The Bobolinks are back, thank goodness; it’s always a relief to see them again. Their species has been decreasing drastically, apparently due in significant part to the disappearance of suitable spring fields for nest-building. Here, we see the male with his bleached hairdo:
The sparrow-like female is not at all conspicuous -- which is what you'f expect of evolution for a ground-nesting bird. Here she is:
The species received its name from the sound of its bubbling song. In 1855, William Cullen Bryant wrote a popular children’s poem that formalized the bird’s name to help youngsters remember its song: “Robert of Lincoln, is telling his name/Bob-o’-link, bob-o’-link/Spink, spank, spink….” (Brooklin, Maine)