What was the bird sound I heard this morning ??

[bionicmole]

Hello, hopefully this will be a very simple question for people who know more about birds than I do. This morning while out walking I heard several small birds making a sound that sounded exactly like two pebbles being banged together. The birds were too far away and hidden in thick bushes so I couldn't get a look at them. It was dawn and it was in Plymouth.

Also, might I have seen a Wheatear a couple of days ago? Are they about this time of year?

Many thanks for your help.

[Muggsy]

my money would be on Blackcaps

[posie]

Welcome to WAB,

..Yes wheatears are about...see 'Bird of the Day ' thread for sightings and photos....Posie..

[stevensi]

Sounds like a stonechat to me. That is how did they get their name as their call sounds like to pebbles banging together. In my area they took a bit of a hammering over the winter months as they are a litle scarce on the ground at the moment. Hopefully a good breeding season will help them this year to bounce back!

And yes wheatears are about at the moment in fact they are one of the earliest migrants to make it back to our shores in spring!

[thebeard]

i heard this the other day and tracked it down, turned out to be a Blackcap

[thebeard]

heres a recording

http://www.xeno-canto.org/sounds/upl...409%201349.mp3

[darrenm]

i would go for Blackcap if it was in scrub or woodland and the sound is an alarm call. Could be a Stonechat if more in the open with some scrub cover and again it is an alarm call but they normally give themselves away by showing eventually.

[nigel_b]

Without hearing the sound its difficult (hard enough sometimes when you can hear it) but I'd have to say stonechat too.

Stonechats do tend to make themselves known visually so your bit about being hidden away in a bush is a bit of a worry.

[david156]

I would go for stonechat but its very hard to describe sounds.
Your best bet is to go to a website like the RSPB and listen on there.

The RSPB: Stonechat

Hope the link works.

Cheers David

[darrenm]

with your question about Wheatear at the end of your post they certainly are about and on migration passge at present and will put down just about anywhere there is food after making a long flight up from their wintering grounds. They dont tend to hang around too long though but fuel up quickly and then are off to their breeding grounds in the uplands. The Males normally arrive first and the females follow on a few weeks after. The Greenland breeding race normally arrives a bit later.

With your original question both Stonechat and Blackcap make the noise you describe and we used to count Blackcap by attracting them into the open by tapping two small pebbles together by hand for a few seconds whilst doing woodland Blackcap surveys but once you had counted the bird you moved on so we didnt disturb the bird any further. Now you would most likely get shot for the practice.