BBC Wildlife - UK (2020-05)

WILDMONTH

With spring very much in the air, May nds

Britishwildlifebursting into song.

By Ben Hoare

David Chapman

Whenthehumanworldis in

turmoil,wecanalltakecomfortin

thebeyond-humanone.Birdsong

is proventogiveusa naturalhigh,

andonesonginparticularhasbeen

writtenaboutbyalmosteverynature

writer:thatofthemalenightingale.

Shyanddowdyhemaybe,but

whenheopensthatbeak,hehasthe

powerandclarityofanoperasinger,

andtheimprovisationandrangeof

a jazzdiva.

Thoughlegendaryforsinging

onMaynights,thisrelativeof

therobinalsoperformsinearly

morningandatdusk.Thefact

thatit skulksintheshadowsonly

addstothesenseofoccasion.New

undergrowthandscrubarewhat

thespeciesneeds,ideallylessthan

10 yearsold.Sadly,heavybrowsing

bydeeranda declineintraditional

woodlandmanagementhavesent

numbersintofreefall.There’salso

evidencefromSpainthat,dueto

drought,somenightingalesthere

areevolvingshorterwings,leading

tofewersurvivingthemigration

toandfromAfrica.It’snotyet

knownif thisaffectstheUK

population.ButasLukeMassey

putsit inRedSixtySeven, a book

celebratingour 67 mostvulnerable

birds,“Willwereallyletthisbethe

lastsongofthenightingale?”

FINDOUT MORE

Moreabout this special bird:

nightingalenights.org.uk

1 | NIGHTINGALE

Bursting into song

NATURAL

HISTORIES

Brett Westwood on

nightingales and culture.

ONLINE