If you saw the “00s pigeon sound” trend on TikTok a while ago, you’ll know some ’90s and ’00s babies think the call was much more common in their youth than it is now.We think that could be down to a sort of pigeon baby boom that happened when they were little ― it’s evened out since, but the cooing of newly-dense flocks could have stood out more when they were small. That’s great to know, but then there’s the bigger question; why do birds sing at all, and why do they especially love to do it in the morning?After all, while most of us live far away from a rare bittern (the UK’s loudest bird, whose population is experiencing a much-needed boost), many of us have had our sleep disturbed by an expressive pigeon or ardent wren.Why do birds get so loud in the morning?Writing about the so-called “dawn chorus,” the Woodland Trust shared that it’s mostly male birds who sing in the AM. That’s because it’s no mean feat ― “Making so much noise uses up a lot of energy, especially on an empty stomach and after a chilly night, so only the strongest, best-fed males will produce the loudest songs,” they shared. That might make female birds see them as a better prospect for mating ― the stronger the song, the fitter the bird ― and it might make rival male birds scamper.As for why it happens in the morning, it’s simply an opportunity issue, The Woodland Trust says. The predators are all asleep; it’s too dark to look for food, and insects might be inactive; and crucially, sound carries more in the morning because there’s not as much interference from other activity. And while some people thought male birds perform better first thing, a Duke University study found “They’re able to perform more difficult songs later in the morning.” Warming up seemed to help, the researchers found.Stephen Nowicki, one of the co-authors of the Duke paper, said of the early-morning songs, “It’s like they’re warming up backstage, before the sun comes up and the curtain rises.”What can I do if it’s waking me up?A Los Angeles resident reached out to a zoologist about the same issue ― in their area, loud mockingbirds “torture” residents with very early wake-up calls. John McCormack, director of the Moore Lab of Zoology at Occidental College, had bad news ― aside from wearing earplugs and shutting your windows, the best advice is to wait until their mating season is over.Here in the UK, the advice is much the same.But hey ― at least you’ll know the bird screeching its tiny lungs out in the wee hours is healthy, right?Related…UK Gardeners Urged To Do This 1 Task Before Feeding BirdsThe Right Breakfasts For Early Birds And Night OwlsThese Pictures Of Baby Animals Being Brushed With Old Mascara Wands Will Melt Your Heart HuffPost UK – Athena2 – All Entries (Public) Read More