They sing most persistently from the time they put on their spring coat, until after the nesting season, when they take it off.

In early autumn some species sing for a time, and in warm climates there is more or less music all winter; but the great morning and evening chorus belongs to spring and the nesting season.

It is as rare to hear the perfect song of a bird in autumn, as it is to see its perfect plumage.

The young birds of the season are then swelling their little throats in trying to warble a few notes; and as their feathers are a mixture of those worn by their father and mother, such birds and their songs will both, most likely, confuse you.
"When you find a strange bird, try to see quickly a few of the things most necessary to naming him.

I will make a measure of your middle finger for you such as Olive used to wear.