Migrating only as far as southern Europe and North Africa, Meadow Pipit Anthus pratensis is under no great pressure to travel at night. An abundant migrant by day, it is surprisingly infrequent at night. Nevertheless, under certain circumstances we may hear it in larger numbers.
One October night at Sumburgh Head, Shetland, a steady stream of Meadow Pipits, eventually numbering in the hundreds, started to appear at midnight on a strong easterly, having set out across the North Sea from Norway at dusk. Most of the recordings here are from that one night.
Meadow Pipits illustrate a tendency that is also apparent in other pipits, as well as in wagtails Motacilla. While migrants during the day use a wide range of call variants including very high-pitched ones, at night the variation is more limited, the majority of calls being medium to lower-pitched, multi-note variants.