birders- what are your favorite bird calls?

[mopinko]

i got this great big book from my son for christmas-it has a little player attacked to it. it has the calls and beautiful illustrations of every bird that breeds in north america. i want to make a 'mix tape' for my parrots to listen to. i want the beautiful calls, but also just the strong and interesting calls.
like- i will probably do all the owl calls except the barn owl.
so, what is your favorite?

[pitohui]

1. quick suggestion

i would NOT put any owl or diurnal raptor calls on a mix tape for parrots, even the local blue jays doing their red-shouldered hawk imitations TRULY pisses my parrots off -- if you wanna wind 'em up, ok, but if it's for them to just enjoy, avoid getting all raptor-licious

in my yard i would say that a favorite "non song" call would be the sorta purr of the red-headed woodpecker, a regular breeder here

favorite true song is the northern mockingbird since he is all birds to all people and has all the songs at his fingertips

[mopinko]

2. it is supposed to get them going.

wind them up, let them holler, wear them out. just like little kids.

[pitohui]

3. heh based on my experience will serve that purpose admirably!

maybe make two mix tapes, one for when you don't wanna wind them up so much :-)

[mopinko]

9. that's a good idea.

what kind of parrots do you have?

[Mojorabbit]

18. My grey does

a wonderful red tailed hawk impression. Perhaps it depends on the bird.

[pokerfan]

4. Mourning Dove

This species' call is a distinctive, plaintive cooOOoo-woo-woo-woooo, uttered by males to attract a mate.

http://www.fernbank.edu/birding/bird_sounds/mourning_dove.mp3

[tigereye]

6. ah, that is a lovely sound

[tigereye]

7. hmm, I really like the song sparrow's song

I have one who sings from my hedge all the time... fat and sassy guy. Also the indigo bunting has a nice song.

[mopinko]

8. that is a nice one. i have them in my spruce tree

frequently.

[trackfan]

31. There's been one in and around my yard for about a month.

I can hear him right now. He never stops.

[pokerfan]

32. I'll start hearing them in about another month or so

They're year round here but I think they wait for it to warm up a bit before beginning the mating dance.

[MilesColtrane]

5. The yellow angry bird who says "freelance!"....

[mopinko]

10. oooo. i could use that one

on my website. i am starting out as a graphic designer, and working on a portfolio site.
now i just have to figure out which yellow bird that would be.

[MilesColtrane]

15. Sorry for being cryptic.

That was a late, late night post.

I'm referring to the yellow bird in the video game, "Angry Birds".

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angry_Birds



He does indeed make a call that sounds, to me at least, like "FREELANCE!".

[mopinko]

20. still works for the website.

[MilesColtrane]

25. Look out for Rovio's lawyers!

[TZ]

11. Tie: Eastern Pewee or Carolina Wren

PEEWEE PEWEE PEEEUUUUUURRRRRRR
TEAKETTLE TEAKETTLE TEAKETTLE TEA! Both very distinctive calls. And loud too.:)

[mopinko]

29. and the rufous sided towhee.

drink your tea tea tea.

[TZ]

40. Yeah, thats a nice one too. Plus the towhee is just plain cute.

:)

[raccoon]

12. Mockingbird, with Meadowlark a close second. nt

[lukasahero]

13. Wood Thrush is my favorite call

Possibly also my favorite bird.

http://identify.whatbird.com/obj/683/_/Wood_Thrush.aspx

[mopinko]

21. like that one, too.

most of the thrushes have nice, interesting calls.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

14. Sora rail, trumpeter swan, loon, meadowlark, wood thrush.

[mopinko]

22. seems like most of the waders and water birds have

good strong calls. most of the herons are good. and just for fun, the cranes.

[csziggy]

37. Sandhill cranes have a neat honk

We saw several fly over the other day while at the Circle B Bar Preserve outside Lakeland Florida:
http://www.swfwmd.state.fl.us/recreation/areas/circlebbarreserve.html

Also saw lots of whistling ducks, wood storks, white pelicans, white and glossy ibis, and got scolded by a squirrel.

Sandhill crane honk: http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Sandhill_Crane/sounds

I like blue bird songs, though: http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Eastern_Bluebird/sounds

[mopinko]

41. and whoopers!

they have a great recording of the whooping crane. definitely on my list.

[csziggy]

48. I've never had the opportunity to hear a whooper in person

But they should be impressive!

[semillama]

16. Has to be Winter Wren! n/t

[Name removed]

23. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[mopinko]

24. a good one. cute little bugger, too.

[tigereye]

53. that's lovely...

[Mojorabbit]

17. I am partial to

my african grey singing his version of "who let the dogs out". Second would be the mockingbird in my yard that has an amazing repertoire. I could listen to that bird sing for hours on end.

[mopinko]

26. i was very disappointed in the mocking bird recording.

only one short call, no nice songs or anything.
i could get my grey to whistle happy birthday. or whistle for the dogs. that would be fun. my lory makes some crazy noises, too.

[LynneSin]

19. I can't find a photo of it - but I have both of these on vinyl record

http://cgi.ebay.com/FIELD-GUIDE-BIRD-SONGS-eastern-central-2-LP-RARE-/220246760952?pt=Music_on_Vinyl&hash=item3347baddf8

[mopinko]

27. was that a peterson thing? i used to have a tape.

