This is bird note.

Singers with a wide vocal range are thrilling to hear in concert.

Even if you don't have any big names touring nearby, you can find birds with

impressive vocal talents, like the widespread Northern Cardinal.

In seconds, Cardinals sweep through high to low notes many times,

even a virtuoso human singer would be hard-pressed to do that.

The secret is in the clever way Cardinals use their vocal organ called the serrings.

With the right side of their serrings,

start whistling a high note, smoothly falling in pitch.

Then, without a pause in the whistle,

Cardinals switch to the left side of the syringe,

which they control independently, and belt out the lower notes.

Here's the song slowed down.

Notice how seamless the whistles are. Dividing their vocal range between the two parts of the syrings helps

Cardinals sing complex songs rapidly. The result seems effortless, but the best musicians always do make it look easy.

For Bird Note, I'm Michael Stein.

This episode is sponsored in honor of Dave Goodwood by his daughter Jenna,

to thank him for sharing his love of birds.