Wendy, thank you for a great explanation...will be listening for the early Yankee influx next spring. Heard my first yellow-billed cuckoo this morning in eastern Hanover (between 360 and 301, west of Rural Point). One or two usually stay all summer here. And the whippoorwill was back very early (1 AM) this morning. -----Original Message----- From: WEalding@xxxxxxx To: va-richmond-general@xxxxxxxxxxxxx Sent: Sat, 28 Apr 2007 8:11 AM Subject: [va-richmond-general] Yankee and southern Common Yellowthroats Some people have asked about my use of the term "Yankee and southern Common Yellowthroats" so, here is my explanation. Yankee Common Yellowthroats say "which-whichity-whichity-whichity" with the stress on the first syllables. Their southern counterparts say "whichity-whichity-whichity" with the stress on the second syllables. I really learned the difference when I was in Maine last year, at first I didn't recognize the song! What I have found this year is that all the yellowthroats that came in early in migration had the "Yankee" song. They seem to have left now and been replaced by the ones I'm used to. Wendy Ealding Powhatan County See what's free at AOL.com. ________________________________________________________________________ AOL now offers free email to everyone. Find out more about what's free from AOL at AOL.com.