What Kind of Birds Chirp at Night?
Eastern whip-poor-wills, Northern mockingbirds, black-crowned night-herons and owls chirp at night. Whip-poor-wills make a sound that resembles their name while northern mockingbirds make noises that sound like bells, sirens and whistles. Night-herons can either squawk or cackle, but owls hoot or screech.
Male Eastern whip-poor-wills chant their call for hours to attract a mate during the breeding season. Their call is accented on the first syllable and the last syllable with a quivering note in the middle. Male and females in this species will make a short chirp to warn that a predator is near.
Northern mockingbirds mimic the sounds of frogs and other birds such as shrikes, blackbirds, jays and hawks. Their songs are a series of phrases that they repeat 2 to 6 times and last for 20 seconds or more.
Black-crowned night-herons bark when they feel threatened. Males will hiss to attract a female. Parents make a woc-a-woc sound to announce that they have arrived at the nest. These birds also scream and cluck hoarsely.
The Eastern screech-owl can make a shrill descending whinny or a tremolo. The tremolo is 3 to 6 seconds long and helps pairs or families find one another, but the whinny is only 1/2 to 2 seconds long. Males and females sing back and forth to each other throughout the day and at night.
