Mystery Bird Call Circular Flight at Night

[saralm]

Hello everybody,

This bird call has been a mystery for several years, and I've never been able to find any recording to match it, or a suitable explanation. So I wondered if anyone here might be able to help? I'd be very grateful because it frustrates me every year!

I live in north Essex and about 0.5 km from my house is a lake with a small spinney next to it. The bird I hear seems to originate from this area, and flies in a fairly large circle, maybe 1km or so in radius (bit hard to judge accurately at night) calling intermittently as it goes.

I've only ever heard it at night - proper night and not dusk, so even though it's flown right overhead before I've never been able to catch sight of it. It seems to fly & call at various times throughout the night but I mainly hear it in the springtime, so I've always assumed it's marking it's territory or trying to attract a mate.

The sound is quite loud, not an especially thin call, quite vocal. It sounds a bit like a peeee peeee, followed by another peeeee. It's not exactly the same each time. The call is intermittent throughout it's flight and gives me a good idea of where it is and that it's calling as it flies. It seems to fly fairly fast at about 50 foot height.

I've observed the birds that live here closely over the years and I'm confident that it's not a tawny owl, barn owl - in fact it doesn't sound like an owl at all. It has the same volume level as a little owl, but I've never heard of a little owl making that sort of call or behaving like that. Over the years I've seen a snipe and plenty of woodcock, but the call does not sound like any recordings I've heard of their calls.

Any suggestions?

[Dogghound]

Lapwing?

[scout]

Oystercatcher?

[faz]

to earley for nightjar etc so could be a lapwing peeeeeeeeeeeee wit pppppppwit but as a lot of birds sing at night now could be a host of birds

[rossy]

id be going oystercatcher, have you ever seen any there in the daytime ? rossy.

[Meta menardi]

I read your question, and the first thing that came to my mind was an Oystercatcher, then read on to see others think so too. They certainly circle again and again at this time of year, and your description of the call seems about right.

[tcvarlh]

Pop into this : The RSPB: Oystercatcher
and compare
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[saralm]

Hello all,

Thanks for your suggestions & the recording.

No, certain it's not a lapwing or an oystercatcher. I'm familiar with both birds, listened to the recording too and the call of this bird is not the same. It's more of a non-undulating call, less shrill or nasal, and has a more honking quality than the lapwing or oystercatcher.

We have lapwings, but I've never seen an oystercatcher here.

Perhaps Peeeee is not the best description but I find it very hard to describe calls! It's a more solid a noise. Any other thoughts?

Plus I've not heard it for a while now - best thing I could do would be to record it I guess, I might be too late for this year.

Also, there is no artificial light here, we're out in the sticks - it's not a bird that thinks it's daytime, it's flying in pitch black.

Thanks for suggestions thus far... please feel free to make more!

[saralm]

Meta Menardi - do the Oystercatchers fly & call at night? The thing with this bird is it circles, but only does it once, or a couple of times, and then you don't hear it again. So it calls when it's flying and then seems to shut up when it lands.

I don't think it's an oystercatcher, but I can't help but think it might be some sort of water / wading bird, as it does seem to centre around the lake. Unfortunately I'm not organised enough to have made a note of dates / times when I've heard it, but it seems to start winter time and carry on til early spring.

I think I def need to try and get a recording of it.

[RoyW]

Oystercatchers will fly and call at night, but I don't think that that is the most likely explanation in your area (a few pairs do bred inland in Essex, but almost always by reservoirs or large gravel pits, and I think that you would regularly see them around during the day if they were breeding).

Have you considered Moorhen? This may seem like an unlikely suggestion, but they do sometimes have nocturnal flights around their territories, and some of their calls may well fit your description.
One example here (+ click on the name on the linked page to find recordings of a variety of other calls).