Sharyn Benjamin, age 10, of Gary, Ind., for her question:

WHY DO BIRDS SING?

As a rule the best singers are the father birds. And most of them sing their best songs in the spring, when the baby chicks are growing up in the nest. They do not sing love songs to the mother birds or lullabies to soothe the babies. Modern experts tell us that they have another reason to sing out loud and clear.

This is the time when the parents are busy gathering food for the growing chicks. Some prefer seeds, some prefer insects. And there is only so much suitable food in the neighborhood. So the father bird sings out to warn other birds not to hunt on his property. All the other birds recognize his song. If he is a seed eater, all the other seed eaters stay away. If he is an insect eater, all the other insect eaters stay away‑‑unless they want to get into a feathery fight.