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It’s a car alarm… it’s a jay… it’s actually the Northern Mockingbird! These gray and white birds, common across the continental United States and Mexico, are famous for their ability to mimic sounds in their environment, including other birds (such as jays and hawks), other animals (like frogs), and (unfortunately) car alarms. Both male and female mockingbirds sing, but you may hear male mockingbirds more, as they sing year-round and will even sing during the night – especially during a full moon! Male mockingbirds can learn hundreds of songs throughout their lives and continually add new songs to their repertoire. Bird species that demonstrate lifelong learning are referred to as open-ended learners. Some bird species know what songs to sing to communicate with their species innately from birth, but for birds that learn their song, it’s clear that the first year of life is critically important. So, what kinds of sounds are mockingbirds most likely to mimic? Research has shown that mockingbirds mimic bird sounds that are similar to their own calls in rhythm and pitch. This explains why mockingbirds don’t imitate the slow coos of a Mourning Dove or the fast-paced chirps of the Chipping Sparrow. Interested in learning more about vocal learning in songbirds? Check out this paper in Science, showing that birds that learn more complex songs are also better at problem-solving. (Maybe the birds are telling us to whistle while we work!)
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