# Why do mockingbirds mock? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 7, 2007, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mockingbirds-mock/399073 "2007-04-07T04:28:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![neorxnawange](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f4b2a3/32.png) [@neorxnawange](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/neorxnawange)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2007, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mockingbirds-mock/399073/1 "2007-04-07T04:28:33Z")
What is the use to them to sing like other birds? How do they use this skill to their advantage? ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2007, 4:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mockingbirds-mock/399073/2 "2007-04-07T04:31:58Z")
I mentioned some of the possible benefits of avian mimicry in my staff report: [How come parrots, etc., talk but chickens don’t?](http://www.straightdope.com/mailbag/mtalkingbirds.html) > [@](#): > > . . .[M]any birds mimic the calls of other species, and have been known to imitate such things as telephones, alarms, and chainsaws. Why? The best guess is that imitation is the easiest way to increase the repertoire of calls a given individual can make. And what’s so good about having a big repertoire? There are several possible benefits: (1) A big repertoire can indicate to a female that a male has been around awhile and thus is a good survivor, with enough experience to be a suitable mate. (2) The response of a female or rival to a particular song is likely to decline after long repetition. Constantly changing songs may help to maintain interest in the listener. In fact, it is often species that sing continuously for long periods like the mockingbird that have the largest repertoires. (3) Changing songs could interfere with a rival’s–or perhaps a predator’s–ability to track the singer’s wherabouts. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2007, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mockingbirds-mock/399073/3 "2007-04-07T14:05:21Z")
[QUOTE=neorxnawange] Why do mockingbirds mock? [/QUOTE] Because they haven’t mastered more subtle forms of satire? ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2007, 2:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mockingbirds-mock/399073/4 "2007-04-07T14:19:46Z")
Just like human eyes are sensitive to different colors than other creatures, I suspect the human ear + brain hears/interprets bird sounds differently than birds do. So the human observation that a mockingbird’s song sounds like some other bird may be in the ear of the beholder. We certainly don’t know if a mockingbird is deliberately copying a sound it heard or creating it anew. Humans are very good at finding patterns. If you think a bird sounds like a chain saw, that is a match made in your mind. It doesn’t mean the bird was consciously imitating a chain saw. On the other hand, it is thought that parrots can and do imitate sounds they hear, so I see no reason why other talented birds couldn’t do that, too. I guess the only way we could test that would be to rear birds in a controlled environment where they heard few sounds even from other birds, then see what sounds they make upon maturity. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2007, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mockingbirds-mock/399073/5 "2007-04-07T18:10:47Z")
Ever hear a lyrebird mimic things? It’s definately not you imagining you hear a chainsaw. There was a really neat video on YouTube of one of those things going to town - it did thunder and a chainsaw and something else, I forget what. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2007, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mockingbirds-mock/399073/6 "2007-04-07T18:31:59Z")
[QUOTE=Musicat] Just like human eyes are sensitive to different colors than other creatures, I suspect the human ear + brain hears/interprets bird sounds differently than birds do. So the human observation that a mockingbird’s song sounds like some other bird may be in the ear of the beholder. We certainly don’t know if a mockingbird is deliberately copying a sound it heard or creating it anew. Humans are very good at finding patterns. If you think a bird sounds like a chain saw, that is a match made in your mind. It doesn’t mean the bird was consciously imitating a chain saw. [/quote] This phenomenon has been studied to a considerable extent. It’s quite certain that the birds are copying environmental sounds, especially the songs of other birds. Someone experienced in bird vocalizations can listen to a mimicking species and clearly identify the calls of local species. Some mimics replicate the calls of dozens of species, often quite well. Sometimes one is only able to tell it’s a mimic because a whole bunch of species seem to be calling from one clump of leaves. Given the large number of different vocalizations produced and their close similarity to the real ones there is no possibility that the birds are simply producing random sounds that we merely perceive as the songs of other birds. It might also be noted that the birds only produce the calls of other species that they have might have heard within their range. (Interestingly, one can sometimes tell where a migrant has been because they produce the call of a species from their winter or summer range.) At one site where I worked in Africa we had a species of Robin-Chat, a group which is well-known for mimicry. In some cases we could only distinguish the Robin-Chat’s imitations from real ones because the Robin-Chat calls from near the ground and the imitated species is only found in the canopy. Once at breakfast we all started to laugh because a “Crowned Eagle” suddenly started calling from the shrubs next to our tents. This was rather like having a rabbit imitating a lion. > [@](#): > > On the other hand, it is thought that parrots can and do imitate sounds they hear, so I see no reason why other talented birds couldn’t do that, too. I guess the only way we could test that would be to rear birds in a controlled environment where they heard few sounds even from other birds, then see what sounds they make upon maturity. There has been lots of research on this subject too. The only groups that seem to be capable of learning calls are parrots, higher passerines (“song birds”), and, very surprisingly, hummingbirds. ---
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2007, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mockingbirds-mock/399073/7 "2007-04-07T18:39:50Z")
[QUOTE=Zsofia] Ever hear a lyrebird mimic things? It’s definately not you imagining you hear a chainsaw. There was a really neat video on YouTube of one of those things going to town - it did thunder and a chainsaw and something else, I forget what. [/QUOTE] [Here’s the clip](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HatwDWfnkbA). The ‘camera with a motordrive’ sound is quite realistic. ---
