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The Singing Life of Birds: The Art and Science of Listening to Birdsong.


DONALD KROODSMA

Why do birds sing? Well, mostly to attract females--the crooners are usually male. The choir choir [O.Fr.]

1 A group of singers; traditionally the chorus organized to sing in a church. Usually, Roman Catholic, Anglican, and Lutheran choirs are composed of men and boys, but occasionally in these churches and customarily in other Protestant
 may be all of one sex, but the repertoire Repertoire may mean Repertory but may also refer to:
  • Repertoire (theatre), a system of theatrical production and performance scheduling
  • Repertoire Records, a German record label specialising in 1960s and 1970s pop and rock reissues
 of each member varies greatly. Furthermore, each species has its own songs, and some birds modify that music as well as pick up songs from other species. Kroodsma recounts the example of a brown thrasher thrasher: see mimic thrush.
thrasher

Any of 17 species (family Mimidae) of New World songbirds that have a downcurved bill and are noted for noisily foraging on the ground in dense thickets and for loud, varied songs.
 that in a 2-hour period sang 1,800 different songs. The author instructs readers on how to listen to a bird's song from the perspectives of both another bird and of a scientist. He explains how birds acquire their songs, what makes songs unique, and how and why the songs differ between locales. Also included is a CD with 98 tracks of birdsongs, all of which are explained in an appendix in the book. Another appendix tells readers how to record birdsongs, including details on the equipment needed. Houghton Mifflin Houghton Mifflin Company is a leading educational publisher in the United States. The company's headquarters is located in Boston's Back Bay. It publishes textbooks, instructional technology materials, assessments, reference works, and fiction and non-fiction for both young readers , 448 p., b&w illus, CD, hardcover, $28.00.
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Title Annotation:Books: A selection of new and notable books of scientific interest
Publication:Science News
Article Type:Book Review
Date:Jun 4, 2005
Words:160
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