Phoebes soon to fly home

February must be the most trying month of the year. Tantalizing 40-degree days with melting snow and gentle breezes have been quickly followed by 9-degree days with cutting winds and dangerous wind chills. That, and the looming “mud season,” send many people running for a vacation from Maine.

Take heart – spring is coming, with the increasing daylight causing delightful changes in nature’s avian cast.

Our stalwart winter residents, the chickadees, are beginning to sing their mating and territorial songs. Many people who hear this soft, whistled “feee-beee” are not aware that it is being made by the chickadee. It closely resembles the voice of the bird named after its song – the Eastern phoebe, which is a member of the family Tyrannidae, or tyrant flycatchers.

Eastern phoebes are one of our earliest migrants, usually arriving in late winter while there is still snow on the ground. It is the male that arrives first and begins singing. Its strident voice is noticeably different from the chickadee’s laid-back song.

The other difference between the two songs is clarity. The chickadee’s tone is a clear, pure whistle, which a human can imitate exactly. The phoebe’s song has a buzz to it: “frree-brreee,” with the first note a short, high burst of sound. The second note is slightly longer and sometimes begins or ends with a stutter.

Male phoebes will generally sing throughout the day until they find mates and build their nests; after that, they will sing exclusively just before dawn. Unmated males will continue singing throughout the day.

Phoebes are easy to observe because they will often build their nests on the eaves of houses or barns. A friend of mine had a pair nesting on the rafters of her woodshed last summer.

Phoebes construct their nests using mud, grasses, and moss, choosing to do their building during the early morning hours.

After raising a brood in early spring, phoebes will mate again and raise a second brood in June.

Chris Corio is a volunteer for Fields Pond Nature Center. She can be reached at fieldspond@juno.com