# Why do birds sing at daybreak?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-birds-sing-at-daybreak/180536>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [June 8, 2003, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-birds-sing-at-daybreak/180536 "2003-06-08T23:34:40Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 6\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Tigers2B1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9fc29f/32.png) [@Tigers2B1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tigers2B1)\
**Post date:** [June 8, 2003, 11:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-birds-sing-at-daybreak/180536/1 "2003-06-08T23:34:40Z")

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Why daybreak but not twilight or in unison at some point in the day? And why does that know-it-all tweeter, the Mockingbird, sing at night?

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**Author:** ![Tigers2B1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9fc29f/32.png) [@Tigers2B1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tigers2B1)\
**Post date:** [June 8, 2003, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-birds-sing-at-daybreak/180536/2 "2003-06-08T23:47:17Z")

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Ok - I found a thread on this board that addresses the questions – I needed to use the word ‘dawn’ rather than ‘daybreak’ - ‘morning’

Sorry 🙂

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**Author:** ![antechinus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/fbc32d/32.png) [@antechinus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/antechinus)\
**Post date:** [June 8, 2003, 11:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-birds-sing-at-daybreak/180536/3 "2003-06-08T23:54:14Z")

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Some birds sing to mark out their territory - eg the kookaburra, which sings at dawn and dusk.

If a mockingbird is like a koel, (a migratory, night singing bird) then it might be trying to attract a mate.

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**Author:** ![Calliope](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Calliope](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Calliope)\
**Post date:** [June 9, 2003, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-birds-sing-at-daybreak/180536/4 "2003-06-09T00:00:45Z")

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Yes, the male mockingbird sings to attract a mate. The female is generally impressed with the male who knows the most sounds. An unmated mockingbird will sing the night away. We have been “treated” to the same male for 2 years now.

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**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\
**Post date:** [June 9, 2003, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-birds-sing-at-daybreak/180536/5 "2003-06-09T00:18:08Z")

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> [@](#):
>
> _Originally posted by antechinus_  
> If a mockingbird is like a koel, (a migratory, night singing bird) then it might be trying to attract a mate.

So birds sing to attract a mate at night? Is that a avian one-night stand (or would “one-night nesting” be more accurate)? Sounds a lot like the singles bars around here! 🙂

> [@](#):
>
> \*Originally posted by Calliope \*  
> \*\*An unmated mockingbird will sing the night away. We have been “treated” to the same male for 2 years now. \*\*

Well, if you’re yearning for silence, I’d suggest you go to the pet store and buy a female mockingbird to release in the backyard for him. (This in spite of the disapproval likely from [this other thread](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?s=&postid=3535217#post3535217) “I What’s wrong with being a whore?”.

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**Author:** ![cdhostage](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/c6cbf5/32.png) [@cdhostage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cdhostage)\
**Post date:** [June 9, 2003, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-birds-sing-at-daybreak/180536/6 "2003-06-09T02:19:04Z")

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I think that singing at the first sight of dawn is just the right and natural way of life. 🙂