Bird call that sounds like traffic whistle? (1 Viewer)

[GregL65]

Four days ago, I heard sounds in the morning that I thought sounded like a police officer directing traffic, using a whistle. But there is so little traffic around here that early in the morning, that I coudn't imagine where all the cars would have been coming from that he seemed to be whistling at.

When I stepped outside to hear it better, I decided it sounded like it was probably a bird call. But not one that I've ever noticed before. My wife heard the same thing and is curious too.

The call had two tones, seperated by several seconds. It was about one second of one tone, then several seconds of silence, then about one second another tone, then several seconds of silence, then repeat all that many times. Sometimes the silence between whistles seems to stretch to more than a minute, though I haven't timed them.

After listening a while I decided that the higher of the two tones was the one that really sounded like a police whistle. The lower of the two tones seemed more birdlike.

We have heard it at various times during the day, including evening.

Since we don't normally hear this call, we're guessing it's probably either a mating call, or a migratory bird that's just passing through. But since it's been going on for at least four days, we're guessing that mating call is the more likely of those two possibilities.

Any idea what bird's call this might be? We're in the Pacific Northwest, in Bellevue, near Seattle.

 

[Jane Turner]

European Starlings are excellent mimics - that would be my guess. There was one that managed a perfect rendition of a referee's whistle and caused havoc at Football matches

 

[Dally]

European Starlings are excellent mimics - that would be my guess. There was one that managed a perfect rendition of a referee's whistle and caused havoc at Football matches

Yes, there was one who used to mimic my electronic alarm clock just outside my open bedroom window! Not great about 3 hours before getting up time!

 

[beakgeek]

I had a Northern Mockingbird in my neighborhood that imitated car alarms. It drove people nuts.

 

[Jane Turner]

That was my other thought!

 

[njlarsen]

And a third thought would be grackles, especially boat-tailed if they reach your area. I remember in Florida at one time where they drove me nuts with their imitation of car alarms

Niels

 

[Starlabs]

Four days ago, I heard sounds in the morning that I thought sounded like a police officer directing traffic, using a whistle. But there is so little traffic around here that early in the morning, that I coudn't imagine where all the cars would have been coming from that he seemed to be whistling at.

When I stepped outside to hear it better, I decided it sounded like it was probably a bird call. But not one that I've ever noticed before. My wife heard the same thing and is curious too.

The call had two tones, seperated by several seconds. It was about one second of one tone, then several seconds of silence, then about one second another tone, then several seconds of silence, then repeat all that many times. Sometimes the silence between whistles seems to stretch to more than a minute, though I haven't timed them.

After listening a while I decided that the higher of the two tones was the one that really sounded like a police whistle. The lower of the two tones seemed more birdlike.

We have heard it at various times during the day, including evening.

Since we don't normally hear this call, we're guessing it's probably either a mating call, or a migratory bird that's just passing through. But since it's been going on for at least four days, we're guessing that mating call is the more likely of those two possibilities.

Any idea what bird's call this might be? We're in the Pacific Northwest, in Bellevue, near Seattle.

I live in Thompson Falls, Montana and in July 2015, I was camping at Glacier National Park. During the night, most of it in fact, I heard what sounded exactly like a police whistle directing traffic. It woke me up all through the night. My first thought it was a warning whistle that maybe a bear had been spotted, but it continued off an on through the night. In the morning at daybreak I decided to go see if I could find where the whistle sound was coming from. As I started walking in the direction of the whistle, I heard another whistle coming from a completely different location, than another in yet another direction. The sound seemed to be coming from different locations, but the whistle sounded identical to a police whistle directing traffic.

I'm originally from Florida and new to Montana. I've never heard a bird that sounded like this before. I had found a Park Ranger in the morning and asked him about the whistle that I heard through throughout the night and early morning. He said it was a bird call but never did tell me what type of bird it was.

Does anyone know what type of bird this is? If you do, does anyone have a picture of this bird? Since I live in Montana, I don't believe this bird or species of bird is from a big city like New York that is mimicking a police traffic whistle. We have no such traffic in Montana.

Thank you!!
Matthew

 

[Nutcracker]

Red-breasted Nuthatch a possibility?

What habitat was it in?

 

[Starlabs]

I discovered the bird you heard was a Varied Thrush.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dlFXGfbcYvg&app=desktop