White-crowned Sparrows are migratory sparrows that arrive as early as April and trickle through Milwaukee through May. The Wheels of Laredo by The High Women – White-crowned Sparrow

Occasionally, they will stopover in Milwaukee on the way to their breeding grounds, but it is a rare occurrence. There are thought to be around only 8,400 individuals and there are ongoing efforts to protect their breeding grounds, and help the population grow. Piping Plovers are small shorebirds that are listed as federally endangered in the Great Lakes region. While Sufjan doesn’t specifically state which plover or blackbird he is referring to, he could be referencing the Piping Plover, and it’s even safer to assume he is singing about the Red-winged Blackbird. Mystery of Love by Sufjan Stevens – Plover & Blackbird Misidentifications happen to the best of us! I’m not surprised Vulfpeck was inspired by this iconic bird of spring migration! Also included in this song is a mysterious reference to a Rathbone’s Warbler a reference to a naming mistake John James Audubon made when he was actually observing a juvenile Yellow Warbler. Their actual song is a sweet whistled warble. The Yellow-rumped Warbler is usually the first of the warbler family to migrate back through Wisconsin each spring. So here are just a few highlights of the songs included in the playlist, with some facts about the birds that are mentioned in the song!īirds of a Feather by Vulfpeck – YELLOW-RUMPED WARBLER But all songs reference a bird family that could be found in Wisconsin. And the most part, the songs on this list name an actual species. Learn a new species’ birdsong, or… grab your headphones and listen to this curated playlist of songs about birds!įrom classic artists like The Beatles, Dolly Parton, and Willie Nelson, to indie rock favorites like The Avett Brothers, Sufjan Stevens, and The Decemberists, birds are a common symbol used to symbolize everything from hope, to resilience, to love, and to grief & sadness. Explore your neighborhood and pay attention to any nests that have appeared and carefully watch the process of a new bird family fledging. You could learn the birds that have migrated to Milwaukee and are staying for the summer like the Baltimore Oriole or Ruby-throated Hummingbird. With spring migration mainly winded down for our region, there are fun ways to keep the magic of hundreds of species passing through alive throughout the summer until fall migration begins.

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