Gonçalo Elias
avesdeportugal.info
This morning, near Castro Marim (Algarve, Portugal), I found a Hoopoe that was singing in sequences of 5 and 6 notes, like this:
poo - poo - poo - poo - poo
and
poo - poo - poo - poo - poo - poo
Specifically, the bird was singing almost uninterruptedly, making successive sequences of 5 notes, alternating with some of 4 and others of 6. I heard the 6 notes at least a dozen times, which allowed the counting of individual sounds to be done well. At some point I even thought I heard 7 notes in a row, but here I wondered if I made a counting error. I listened to the bird for a long time, but I did not record more than 6 notes with certainty.
This was a very surprising record. Generally Hoopoes sing in sequences of 2 or 3 notes, sometimes of 4. The sequences of 5 are described in the BWP as being relatively rare and in more than 30 years I had previously heard them on just two or three occasions and very sporadically, and I had never heard a Hoopoe doing so many 5 note sequences like that. As for the 6 notes sequences, I had never heard them at all and didn't even know they existed.
Has anyone else witnessed such long sequences?
poo - poo - poo - poo - poo
and
poo - poo - poo - poo - poo - poo
Specifically, the bird was singing almost uninterruptedly, making successive sequences of 5 notes, alternating with some of 4 and others of 6. I heard the 6 notes at least a dozen times, which allowed the counting of individual sounds to be done well. At some point I even thought I heard 7 notes in a row, but here I wondered if I made a counting error. I listened to the bird for a long time, but I did not record more than 6 notes with certainty.
This was a very surprising record. Generally Hoopoes sing in sequences of 2 or 3 notes, sometimes of 4. The sequences of 5 are described in the BWP as being relatively rare and in more than 30 years I had previously heard them on just two or three occasions and very sporadically, and I had never heard a Hoopoe doing so many 5 note sequences like that. As for the 6 notes sequences, I had never heard them at all and didn't even know they existed.
Has anyone else witnessed such long sequences?
