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Please help identify Pennsylvania bird heard in late spring and summer (1 Viewer)

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preciouslilbirds

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This bird song has been haunting me. I started hearing it in the spring and I stopped hearing it in the late Summer. I heard it when I was around the woods in Pennsylvania, USA. I never saw the bird that was making it. Sometimes two birds would make the call back and forth. It always seemed to come from the trees. Sadly, the call is just me whistling it to the best of my ability. I am not very good but hopefully I get the sound across. I hope someone can help me, its making me nuts! Thanks!!!
 

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That is close, but the bird that I heard sounds more singsong-y and kind of breathy like a dove. Maybe the bobwhites I am hearing are more musically inclined than the one on the link lol.
 
Thanks for all your help everyone, but after listening to all the birds you suggested I still cannot figure out what bird it is. It either is a bird that is only around for summer or has only a special call during that time. It is such a mystery, I would love to solve it!
 
Bobwhite seems to me the most like your whistle, but you're the one who heard it. Keep in mind, though, that bird songs can vary between individuals, so sometimes a recording will only be "close enough." It would be nice if there was a "similar species" section for calls like the one for appearance.

If you don't find something that matches, you could try to record this call yourself come spring and post it here.
 
preciouslilbirds said:
Thanks for all your help everyone, but after listening to all the birds you suggested I still cannot figure out what bird it is. It either is a bird that is only around for summer or has only a special call during that time. It is such a mystery, I would love to solve it!
Click to expand...

Well, your imitation is exactly the sound most people would make to imitate a typical Bobwhite call, so it's going to be hard to convince us otherwise. I will say though that I have occasionally heard Baltimore Orioles make a call similar to a Bobwhite. They also typically sing from the very tops of tall leafy trees, so they are often hard to see. Baltimore Orioles have very variable songs, however, so listening to a recording of one may not help much.

If you are really motivated, you can search by species and find many recordings of each species at this site: http://macaulaylibrary.org/search.do

It is a good site for understanding how variable some species songs can be.

Best,
Jim
 
From your whistle I would say that you probably heard a Northern Bobwhite call.

There are some birds that do mimic the calls of other birds. You may have heard one of these. European Starlings are pretty good at giving the call of the quail.
 
You can get Birds of Pennsylvania Audio CDs by Stan Tekiela which is a companion to the Birds of Pennsylvania Field Guide at any Barnes & Noble in PA. ISBN 1-59193-086-3. It has a 32 page booklet with it. Very reasonably priced.
Good Luck,
Bob
 
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