To celebrate the beginning of spring in the Gaelic calendar, ornithologist Seán Ronayne is across the schedule on RTÉ lyric fm with a new series to discuss the distinct bird songs, melodies and calls that we have today in Ireland. Listen to Sean celebrate the cuckoo above...
About The Cuckoo: The two-part song of the common cuckoo, is a sure sign for all, that summer is here. Like many birds in Ireland, we've looked to this species as a means of interpreting the world around us. In previous centuries, it was thought that the arrival of the cuckoo was a sign of rough weather to come - the cuckoo storm, the polar opposite of today’s interpretation. Cuckoos famously lay their eggs in the nests of other species, often an unsuspecting meadow pipit, with the young cuckoo eventually dwarfing its surrogate parent resulting in a comical Laurel and Hardy-esque pairing.
We can look forward to the sound of Cuckoo in April, a song to encourage thoughts of warmer brighter days ahead...
Listen to more from Bird Songs with Seán Ronayne here
