Signals from Songbirds & Abstract Soundscapes
- Cultivate
- Feb 11, 2020
- 8 min read
Updated: Apr 25, 2024
February 11, 2020 at Rutledge Cab. Co, Charleston, SC.
Presented by:
Dr. Melissa Hughes, Professor of Ornithology, Animal Behavior, and Evolution at the College of Charleston, Department of Biology
Marielena Martinez, MFA, local artist and STEAM educator with Cultivate SciArt, the Gibbes Museum of Art, and Engaging Creative Minds
Some highlights from this evening of science, art and community in action.
Rise early and you are rewarded with the melodies of songbirds. But why do they sing? Animal behaviorist and evolutionary biologist Dr. Melissa Hughes shared highlights from her research into the sounds of songbirds. What do these signals mean? How are they used? How do they vary? We explored the diversity of bird songs to bring a new appreciation to our Carolina morning soundscapes. Marielena Martinez then showed us how to turn these soundscapes into abstract art, inspired by some of the work of Joan Miro. Jenn Tyrell of Audubon South Carolina was also on hand to advise participants on native plantings and habitat to appreciate more birds in their own backyards, with native perennial seeds to take home.
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Let's Dig into the Science:
Interpreting the “Alien” Language of Songbirds
Dr. Melissa Hughes began the evening’s science talk with one question, “Who likes SciFi?” Hughes explained that SciFi is enjoyed because of the alternate realities and different worlds that are brought to life for us to enjoy. “Birds are like that,” she stated. With their own drama and language, birds are fascinating because of the different world they seem to live in. Birds can fly, they live in every environment imagined, and they have their own language -- They seem pretty “alien” to me! But surprisingly, when you delve deep into the meaning behind their songs, you will find that they are not too different from the things we talk about. And figuring out what birds are singing helps us understand their lives.
We humans are visual animals, so in order to understand songbirds, we need to learn how to see what we hear. Birds hear faster than humans do, meaning they can hear things that are happening more quickly [1]. So to study birdsong, scientists use sonograms - pictures of sounds that are similar to musical notation showing changes in sound frequency and pitch over time (and not to be confused with the images of in utero babies created by bouncing high-frequency sound off internal structures). Bird researchers also rely on slowing down the sound recordings to better compare the patterns. You can explore bird songs and their sonograms yourself by visiting xeno-canto.org, where you will find recordings of birds from all over the world.
"By recording songbirds and studying their songs, the bird drama and the similarities they have to human lives can be revealed." - Dr. Melissa Hughes
Using Sonograms to Understand Animal Communication
Hughes went on to explain her research on populations of songbirds (Melospiza melodia) in Pennsylvania. In order to study song sparrows, there are a few basic steps that she takes: capturing, tagging, recording, and monitoring each bird of study. Through her research, she has been able to identify how songs are used for territory protection [2,3], attracting females [4], and even attitudes such as detecting aggression [5]. So those sounds you hear on a sunny morning could be a bird asking another bird out on a date, young birds learning how to sing from their parents, or an adult bird yelling to a trespassing bird “get off my property!”
Where do they learn these songs? Songbirds acquire their songs within their first year [6]. The songs they learn are reflective of what they hear growing up, from their parents, neighboring birds, or for some a more unique source. A member in the audience speculated what happens to the “odd bird out?” According to Hughes, some evidence shows that they are not able to hold their territory for long, and are not popular with females. “If they don’t sound local, they don’t stick around for long,” she explained. The songs that birds learn may also be indicative of the kind of childhood they had during their first year. Healthier, young birds tend to do better at learning to sing [7] and may have a better chance of holding their territory and starting a family. Some young birds have even been observed taking over adult territories!
"I have told more than one person about the stud song sparrow with 10 songs and the loser with 6. AND that the ladies love a local man. Everyone is fascinated." - Jennifer Jolly Clair
Learn More About "BOOF, the bird who did everything wrong"
Dig into the Art:
Drawing Inspiration from Joan Miro
Marielena Martinez, MFA, tied the evening together with an exploration of the Spanish artist Joan Miro and his avant-garde abstract art. Miro took inspiration from other great artists before him, such as Picasso, Van Gogh, and Cezanne. Yet his art was influenced by his homeland, in the northeast of Spain, Catalonia, and the political tension behind the Spanish Civil War. He was also a sculptor which may have influenced his use of shapes. As his art evolved he contributed to and inspired some of the great art movements of the 1900’s including surrealism, fauvism, and cubism. Miro’s late surrealist methods, for which he is most well known, were highly influenced by dream imagery and psychic automatism, allowing the unconscious mind to dictate the artwork.
"I try to apply colors like words that shape poems, like notes that shape music.” - Joan Miro
Turning Sounds into Symbols to Create Abstract Art
Martinez guided participants through a process of turning sounds into a series of symbols to capture the imagery elicited by a soundscape. Using an audio clip selected from one of Hughes’ Carolina morning soundscapes, the audience was asked to “draw the shapes that you hear” in the bird song. The shapes were unique to each person’s interpretation of the sounds, with a cheatsheet of Miro symbols nearby to aid in the process. By tuning into the songbird sounds and channeling the emotions it stirred, participants created beautiful abstract artwork which showed their own interpretations to the "song." Using markers, crayons, pens, colored pencils, and watercolors each person uniquely transformed sound into visual experiences.
Miro and songbird inspired art created by Cultivate SciArt participants.
Learn More About Surrealist Automatism
"The ‘true functioning of thought’ was in other words a way how our minds work, how we make different associations and how our subconscious shapes us."
