You would think that this was a house wren that you were listening to, or perhaps a wrentit, or a northern mockingbird imitating somebody—but no. Pull the binoculars up to your eyes, scan the top branch of a willow, and what do you see perched there and whistling away for all he's worth but a California thrasher—and no doubt, a happy one at that!
One day in late April, I was photographing a California thrasher in my side yard. After taking one shot, I was dismayed to see this bird walk casually from the grass into the bushes. I called out to it to wait and allow me to take one more shot. It obliged me, stopping to take a sip from a puddle that had formed from a running hose that I had placed in the flower bed. Then it disappeared into the bushes.
Thrashers Are Great Mimics
The California thrasher is a member of the family Mimidae, so-called because most members of this family mimic other birds songs, as well as just about any noise in their general environment. The most famous mimic in this family is the northern mockingbird, followed closely by the gray catbird, which is so-named because of its ability to imitate the mewing of a cat.
But the thrashers have melodious songs as well, including the sage thrasher, brown thrasher, long-billed thrasher, Bendires thrasher, curve-billed thrasher, crissal thrasher, Le Contes thrasher, and California thrasher—and they also mimic other birds, just as the northern mockingbird and gray catbird do.
Indeed, the California thrasher has been reported to mimic the songs of such birds as the northern flicker, house finch, black-headed grosbeak, Bullocks oriole, American robin, red-tailed hawk, ruby-crowned kinglet, olive-sided flycatcher, oak titmouse, house wren, and scrub jay.
Mathew Tekulsky writes a regular column about birding in his backyard and neighborhood in Bel Air, California. You can follow his encounters with the birds of the Santa Monica Mountains here on National Geographic News Bird Watcher every fortnight or so.
Previous columns by the Birdman of Bel Air
Birding Column: House Wrens' Twice-a-Minute Feeding Frenzy
New Bird-Watching Column: "The Birdman of Bel Air"
The California Towhee, Boldly Bland
At Home With Hooded Orioles
Scrub Jays Go Nuts for Peanuts
Northern Mockingbird is a Wary Neighbor
Christmas With the Pelicans
California-Quail Close Encounter
Yosemite Steller's Jay Encounter
Banding Birds at Devils Postpile
California Condor Close Encounter
California Condor Rebound
Going Nuts With Wilderness Ravens
Hummingbird Chicks Fly the Nest
Mexican Jays' Dogged Pack Mentality
National Geographic BirdWatcher
Regularly updated news stories, features, and columns about birds and birding
Recent News Stories About Birds
Migrating Birds Reset "Compasses" at Sunset, Study Says
Bowerbirds Dance, Decorate to Suit Females' Changing Tastes
Emperor Penguins: Uniquely Armed for Antarctica
African Birds Understand Monkey Communication, Study Says
After 400 Years, Cranes Return to U.K., Site Is Kept Secret
|
SOURCES AND RELATED WEB SITES
|
