Comments on: What bird is making this song?

Question: What bird is making this song?

trey — Sun, 16 Apr 2006 05:06:22 -0800

I hear a bird from my apartment all morning and well in to the evening. Its call is three notes, in a minor key, descending in pitch. In fact, those three notes sound almost EXACTLY like the first three guitar notes of the Black Crowes' song "Remedy." I can't see the bird. Any help?

By: Servo5678

Servo5678 — Sun, 16 Apr 2006 05:09:01 -0800

I'm having a similar problem with a bird outside that starts chirping at 4:00 in the morning, 3 hours or so before sunrise. Wakes me up every morning. I have no advice for your bird problem, but I will be watching this thread for solutions.

One thing I have toyed with is a blast from an air horn to scare it away. At 4 in the morning though that would piss off my neighbors.

By: trey

trey — Sun, 16 Apr 2006 05:16:27 -0800

Well, I suppose I should rephrase. I'm not particularly interested in scaring it off. I want to identify the bird. It can be annoying at times, but my lack of knowledge is even more annoying.

By: TimeFactor

TimeFactor — Sun, 16 Apr 2006 05:28:48 -0800

In your area the only songbird that sings at night is a mockingbird.

By: Emperor SnooKloze

Emperor SnooKloze — Sun, 16 Apr 2006 05:29:57 -0800

One thing that would help other folks help you identify it would be to let us know (approximately) where you live. Makes it lots easier.

By: trey

trey — Sun, 16 Apr 2006 05:35:15 -0800

Oh my mistake. I live in Williamsburg, VA (about 45 minutes from the eastern shore). It's not singing at night, it's starts early in the morning and sings until about 8:00 at night. We have plenty of mockingbirds around here but I can usually identify them by their long and convoluted songs.

By: matthewr

matthewr — Sun, 16 Apr 2006 05:35:48 -0800

trey lives in Williamsburg, VA.

By: matthewr

matthewr — Sun, 16 Apr 2006 05:36:22 -0800

jinx!

By: Johnny Assay

Johnny Assay — Sun, 16 Apr 2006 05:37:46 -0800

Could it be a white-throated sparrow? They usually have a song with three notes in a minor key. The distinctive part of the call is the repeated note at the end, though, so if your bird isn't doing that, then it's probably not a white-throat.

By: trey

trey — Sun, 16 Apr 2006 05:47:31 -0800

That's it! Thank you!

By: TimeFactor

TimeFactor — Sun, 16 Apr 2006 05:47:51 -0800

I don't have the Black Crowes song but another minor-sounding three note bird call is the Eastern Towhee (there's a RealPlayer sample on the page). They're reasonably common and very vocal but also a bit secretive so you might not have seen them.

By: TimeFactor

TimeFactor — Sun, 16 Apr 2006 05:48:33 -0800

Whoops! You've got it.

By: DieHipsterDie

DieHipsterDie — Sun, 16 Apr 2006 07:00:15 -0800

I'm impressed that you knew the call was in a minor key.

By: jennyb

jennyb — Sun, 16 Apr 2006 07:34:26 -0800

Wow, that really does sound like "Remedy." That's so neat.

By: docpops

docpops — Sun, 16 Apr 2006 07:44:44 -0800

Johnnyassay - thanks for referencing that site - it's wonderful. I wish there were a way to search via region, but it's thrilling to hear the call of so many bird varieties.

By: davey_darling

davey_darling — Sun, 16 Apr 2006 07:49:43 -0800

Interesting connection to the lyrics (likely 100% coincidence)

Baby, Baby why can't you sit still?
Who killed that bird out on your windowsill?
Are you the reason that it broke it's back?
Tell me did I see you baby laugh about that?

By: A dead Quaker

A dead Quaker — Sun, 16 Apr 2006 09:27:56 -0800

FWIW, lately I've been hearing white-throated sparrows here in Brooklyn too. I suppose they're migrating to the mountains up north. They're not repeating the final note, which sounds kind of weird--up in the mountains they usually repeat it about 4 times.

By: stefanie

stefanie — Sun, 16 Apr 2006 11:06:21 -0800

Servo5678, I'd guess yours is a Northern Mockingbird (the sound file here does not do justice to the volume, variety, and sleep-deprivation qualities of their calls.) It's a pretty sure bet that if a bird is driving you out of your mind, it's a mockingbird.

Unfortunately, there's nothing you can do except invest in earplugs and a white noise machine.

By: delmoi

delmoi — Sun, 16 Apr 2006 11:13:31 -0800

Anyone know of a non-realplayer link? I don't really want to install that.

By: MadamM

MadamM — Sun, 16 Apr 2006 13:32:57 -0800

I have a mockingbird outside my window that likes to sing at three in the morning. I kind of like it, though. He sounds like he's having fun.

By: mediareport

mediareport — Sun, 16 Apr 2006 21:36:22 -0800

delmoi, there's always Real Alternative.