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Annoying bird. (1 Viewer)

M

McCaw

Active member
Antarctica
I should begin by saying I enjoy having wild birds around and I encourage them to visit my yard. There is "forest" behind my house, (Brisbane), and I see all kinds of local birds from time to time.

However, there is one bird which has recently taken up residence in the area, and his call is driving me nuts!

I first noticed it a couple of months ago. It drew my attention because it was quite loud and insistent, and also because it was the same four-note sequence as that old Christmas carol, "Carol of The Bells". I found a Youtube of it, so you'll get what I mean.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wq73h6XZQGA

At first I was amused that a bird could create such pitch-perfect notes repeatedly. But lately it seems to have moved house and now lives directly opposite my house. Its call is now very loud, and, worst of all, it starts up at 6 every morning!! Wakes me up every day! Very annoying.

What I'd like to find out is its species, so that maybe I can find a way to discourage it or make it go find somewhere else to live. I've never actually seen the bird, so I have no idea what it is. I get Magpies, crows, yellow-eyes, lorikeets, Rosellas, and some tiny green guys. But I don't think the call is coming from any of them.

Hope someone can help me out here.

Thanks. |=)|
 
Nobody knows this bird? Sings Xmas Carols.

Maybe the good folks here thought I was kidding about the bird that sings "The Carol of The Bells", and wakes me up every morning.

But seriously, I wasn't. It really does mimic that song, so much so that whenever it tweets, I can't get the Carol out of my head!

Yes, serious question. Does anybody know which bird it might be? I'm in Brisbane, Australia.

Thanks.
 
Hi McCaw and a warm welcome to you from all the Staff and Moderators.

I'm sorry your question went unanswered so far, my only suggestion would be a bellbird, but I think the only contender for your area would be Crested Bellbird, but we don't have a recording for it on the page, as yet, unfortunately. You could, though try this page.

Your birds are in full breeding mode just now and calling to establish their territories and find a mate. They should stop in a few weeks.

Hopefully someone will now see your thread and be able to help a little more.
 
Unfortunately, Crested Bellbird isn't mapped as occurring in Brisbane.

Quite possible this bird has heard the carol being played and has learnt to imitate it - so it might not be the normal song that you'll hear on recordings. But worth checking any species that regularly imitates other sounds.
 
Just a suggestion - if the bird is loud and predictable you could maybe record it with a mobile, tablet computer, dictaphone etc. If you can post an mp3 file of the call on here you'll have a much better chance of getting it identified. :t:
 
delia todd said:
Hi McCaw and a warm welcome to you from all the Staff and Moderators.

I'm sorry your question went unanswered so far, my only suggestion would be a bellbird, but I think the only contender for your area would be Crested Bellbird, but we don't have a recording for it on the page, as yet, unfortunately. You could, though try this page.

Your birds are in full breeding mode just now and calling to establish their territories and find a mate. They should stop in a few weeks.

Hopefully someone will now see your thread and be able to help a little more.
Click to expand...

Hi Delia. Thanks for your reply. I had never heard of (or from), a Crested Bellbird. Not being a true bird-watcher, I only know the common species I see around occasionally. If this guy is in breeding mode, I only wish him all the best of luck! |=)| Maybe when he's got a brood to feed he'll finally shuddup! |=)|

Meanwhile I'll try Torchepot's suggestion below and make a recording and post it here.

Thanks again.
 
Nutcracker said:
Unfortunately, Crested Bellbird isn't mapped as occurring in Brisbane.

Quite possible this bird has heard the carol being played and has learnt to imitate it - so it might not be the normal song that you'll hear on recordings. But worth checking any species that regularly imitates other sounds.
Click to expand...

Well, that makes sense, Nutcracker. His song is so very much like the Carol, and the Carol itself is just the same 4-note motif repeated over and over, it's certainly possible that he's a "mimic" species.

I'll record him.
 
Torchepot said:
Just a suggestion - if the bird is loud and predictable you could maybe record it with a mobile, tablet computer, dictaphone etc. If you can post an mp3 file of the call on here you'll have a much better chance of getting it identified. :t:
Click to expand...

I have some digital recording gear, Torchepot, so I will do what you suggest and try to get a recording of him. Unfortunately, he's usually most "cheerful" in the very early hours, and I'm anything but a morning person. Still, he has been known to start up later in the day. I'll just have to be ready.

Thanks for the suggestion.
 
Managed to get a bit of the bird call. It starts about 3 seconds in. A nearby crow led the chorus and a little tweeter piped up, too.
 

Attachments

  • BirdSong.mp3
    286.1 KB · Views: 196
C'mon you Aussies! Brisbane mystery bird call

Surprised that this hasn't been identified or that someone hasn't even made a suggestion.
Someone out there must have some idea surely. Maybe renaming the thread something like the above would help.

I can see what you mean about it being annoying - I listened to it a few times to see if I could shed any light on the ID and then found myself whistling it for the next half hour! Only an emergency reboot with some Radiohead at volume managed to overwrite it!
 
Last edited:
Checked a few Brisbane birds on xeno canto and closest sounding were songs of Butcherbirds.

Keep in mind I have no knowledge of Australian birds.
 
Hi McCaw, Quite a fluty note. If you dont have any luck, why not try posting it in http://www.xeno-canto.org/ .


"xeno-canto is a website dedicated to sharing bird sounds from all over the world. Whether you are a research scientist, a birder, or simply curious about a sound that you heard out your kitchen window, we invite you to listen, download, and explore the bird sound recordings in the collection.

But xeno-canto is more than just a collection of recordings. It is also a collaborative project. We invite you to share your own bird recordings, help identify mystery recordings, or share your expertise in the forums."

And dont forget to let us know what it is if you find out.
 
Grey butcherbird could be the culprit - it may be part of a longer performance - the rest of which could sound like a completely different bird. Making a longer recording (or is the original one longer?) might be revealing.
 
I've just tried to post a 7 second MP3 of the original Carol, but no matter how low I make the quality, I get a message that the file size exceeds the limit.

But anyway, I can still post the other recorded Birdsong on Xeno-Canto, so I'll try that. Thanks for the tip, Jaysan.
 
Torchepot said:
Surprised that this hasn't been identified or that someone hasn't even made a suggestion.
Someone out there must have some idea surely. Maybe renaming the thread something like the above would help.

I can see what you mean about it being annoying - I listened to it a few times to see if I could shed any light on the ID and then found myself whistling it for the next half hour! Only an emergency reboot with some Radiohead at volume managed to overwrite it!
Click to expand...

Haha! Yep, now you know why I'm so keen to find a way to banish it!
 
Tim100 said:
Checked a few Brisbane birds on xeno canto and closest sounding were songs of Butcherbirds.

Keep in mind I have no knowledge of Australian birds.
Click to expand...

Thanks, Tim. That's two for Butcherbird. I know we've definitely got the little beggars around here. Just have to find the lovelorn one.
 
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