series of chip calls before tumbling into a bubbling series of warbled notes with a few teacher calls thrown in.
Before they sing this flight call, they will move high up towards the top of the trees, chipping, before taking to the air to do an aerial display. Typically hovering shortly before circling over the treetops, singing the rest of this warbling song before dropping back down into the forest below.
Studies have led to the belief that this nocturnal flight and aerial display are more important for attracting a mate and courtship than their day song of ‘teacher teacher teacher’.