Thank you to our Community Partners!
Dr. Melissa Hughes with the College of Charleston Biology Department,
Jennifer Tyrrell with Audubon South Carolina,
and the PINK HOUSE Neighborhood Resource Center
As people were wrapping up their "abstract soundscapes," Jennifer Tyrrell of Audubon South Carolina shared helpful tips on native plants for backyard bird watching and to foster urban wildlife sanctuaries. Everyone was excited to take home native perennial seeds to plant for birds. And we found out Audubon also has a link to search for native plants for birds by zip code! I was excited to see that a pretty "weed" I've been letting grow, American Beauty-Berry, was a bird favorite. Find out what "garden volunteers" you should let live.
Mid-stream of Tyrrell's tips to better advocate for birds, the room enjoyed a joyful break to celebrate Kabuzz's 6th birthday. He and his friends from The Pink House, a West Ashley neighborhood resource center, are another awesome group of community partners excited to cultivate science and art in their neighborhoods. We love having them join us, especially when they bring birthday cake to share with everyone!
To wrap the evening up, the audience enjoyed hearing about Audubon's policy initiatives to advocate for clean energy alternatives and climate change action in effort to curb the leading causes of the ~30% decline in North American bird populations since 1970. The evening closed with hugs, smiles, pictures of everyone's art and inspiration to pass along the new knowledge gained.
Do-It-Yourself
How to Make Songbird Soundscapes into Abstract Art
1. Choose a birdsong that you want to turn into visual art. You can find recordings by clicking on the image link to the right OR exploring xeno-canto.org OR use the Carolina morning birds clip we selected for the event. Download here the powerpoint slide in order to play the looped audio on your computer (note audio does not work directly in google slides).
2. Grab a piece of scrap paper and listen carefully to the birdsong, translating the sounds you hear into symbols. You can design your own or draw inspiration from some of the shapes used by Joan Miro. Think about the different pitches and rhythm that you hear and pattern your symbols to convey those sounds.
3. Next you will transfer your drawing to a new piece of paper and add colors to capture the emotion and imagery of the bird(s).
Suggested materials include:
-permanent markers
-crayons
-watercolors
-watercolor or other thick paper
Draw the symbols in marker or crayon. Be sure to use thick lines and well colored in shapes to make them pop. You can then paint watercolors over the symbols and they will show through. If you do not have watercolors, you could use light rubbings of your crayons or colored pencils to add background color to add visual impact to your art. And be sure to have fun and express yourself and the unique ways you envision the world and it's beautiful creatures!
Watch a live step-by-step guide to make your own songbird soundscapes!
Pro-Tip: Mat your final picture by mounting it on a black or colored piece of paper that gives it a one to two inch border and makes your image stand out.) And share photos of your art with us!
On our logbook, email, Facebook or Instagram @CultivateSciArt using #CultivateScienceArt
** Get Involved in Birding Citizen Science! **
April is Citizen Science Month, but it is also a year round activity...
-> Here are some Citizen science challenges and other actions to help birds.
-> More info from Cornell Ornithology Lab on citizen science projects, FAQ and blogs.
-> Learn more about eBird - Crowdsourcing Bird Data.
New to the world of birding? Here's a great guide for bird watching and identification!
"What's This Bird?" is a Facebook group where you can post, get help with bird identification and hear from other bird lovers.
Check out more event pictures, art & reflections in our Google photo album or on Facebook to tag, comment, like and share...
Do you have a favorite citizen science app or have a question? Don't forget you can join our blog community and share it here. We are excited to help answer your questions. And if we don't know the answer, we will help find it out!
**** Join Our Cultivate SciArt Community...****
Because it takes a village to grow and make change!
Sign-up to be a logbook member (at the top, right corner of this page) to share your thoughts, knowledge and questions. Be sure to follow the log posts on topics you like! SciArt community members may also request copies of presentation slides, add photos and much more!
Contributors: Elena Mpougas, Kea Payton, Bobbie Lyon
References
[1] Dooling, RJ & Prior, NH. 2017. "Do we hear what birds hear in birdsong?" Animal Behaviour 124:283-289.
[2] Hughes, M, Anderson, RC, Searcy, WA, Bottensek, LM & Nowicki, S. 2007. "Song type sharing and territory tenure in eastern song sparrows: implications for the evolution of song repertoires." Animal Behaviour 73:701-710.
[3] Nowicki, S, Searcy, WA & Hughes, M. 1998. "The territory defense function of song in song sparrows: a test with the speaker occupation design." Behaviour 135:615-628.
[4] Searcy, WA, Nowicki, S, Hughes, M & Peters, S. 2002. "Geographic song discrimination in relation to dispersal distances in song sparrows." American Naturalist 159:221-230.
[5] Hyman, J & Hughes, M. 2006. "Territory owners discriminate between aggressive and nonaggressive neighbors." Animal Behaviour 72:209-215.
[6] Marler, P & Peters, S. 1987. "A sensitive period for song acquisition in the song sparrow, Melospiza melodia: a case of age-limited learning." Ethology 76:89-100.
[7] Nowicki, S, Searcy, WA, Peters, S. 2002. 'Brain development, song learning and mate choice in birds: a review and experimental test of the 'nutritional stress hypothesis'." Journal of Comparative Physiology A 188:1003-1014.
I really enjoyed learning about bird behavior and communication , finding the information from the "Signals and Songbirds" event very interesting! After reading about this event, I went for a walk on earth day and listened to the birds using the Merlin Bird ID app.
Does anyone else have a favorite way to get involved in the birding community or any other identification apps they like to use?