In the article "Sedge Bird," in Montagu's "Dictionary of
Ornithology" (Rennie's edition, p. 455), the writer says: "It has
a variety of notes, which partake of those of the Skylark and the
Swallow, as well as the chatter of the House-Sparrow." According
to my observation, it has a much greater variety than this. I have
heard it imitate in succession (intermixed with its own note,
_chur, chur_), the Swallow, the House-Martin, the Greenfinch, the
Chaffinch, the Lesser-Redpole, the House-Sparrow, the Redstart,
the Willow-Wren, the Whinchat, the Pied-Wagtail, and the Spring-
Wagtail; yet its imitations are chiefly confined to the notes of
alarm (the fretting-notes as they are called here) of those birds,
and so exactly does it imitate them in tone and modulation, that
if it were to confine itself to one (no matter which), and not
interlard the wailings of the little Redpole and the shrieks of
the Martin with the _curses_ of the House-Sparrow, the _twink,
twink_ of the Chaffinch, and its own _care-for-naught_ chatters,
the most practiced ear would not detect the difference. After
being silent for awhile, it often begins with the _chue, chue_ of
the House-Sparrow, so exactly imitated in every respect that were
it not for what follows, no one would suppose it to be any other
bird. It is called a Mocking-Bird here, and it well deserves the
name, for it is a real scoffer at the sorrows of other birds,
which it laughs to scorn and turns into ridicule by parodying them
so exactly. I never heard it attempt to imitate any of the Larks
or Thrushes, although I have listened to it for hours.
This bird was very plentifully met with in Wharfdale ten years
ago, and is also found in this neighbourhood, but I am not aware
that anybody in either of these districts ever attempted to keep
one in confinement, although from their powers of imitation, I
think the experiment well worth trying; probably the idea that it
would be difficult to supply them with proper food has prevented
the experiment being made. (May 2nd, 1832.)
I am surprised that no other writer on Natural History has noticed
the wonderful imitative power of this bird. So far is the above
notice from overstating this bird's powers of imitation, that I
have scarcely enumerated half the notes which it hits off with
such wonderful exactness.
In listening to one the other day for about a quarter of an hour,
I heard it give three notes of the Swallow, two of the Martin, and
two of the Spring-Wagtail; and in addition, notes of the House-
Sparrow, Whinchat, Starling, Chaffinch, Whitethroat, Greenfinch,
Little Redpole, and Whin-Linnet, besides the notes of half-a-dozen
birds which I did not know; at least, a reasoning from analogy
would induce me to think them imitations, and I have no right to
suppose they were not because I did not happen to recognize them.
I am not strictly correct when I say that it only imitates the
alarm-notes (called here fretting-notes) of other birds, for
although this is generally the case, it is not invariably so. For
instance, in addition to the alarm-note of the Swallow, _chizzic,
chizzic_, it also had the _whit, whit_, which the Swallow uses
when flying about, and the chatter of self-satisfaction (not the
song) which one often hears in a barn when two Swallows are
arranging their plan of operations in the spring. Again, in
addition to the shriek of the Martin, there was the note which it
utters when on the wing in pursuit of its food. There was also the
chirrup of the Greenfinch, and the _whee, whee, whee_ which is the
climax of the Linnet's song, by which it is so irresistible as a
call-bird, and which appears to bring down the flock in spite of
themselves.
Although the Sedge-Bird imitated all I have mentioned, it made
much more frequent use of the notes of some than of others--the
Sparrow, the Whinchat, the Swallow, and the Starling appeared to
be its chief favourites, whilst it only touched once or twice on
the notes of the Greenfinch and the Linnet. It had been very
sparing also in its use of the Chaffinch's note, until one in the
neighbourhood had begun to _twink, twink, twink_; then the
Mocking-Bird took it up, and _twinked_ away for fifty times
together. Next morning the Linnet's note was much more frequent in
request, and it also made more use of notes with which I was not
acquainted. On neither day did it touch upon the notes of the
Redstart, or Pied-Wagtail, both of which I had heard frequently
used by the Mocking-Bird before. On the other hand, I had not
previously observed the notes of the Starling and Whin-Linnet, and
therefore, although I have said that I have never heard it make
use of the notes of any of the Larks or the Thrushes, I would not
be understood to say that this never happens. It is, perhaps,
difficult to say whether it has a note which is not an imitation
of some other bird, but there is one which it always makes use of
when any person approaches its nest (intermixed, however, with the
notes of the Swallow, Whinchat, and Whitethroat). This is
something like _chur-r-r, chur-r-r_, prolonging the sound of the
_r_ very considerably, and in a style which would be quite an
acquisition to the Northumbrians if they could attain it. (May
29th, 1834.)
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