Birdwatch: Blackbird is second-rate performer in dawn chorus

I'm not impressed by its brief, rather hesitant phrases - the song thrush is the star of the showIt is four in the morning and, to paraphrase the old country song, a new day is dawning. On cue, I'm woken by a blackbird perched on our bedroom roof, sounding as if he is singing through a megaphone.Many people would be delighted to hear this bird belting out his mellow baritone. Not me, though. No matter how hard I try, all I hear is a monotonous series of brief, rather hesitant phrases - as if he is tuning up, but never quite getting to the actual performance. Continue reading...