This is bird note.

After dark, when most birds are asleep,

a few break into song, like this Whippervill.

The Whippervill is a true nightbird,

feeding and mating and nesting in the dark.

But a few songbirds that are active during the day also sing at night.

In North America, for about a week each spring,

the yellow-breasted chat sings in the darkness.

Chats are mainly active during the day,

but they migrate at night.

So when most other birds are silent,

the chat has the sound stage largely to itself.

That means a singing male has better odds of catching the ear

of a mate.

Chats also sing shorter and lower-pitched songs at night

with longer gaps between them.

It's a pattern that carries well over long distances.

Once all the females have arrived for the season,

the male chats go quiet at night,

but not the Whippervill.

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