Anja Murray: Birdsong is good for our mental health but many bird species are in decline

The good news is that there is still time to save many species from extinction

It's May and the cuckoos are singing again. Birdsong is an antidote to stress and at the heart of our physical and mental wellbeing. Picture: iStock

In the past week the cuckoos have begun to arrive back from Africa. I’ve been loving listening to their call echo out over the patchwork of pasture and meadow, a consistently uplifting soundtrack to early summer. Meadow pipits, some of whose eggs will be ousted from their nests by baby cuckoos, are singing too. As May takes hold, the chorus of birdsong is reaching a crescendo, as birds are eagerly pairing up, defending territory, and tending to broods of eggs and nestlings. The most enthusiastic singing begins at first light, mostly by the males, announcing to the world that they have made it through the night, the territory is still theirs, and that they might even be available to prospecting females.

Some of the most tuneful songbirds in Ireland include the skylark, belting out their complex melodies from high in the air; blackcaps who return from Africa each summer, also especially accomplished singers; and blackbirds with their soulful tunes. Swifts, swallows and house martins have also just returned from winter spent afar, gliding through the sky gracefully, scooping up thousands of midges as they go.