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This week, we hear a story in two acts about a very familiar bird—the common starling. It's a non-native species that is omnivorous, gregarious, adaptable, and highly successful in its adopted land. It turns out we humans have inadvertently put out the welcome mat for this alien species. Act One tells the story about this winged invader with an $800 million appetite for fruit crops. As for Act Two, we’ll let independent producer Josh Kurz and the theater troupe Higher Mammals explain.
read moreDuration: 6:06Published: Thu, 23 Feb 2012 21:06:37 +0000
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This Orange-billed Nightingale Thrush (Catharus aurantiirostris) was recorded on a wonderful path through the forest that I love near the Cabinas el Bosque, Monteverde (Costa Rica), 6/17/99.
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Slaty-backed Nightingale-Thrushes (Catharus fuscater) are heard more than seen in the Monteverde Cloud Forest Preserve (Costa Rica), and they sing one of the area's most pleasing songs.
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Slaty-backed Nightingale-Thrush (Catharus fuscater) Monteverde Cloud Forest Preserve (Costa Rica)
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IIf you get really close to a singing Slaty-backed Nightingale Thrush, the song can lose some of the ethereal quality that it gains from reverberation and natural acoustics. This example was recorded for only a few meters away - you'll see what I mean.
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Hermit Thrushes (Catharus guttatus) sing one of the most beautiful songs in North America in the springtime. This recording was made on Mingus Mountain, near Jerome, Arizona, 5/31/99
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The call of this bird is nothing like the song, in fact it a bit harsh - rather like a Spotted Towhee's mew (that's a warbling vireo in the background). You'll notice that this bird's song is made up of similar short phrases, raised and lowered in pitch with each iteration.
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Wood Thrushes (Hylocichla mustelina) are neotropical migrants in Costa Rica. This individual was foraging on the forest floor in La Selva (Costa Rica), 11/98. It's always interesting to see "our" North American birds in their winter homes.
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Here's a direct comparison between a Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) and a Mocker. The first three notes are the Cardinal, the second three are the Mocker imitating a Cardinal. The Mocker's version is nearly perfect!
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A Northern Mockingbird (Mimus polyglottos) marks his Summer territory in the mesquite near Peck's Lake [Arizona] 0. His scientific name means "Many-Throated Imitator" - and that he is! In this 10-second sample, he sings 8 distinct songs, that's an average of a song every second and a half or so. The entire recording lasts more than 90 seconds, and he never repeats! Many of the snippets he sings are easily recognizable as the Cardinal, Cactus Wren, and various orioles.
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This is a Mockingbird's "whisper song", sung in mid October. Mockers and other songbirds sometimes sing these "whisper songs", which can only be heard a short distance away (50 feet or less) in the latter parts of the year. This recording is from only 10 feet with a very sensitive shotgun mic. Female mockers are known to do this, but the reasons are not clear. If you have a theory, let me know!
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A Black-faced Solitaire (Myadestes melanops) sings in the forest near a small waterfall in the Monteverde Cloud Forest Preserve, 6/16/99. This bird is generally considered to have the most beautiful song in Costa Rica, where he is called the "Jilguero", and where the song has led to high demand as a caged bird.
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The Black-faced Solitaire (Myadestes melanops) is generally considered to have the most beautiful song in Costa Rica, where he is called the "Jilguero", and where the song has led to high demand as a caged bird. Here is an example of one of their songs, sung softly and very close to me in the same preserve.
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Townsend's Solitaires (Myadestes townsendi) like the brushy canyons of Central Arizona in the Winter, especially. They call this call note from the top of a handy juniper or mesquite.
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Sage Thrashers (Oreoscoptes montanus) gather in the mesquite scrub around Red Tank Draw in Arizona's Verde Valley each Winter. Here one is calling a blackbird-like call that we commonly hear.
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Mountain Bluebirds (Sialia currucoides) are uncommon visitors to Tavasci Marsh [Arizona], as they generally hang out in higher elevations, but this flock of about 250 showed up in mid-January, 1999.
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Western Bluebirds (Sialia mexicana) are Winter residents around Central Arizona. They can usually be heard singing their "flight song" as in this sample while they're flying in small flocks overhead.
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During the Spring breeding season you may hear one singing this churring song.
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In this sample from Pacific Grove, California, a Starling is clearly heard mimicing other birds such as an American Robin and a Killdeer, as well as mechanical environmental sounds.
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A pair of Starlings talk to each other in a small tree at Rosario on Orcas Island, Washington. They often talk this way, with a complex series of soft squeaks and rattles.
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A single Starling mutters quietly to itself in a Cottonwood Tree at Hermosa Meadows, North of Durango, Colorado, one cool October morning.
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A thousand European Starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) vocalizing all at once. These guys are going to roost in an old, dead Cottonwood tree at Peck's Lake [Arizona].
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Bendire's Thrasher (Toxostoma bendirei) is a secretive breeder around the middle-elevation grasslands of central Arizona. They like to hang out with their family members, the Mockers. This sample is a small part of the song of one individual near Cornville, Arizona, in the Verde Valley, 6/5/99. He was "marking" his territory by singing at one post, usually high in a mesquite or Berberis bush, occasionally on a power line, then diving down and skimming the ground, quickly flying to the next post, maybe 2-400 meters away and starting again.
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The Crissal Thrasher (Toxostoma crissale) is a common local thrasher. This is their normal call, which is reminiscent of a Mockingbird with a limited repertoire. They do mimic, though, which you'll hear in the next selection! Thrashers are, in my experience, secretive birds which are seen darting from bush to bush, or feeding on the ground in heavy brushy areas, but they'll often climb high in a Mesquite or Hackberry to call and sing. This individual was at Peck's Lake [Arizona] in the Mesquite scrub.