Birders often wonder about an odd digital noise coming from a thicket of dogwoods. Many think it’s a cell phone, or some other device, but it’s often a Gray Catbird (Dumetella carolinensis). These slate-gray birds are excellent mimics. When a male catbird imitates an artificial sound, he isn’t confused by the surroundings, he is communicating his fitness to potential females.
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Check PriceThe Anatomy of a Master Mimic
In order to understand how a bird can copy a digital sound, we have to understand some anatomy. Unlike other birds, songbirds have a special structure called a syrinx. It is located at the base of the trachea, where the trachea splits into the lungs on either side. The syrinx allows birds to produce a wide variety of sounds.
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Each side of the syrinx can be controlled independently, so a catbird is capable of creating sounds of both overlapping frequencies, rapid trills, and specific pitches of synthetic ringtones. Producing a biological reproduction of a sound, especially a synthetic one, is physically and mentally demanding.
Building a Repertoire for Romance
This kind of mimicry is a result of sexual selection. Female catbirds in particular choose their mates based on how elaborate a male’s song is. A male catbird can sing for minutes on end, producing an elaborate song with no repetition of phrases.
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A male’s age, experience, intelligence, and memory are demonstrated by his ability to add new sounds to his repertoire. Because a male can expand his vocal repertoire, a female can assume he has survived multiple breeding seasons, overcome many challenges, and has the reproductive potential to raise vigorous offspring. Captivating displays with a greater variety of combined sounds are most appealing to females.
The Suburban Soundscape
Suburban areas offer nesting sites for Gray Catbirds due to the unique sounds they mimic from their surrounding environment. A catbird from the woods may imitate the sounds of tree frogs and Red-tailed Hawks, while one from the suburbs will imitate human-made noises.
If a bird hears the same ringtone or the sound of an alarm or gate repeatedly, it may incorporate that sound into its courtship display. The bird may lack an understanding of what a phone is, but it can recognize that the sound is unique and consistent. Therefore, it becomes useful for the bird’s song.
| Sound Category | Common Examples Mimicked by Catbirds |
|---|---|
| Other Songbirds | Blue Jays, American Robins, Northern Flickers, Red-eyed Vireos |
| Amphibians | Spring Peepers, Gray Treefrogs, American Toads |
| Mechanical and Human | Cell phone ringtones, car alarms, squeaky hinges, construction machinery |
Observation Tips for the Backyard Birder
To observe catbird courtship, you will need to exercise a lot of patience. They are secretive birds that will use dense shrubs to protect themselves from predators. To ensure they are safe, these birds will use the area as a foraging zone and nesting site.
Bird watchers should not move when listening to birds. They should stay near thickets or edges of woods. Do not move directly toward the thickets because if you scare birds out of the thickets, you will disturb their natural behavior and waste the birds’ energy. The best way to attract birds for observation is to plant native fruit-bearing shrubs like elderberry, winterberry, or serviceberry shrubs in the yard. Once the birds feel safe in a habitat, the males will sing from an exposed branch. The complex songs are called mechanical serenades. bird watchers should remain stationary near thickets or woodland edges