2 tapes, actually, that had lots of calls, but not all. i used to play the owl ones on camping trips and occasionally flushed some out.
i remember our first trip with our pop up. we went to the southern tip of illinois, to a nat'l park that was a tupelo swamp. we were playing the tape, and hearing replies. it got all quiet and we thought we had scared them away. the next thing we knew the calls were all around us. there were half a dozen barred owls in the trees right above our heads! one of the coolest moments of my life.

[LynneSin]

28. Yes - correct

I played it once and my one cat, the songbird killer Evita, went a bit nutz with it.

[XemaSab]

30. Canyon Wren

:)

[mopinko]

42. i liked most of the wrens. and they are so cute.

i have little wrens in my yard, but doesn't see them often. not sure which species cuz they are gone the second i move. learning those calls myself is a high priority.

[XemaSab]

50. Figure out the basic backyard birds

Starling, house finch, robin, mockingbird, house sparrow, white-crowned sparrow, California towhee, scrub jay, and maybe cedar waxwing, and get them DOWN.

Once the common birds are down, then it's a lot easier to figure out other things. :)

[mopinko]

52. i'm pretty good.

although a california towhee in chicago would likely stump me.
i have about 250 birds on my life list. really haven't counted lately. never gone on any big birding trips, but do try to take some time to bird wherever i go. i am really excited to be able to really study the calls on some of the tougher things, like the lbj's (little brown jobs). those wrens sit still for about 30 seconds at a time. i think last time i saw them i had it narrowed down to winter or house wren.

i know i do not hold a candle to you, tho, xema.

[XemaSab]

55. Why did I think you were in LA?

:P

[mopinko]

56. i dunno.

maybe you picked up my "jesus i wish i wasn't buried in 2' of snow" vibes.

[Biker13]

33. Mocking Bird!

Had one that hung out around my barn. One of my boarders had a car alarm that did one of those "five tone" things, you know five different alarms so you'd REALLY pay attention?! That bird copied it PERFECTLY! It was truly amazing! I love those birds!

Biker's Old Lady

[mopinko]

43. i need to look around for different sounds than what is in

this collection. they just have a real simple basic call. i remember going to florida several years ago, and how easy it was to add to my life list. hell, i had 3 before i got out of the car. there was a mockingbird on a light pole in the parking lot that sang the whole time we unloaded ourselves and 2 kids from the car. just gorgeous.

[GoCubsGo]

47. A friend of mine was workign on a bald eagle nesting study.

One morning, she went out to her blind to watch the nest, and heard a bald eagle calling. She spent nearly half an hour looking for it, only to realize it was actually a mocking bird imitating a bald eagle.

[Tindalos]

34. Chickadee

My friend's mother had cockatiels who would try to teach me how to "talk" by mimicking birds like the chickadee. They were very patient with me. I wasn't a very fast learner.

[mopinko]

39. i love chickadees myself.

i played all the chickadees the other day and they liked them. it's an easy little calls i think they will pick up.

[grasswire]

35. I tried to teach a bird to whistle "That's Amore"

He never did whistle it, but one time the radio oldies station featured the Dean Martin recording of it, and the bird went nuts.

[mopinko]

44. that's funny.

they really aren't that good at happy birthday, which is the only tune i have tried to teach them. they each get a different phrase.
my grey did get out of the house once, and i found her by whistling it, tho. rode my bike around the hood, whistling and hanging up flyers. i went through 4 bottles of water but i did find her and get her back. took 3 days, tho. nobody called the cops on me, or tried to get me committed. it's just that kind of a place. i don't think anyone even batted an eye.

[pinniped]

36. Red-tailed hawk calls are my favorite.

.

[csziggy]

38. But red shoulder hawks talk a lot more

They have got to be one of the noisiest predators I have ever seen. I don't see how they can catch anything when they are always announcing they are around. We have them resident here over the winters. Every year they have raised young and they hang around the barns to teach them to hunt.

The last several years we're had swallow tailed kites for a while in the spring and Mississippi kites most of the summer. Those are silent hunters and often the only way I know they are around is when I catch a glimpse of them hovering, high up above.

[mopinko]

45. i will include the hawks for myself.

it is so hard to get a good look at them. they are so wary.

[csziggy]

49. Our red shoulders are so used to us, they wait at the barn

For us to get there in the morning to feed. Some mornings I've gotten there and there are three hawks perched in a line on top of the fence posts along the front pasture - Mama, Poppa and Baby. When we go in, the wrens that nest inside sometimes fly out and the hawks try to catch them. If any mice have taken shelter in the stalls or hay, the same thing can happen with them, but we have more wrens than mice.

The hawks also come and hang out around the house to try to catch birds at the feeders. Heck, we even had a bald eagle roost in the cherry in front of the house and try to hunt. We have a low water trough in the pasture in front of the house - the little birds drink and bath in the over run but the larger birds get right into the trough and splash and play. If a hawk is in there, the crows will hassle him and chase him off, then they will have a pool party.

[pinniped]

51. Juvenile red-tailed hawks also make a ton of noise. Food, food, food, is all they want!

.

[GoCubsGo]

46. Pileated woodpecker.

It's such a jovial call.

[bif]

54. House Wren

I love the bubbly sound it makes.

[BensMom]

57. Not just any sparrow

I love the Harris Sparrow. It took my ear before it caught my eye.
http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Harriss_Sparrow/id