**Author:** ![Chez\_Guevara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/aeb1de/32.png) [@Chez\_Guevara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chez_Guevara)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2007, 7:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mockingbirds-mock/399073/8 "2007-04-07T19:28:47Z")
The clip omits a couple of scenes from the original. Firstly Attenborough scatters some leaves on the bird’s ‘stage’. Secondly the bird clears the leaves away before commencing his performance. Neat bird. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2007, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mockingbirds-mock/399073/9 "2007-04-07T19:48:05Z")
Right. It’s one thing to think that a bird sounds like a flute, but it’s quite another to recognize the particular song the flute is playing (as has been known to happen). At that point, you have to either conclude that it really is mimicing what it’s heard, or it’s the reincarnation or Tchaikovsky. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2007, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mockingbirds-mock/399073/10 "2007-04-07T19:49:27Z")
[QUOTE=Squink] [Here’s the clip](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HatwDWfnkbA). The ‘camera with a motordrive’ sound is quite realistic. [/QUOTE] That’s it exactly! I forgot the camera. There is absolutely no doubt if you listen to that that you’re just imagining meaningful sounds. ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2007, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mockingbirds-mock/399073/11 "2007-04-07T20:16:59Z")
At the University of Florida when I was getting my undergraduate degree, I would often bike past the football stadium. Several times I heard mockingbirds imitating the referees’ whistles. ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2007, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mockingbirds-mock/399073/12 "2007-04-07T20:20:40Z")
[QUOTE=John DiFool] At the University of Florida when I was getting my undergraduate degree, I would often bike past the football stadium. Several times I heard mockingbirds imitating the referees’ whistles. [/QUOTE] I wonder how they’d handle it if a bird whistled the play dead during a game. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2007, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mockingbirds-mock/399073/13 "2007-04-07T20:22:14Z")
On [this page](http://www.bl.uk/collections/sound-archive/listentonature/soundstax/birdwrens.html) you can listen to a recording Lawrence’s Thrush of Amazonia, which is considered to be one of the finest avian mimics in the world, known to mimic more than 100 different species. While it may not be apparent if you are not familiar with how bird vocalizations vary between species, to my ear it sounds as if there are at least a dozen different species being mimicked on that one short cut. ---
**Author:** ![neorxnawange](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f4b2a3/32.png) [@neorxnawange](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/neorxnawange)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2007, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mockingbirds-mock/399073/14 "2007-04-07T22:44:48Z")
Colibri - So what bird species is the best mimic? ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [April 7, 2007, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mockingbirds-mock/399073/15 "2007-04-07T23:01:39Z")
[QUOTE=neorxnawange] Colibri - So what bird species is the best mimic? [/QUOTE] Most accurate at replicating sounds? I’m not certain, but the Australian lyrebird linked to above would certainly be a contender. As for the species that has been reported mimicking the most other songs, that is probably Lawrence’s Thrush, which I just mentioned. If I recall correctly the species has been reported to mimic at least 170 other birds, and a single individual may mimic over 70 species in a single song bout. ---
**Author:** ![Daithi\_Lacha](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/daithi_lacha/32/5430_2.png) [@Daithi\_Lacha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Daithi_Lacha)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2007, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mockingbirds-mock/399073/16 "2007-06-17T15:19:41Z")
I’m sorry, I’m bumping this thread because I have a related question, but I don’t necessarily think it deserves its own thread: How often does a mockingbird need to hear another call before it “learns” it? And once learned, do they hold that song in their memories forever, or will it degrade over time? ---
**Author:** ![Full\_Metal\_Lotus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/df705f/32.png) [@Full\_Metal\_Lotus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Full_Metal_Lotus)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2007, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mockingbirds-mock/399073/17 "2007-06-17T19:29:17Z")
Bit of a side track here… Ravens can be quite good mimics… I used to work in a building that was located on the rear corner of an elementary school yard. Beside the building, and just outside my office was a mature tree that was a favorite station with a flock of ravens.(what is the collective noun for Ravens?). During nice weather, I would often open the window, and could hear the ravens cawing and croaking. Occaisionally, though, I would hear them mimicing the sound of the bells that announced recess, and even the sounds of kids playing, yelling screaming and such. It was fascinating, the reproduction was quite good, just quieter. regards FML ---
**Author:** ![Daithi\_Lacha](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/daithi_lacha/32/5430_2.png) [@Daithi\_Lacha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Daithi_Lacha)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2007, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mockingbirds-mock/399073/18 "2007-06-17T19:52:43Z")
[QUOTE=Full Metal Lotus] (what is the collective noun for Ravens?). [/QUOTE] Great question – and a wonderful answer: It’s a _murder_ of ravens. I’ve heard them do mimicry, too, in Ireland. Not too hard imagining one letting out with a “Nevermore!” ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2007, 10:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mockingbirds-mock/399073/19 "2007-06-17T22:10:51Z")
[QUOTE=Musicat] On the other hand, it is thought that parrots can and do imitate sounds they hear [/QUOTE] I can’t quite understand why you would state the case so weakly. It isn’t just _thought_ that parrots can mimic. It’s _known_ beyond any reasonable doubt. Anecdotally: There’s a Budgerigar on my shoulder right now - and he just said ‘Hello squeaky bird’ ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2007, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mockingbirds-mock/399073/20 "2007-06-17T22:12:21Z")
[QUOTE=Daithi Lacha] Great question – and a wonderful answer: It’s a _murder_ of ravens. [/QUOTE] I think it’s a murder of crows. An _unkindness_ of ravens. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-mockingbirds-mock/399073.md?page=2)