The most beautiful birdsong?
May 17th, 2009 by andrew skeoch

What is the most beautiful songbird in the world?
If we mean ‘musical to our ears’, then surely one of our favourites would be the Malabar Whistling Thrush, Myophonus horsfieldii, of India.
Also known as the ‘whistling schoolboy’, this bird has the most haunting and tuneful of songs – it is indeed like overhearing someone whistling to themselves as they walk along a jungle path.
Our first encounter with this songbird was completely unexpected. Sarah and I were at the beginning of our first field trip to India, and the most of the birdsong we were hearing was exotic and unfamiliar.
We had chosen to begin with a visit to Cotigaon Wildlife Reserve in Goa, on India’s Malabar coast. Cotigaon is an extensive evergreen forest nestled among the foothills of the western Ghats, seasonally drenched by the monsoon off the Arabian Sea. It is a truly beautiful place.

Although we didn’t fully appreciate it at the time, it was also an easy park to access. Due to a low population of large mammals such as elephants, it was relatively safe for us to find our own way around, even after dark. We simply hired a pair of scooters, and that first morning set off at 4am to ride into the core forest area where we had identified a likely recording location; a footpath leading through a dense part of the forest.
I left Sarah to await the dawn while I set off on foot with my recording gear. Everything was silent, with just a pattering of dewdrops falling from the canopy. Not far off, a softly raucous call broke the stillness, a sound that I would soon come to recognise as a Jungle Owlet.
I set up my microphones, and put on my heaphones, with little idea of what to expect of this exotic new environment. You can perhaps imagine my feelings; a mixture of cautious awareness and expectation.
I was listening intently. Another Owlet called, and the soft susurration of crickets permeated the air. Then the most inexplicable sound arose in the dark. Someone was whistling a tune… slow, soft, immensely beautiful, and with a carefree sense of aimlessness about it. It seemed to just hang in the air like the humidity itself. Listening, I was dumbstruck, in a state of suspended animation.
It lasted perhaps a minute, and before it had finished, another tune began from behind me. In all I think there may have been three birds singing that first morning, each moving from one songperch to another, so the forest seemed filled with sweet, sad melodies. Then they fell silent again.

I had just heard the Malabar Whistling Thrush giving its predawn song in its favourite haunt, the dense undergrowth of India’s evergreen forests.
I continued recording as the dawn arrived and the forest came alive with a wonderful diversity of other birdsong; Flamebacks, Hornbills, Yellow-browed Bulbuls, Drongos, Fulvetas… Particularly delightful were the groups of tiny and iridescent Sunbirds that darted among the canopy and understory.

That morning’s recording can be heard on our album ‘Sunbird Forest‘.
While Sunbirds were numerous at Cotigaon, it is the Whistling Thrushes who are the real stars of the album. They feature on the opening track, which I’ve entitled; ‘Melifluous’, as I can think of no better word to describe the song of the Malabar Whistling Thrush, surely one of the most beautiful songbirds in the world.
The nature sound album ‘Sunbird Forest’ is available on CD or by digital download from our website: www.listeningearth.com
Established in 1993 by nature sound recordist Andrew Skeoch and photographer Sarah Koschak, Listening Earth offers a range of beautiful nature sound recordings from around the world.
"Our albums feature only the sounds of nature as you would hear in the wild - no music or other distractions. Recorded in often remote and pristine locations, they bring you the relaxing and beautiful sounds of our living planet. Listen, and let our recordings take you there."
[...] blog post we’ll make our way to India, where Andrew from Listening Earth Blog shares a picture and recording of what he considers the bird with the most beautiful song, the mellifluous …. Now, as a guy from the northeastern United States I would argue that Hermit and Wood Thrushes [...]
I was enthralled and thrilled and captivated with that sound clip!
The whistling schoolboy seems to have given you a great performance. We have the sunbirds in our backyard, and their sounds and calls were so familiar.
Lovely!
Lovely! He really does sound like a whistling man wandering a forest path.
wow! amazing!
the thrush’s song rocks!
What an amazing song!
I visited Munnar a week back and saw and heard this bird. I can tell you, it was absolutely great, and in fact I was actually hooked onto it. But by then I didn’t know, which bird was it. I came back to Bangalore and found him from Salim Ali’s book and then saw the description here. It was absolutely amazing…
I heard this song first time when I went to Kudremuk some ten years ago. I just got up in the morning and walked out of our camp and I heard this wonderful song, and it is etched in my heart forever. Last week I have been to Coorg and heard the same song. Beautiful
Is it possible to buy a CD recording of Malabar Whistling Thrush?
we actually heard this bird sing early in the morning while we were inside a nature reserve in Kerela. We could also accepy magnetic tape recording.Thanks
Hi Robin,
The album the Malabar Whistling Thrush features on is ‘Sunbird Forest’. You can find details on the webpage below and the MWT features on the album sample as well. http://www.listeningearth.com/albums/23SunbirdForest/23SunbirdForest_Album_Info.htm
Happy Listening! – Sarah
[...] What is the most beautiful songbird in the world? If we mean ‘musical to our ears’, then surely one of our favourites would be the Malabar Whistling Thrush, Myophonus horsfieldii, of India: here. [...]
Just wanted to thank you for the enjoyment you have brought me with you beautiful soundscapes. THANK YOU
[…] What is the most beautiful songbird in the world? If we mean ‘musical to our ears’, then surely one of our favourites would be the Malabar Whistling Thrush, Myophonus horsfieldii, of India. — Listening Earth Blog […]