Chirper

Day 309: This is my Audubon bird call, or as I refer to it, "the chirper." I don't recall where I got this one, but as of a few years ago, the Audubon Society was still selling them and I gave several as gifts to birding friends. The wooden bead is held on the metal spindle by a screw in the base (somewhat visible in the reflection in the binocular lens), and by removing the screw, powdered rosin can be blown into the center of the bead to give it more stickiness when its chirping capability starts to diminish. By sliding the bead up the spindle and twisting it at the same time, a skilled practitioner can make both ascending and descending notes of variable duration. It's a whole lot more fun to play with than a birding app, and of course much more rewarding when you actually succeed in calling a bird into the open.