All,
I have often noticed the phenomenon of birds responding, not to playback,
but to noise. Now that I understand the phenomenon better, I am less
stressed by it - I used to think it was Murphy's Law specially designed to
defeat me, but that may not be entirely the case!
This might be something we could study further. Marty's wonderful story of
the truck-chasing grouse is one good example.
Here's some examples of my own. I was recording the (very rare) Regent
Honeyeater near where I live in Capertee Valley NSW. A flock of about 10 o=
r
so were feeding in trees alongside a little-used road. They used
intermittent contact calls when the atmosphere was peaceful. If a big truc=
k
went by they called much more strongly. There were also volleys of gun
shots happening nearby - target practice on and off for an hour or so
(another Murphy specialty). This also made the Regent Honeyeaters call mor=
e
- when there were shots, they called more - when there were no shots they
didn't call so much. I put it down to stress for the birds, because the
noise made me more jumpy too.
But here's a case where the singing response didn't seem to be caused by
stress. Up in the tropical north, I was standing next to a quiet (but
tourist frequented) waterway, and quite close to a Grey Shrike-thrush, in
perfect early morning recording conditions. But the thrush would not call.
After half an hour or more of waiting, the first of the early-morning
canoeists paddled by, their voices and laughter echoing across the water,
and the Grey Shrike-thrush then began to sing strongly. When the canoeists
passed by, the bird stopped calling, until the next group of canoeists came
by, and so on.
Our Rufous Whistler is famous for its reaction to thunder, gunshots, and
other sudden loud noise. It always gives a volley of calls in response to
these. If you happen to be outside hammering at something, that really set=
s
them off. It is like they are passing comment on the noise, rather than
being stressed by it.
So what's happening here? Do you have any more examples?
Oh yes, it's shorts and t-shirt weather here too in summer Walt, but forget
the sandals, there's too many bull-ants and brown snakes about!
Vicki Powys
Australia
on 28/2/02 7:28 AM, Marty Michener at wrote:
> At 02:37 PM 2/27/02 -0500, Lang wrote:
>> I once rigged a mirror at a Ruffed Grouse drumming log, hoping that the =
male
>> would see his image at dawn and give alarm calls. I had a mike hidden ne=
xt
>> to the log, and I spent the night in my van about a hundred yards away,
>> connected by a long cable.
>>
>> Sure enough, after drumming for half the night, the grouse began giving
>> alarm calls at the break of dawn, then flew away after around two minute=
s of
>> calling. Within a minute or two, he began thumping from another log seve=
ral
>> hundred feet away. I got my recording! Next morning he was back on the f=
irst
>> drumming log, drumming away normally.
>>
>> I do not feel in the least bit bad about what I did. In fact, I chuckle =
when
>> I think about it.
>>
>> Lang
>
> Hello, especially Randy:
>
> Lang, I can just see it! Stories about ruffed grouse!
>
> One that drummed about 200 ft from the end of my driveway, for several
> years in a row, decided one year that every slow-moving vehicle was a
> territorial competitor. {Sound playback, mirrors, etc. have NOTHING to d=
o
> with it.} We would back our small truck out of the drive, and the grouse
> would come running out of the puckabrush from across the road, and positi=
on
> itself in the middle of the road (Hannah Drive) behind your vehicle, then
> as you began to accelerate forward, up the first hill, the grouse would
> rush triumphantly (sorry, Walt!) after the departing vehicle, running at
> full tilt but, of course, losing the chase. Then it would strut around i=
n
> the road for some time and disappear back into the brush. Here, I am
> struggling to avoid jokes about spousal impressment.
>
> We told my hunter friends about this and they just looked at eachother, a=
s
> if to say - another city slicker who don't know grouse. Then one day, th=
e
> MOST expert hunter was visiting me, and he backed HIS pickup out of the
> drive, made the turn and as he accelerated away the grouse made an
> especially convincing lunge for his tail gate. He stopped, got out, and
> walked back. The grouse gave ground, a bit, then both stopped and just
> looked at eachother. I was watching all this. He just looked at me and
> said: "Marty, I don't know what you feed your grouse around here but he
> sure is mighty spry!" He then drove away.
>
> He was not the only visitor to experience this Galliform tempest, and the
> bird kept it up, amazingly avoiding residence's cats and dogs for almost
> three breeding seasons. Now, we miss him (I'm allowed to say that, right=
?)
>
> At a point during all this, in April, I did record him one quiet morning
> with no roll-offs of any kind. During the recording process, the bird
> alternately drummed then acted like a nesting female, jamming its breast
> into hollows between the Cinnamon Fern fiddle-heads and making movements
> that I took at the time to be "come hither" gestures (sorry, again,
> Walt). One confused bird.
>
>
> my very best,
>
> Marty Michener
> MIST Software Associates
> 75 Hannah Drive, Hollis, NH 03049
>
> coming soon : EnjoyBirds bird identification software.
>
>
>
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