[cobirds] Starling mimicry of Eastern Wood-Pewee

Hi folks,

I meant to mention this earlier, but about a week ago during a brief trip out to Tamarack Ranch SWA, I got a visual confirmation of a European Starling doing an amazing mimicry of Eastern Wood-Pewee.

For about half an hour I was convinced I was hearing a real Eastern singing from somewhere in the woods just out of sight, although I also noticed that I was only hearing a portion of the full song. I was hearing a convincing rendition of the initial 'pee-urrrrreeee' phrase every so often, but never hearing the subsequent downslurred 'pee-urrrrrrr'. Eventually I 'got close' to the pewee and my heart sank as I realized there were a disturbing number of starlings around. And finally, in the bins, I saw the culprit actually vocalize the phrase. The tonal quality of the mimicry was outstanding, and I mean right on the button. I wouldn't have thought it possible, except in recent weeks I've also heard starlings do outstanding mimics of Common Nighthawks, White-crowned Sparrows, Black-billed Magpies, and so on.

I offer this just as a cautionary note that any Eastern Wood-Pewee song heard at Tamarack Ranch should be investigated thoroughly. Sure, it's true that the starling had to learn the song from someone who could actually be present, and Eastern Wood-Pewee is certainly a probably find there. But just beware that starlings know this and will deceive you if you don't catch them in the act.

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Eric DeFonso
Coal Creek Canyon, Jefferson County, CO (at exactly 8,000' ASL)

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