Bird Songs

I'm hoping you can help me identify the vocalists behind two bird songs I've heard in my yard. The first is a rapid phrase that sounds like "teacher, teacher, teacher." The second bird sings "sweet, sweet, too sweet" with the last note ending on a sharp upward whistle. Do you know what these birds are?

—Betty Hamlet, Woodruff, Alabama

George: If you're hearing "teacher, teacher, teacher" during spring and summer, it may be an ovenbird, a member of the wood warbler family. The "sweet, sweet, too sweet" could be a black-throated green warbler. But if the birds you hear are calling year-around, the Carolina wren—a common backyard resident in your region—likely is the source of both songs.