Name that bird call!

[Heloise]

Hi, I have recently been left puzzled by a bird call I have never heard before in my garden in Buckinghamshire. It sounds like a single bird, but going through a fast succession of different spurts of bird song, all of varying in pitch and tempo. A schizophrenic blackbird perhaps? Any ideas?

[Dogghound]

Could be quite a variety of birds, what sort of sounds does it make? any notes that stand out? what sort of habitat is it? what habitat surrounds you?

[catxx]

I noticed something very similar when I was at my mum's in Gloucestershire and was lucky enough to spot it, it was a Blackcap. Find some soundbites of that one and see if it's something similar? It had a lot more volume and speed than a Blackbird or Robin!

[Picidae]

Originally Posted by Heloise

A schizophrenic blackbird perhaps? Any ideas?

Try listening to a Song Thrush recording on the RSPB site below

The RSPB: Song thrush

[michael23]

could well be a great tit, they are so capable of many different sounds, causing quite a lot of confusion.

[Heloise]

Ah Ha! yes It would seem it was a song thrush! Really strange how it changes song like that, and great to hear it can be found in my humble back garden Thanks!

[Jonathan]

Originally Posted by catxx

I noticed something very similar when I was at my mum's in Gloucestershire and was lucky enough to spot it, it was a Blackcap. Find some soundbites of that one and see if it's something similar? It had a lot more volume and speed than a Blackbird or Robin!

Description sounds like a blackcap to me too:

http://www.xeno-canto.org/sounds/upl.../Blackcap1.mp3

Cheers
Jonathan

[Picidae]

Originally Posted by Heloise

Ah Ha! yes It would seem it was a song thrush! Really strange how it changes song like that, and great to hear it can be found in my humble back garden Thanks!

It was your description of a schizophrenic Blackbird - I've often thought of Song Thrush like that! Song Thrush have lots of overlapping Blackbird type sounds but can sound like several bird species singing completely different songs all rolled together at the same time - amazing repetoire especially at dawn and dusk.

[willowjay]

All song thrushes are called Judy (to me) as they repeat each call twice, and one bit sounds just like "Judy"