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Bird calls (Original Post) Figarosmom Jun 9 OP
LOL the last bird cracked me up. Emile Jun 9 #1
That's a Grouse Figarosmom Jun 9 #2
This message was self-deleted by its author Figarosmom Jun 9 #3
Thank you! snot Jun 9 #4
Sounds like wind-chimes.😊 Figarosmom Jun 9 #5
Wow, thanks for the info! snot Jun 12 #6

Figarosmom

(14,629 posts)
2. That's a Grouse
Tue Jun 9, 2026, 01:57 PM
Jun 9

Called the Awebo or the real name Willow Ptarmigan . It's from the Artic tundra.

I love the sound of the Redwing blackbird at dusk and the Loons too.

Response to Emile (Reply #1)

snot

(11,928 posts)
4. Thank you!
Tue Jun 9, 2026, 08:10 PM
Jun 9

Great to be able to see up close how they use their anatomy to produce those amazing sounds.

After watching an Australian tv show, I had to look up the bird that made metallic-sounding bell sounds – I believe it's the Bellbird or Bell Miner bird. I found some videos with the sound of their calls, but none showing any actually making that surreal sound.


Figarosmom

(14,629 posts)
5. Sounds like wind-chimes.😊
Tue Jun 9, 2026, 08:12 PM
Jun 9

Wikipedia

The Bell miner, an Australian honeyeater, produces its iconic chiming, bell-like "tink" or "ping" sound using a specialized vocal organ called the syrinx. This organ is located at the base of their windpipe (trachea) where it splits into the lungs.By forcing air over highly elastic, vibrating membranes inside the syrinx, the bird sets up rapid air oscillations that create distinct, metallic sound waves.The famous "chime" effect is created through a combination of individual talent and community behavior:Two Voices: Like many songbirds, Bell miners can independently control the left and right sides of their syrinx. This allows them to seamlessly sweep through pitches and modulate tones.Chorus Effect: Bell miners live in massive, highly social colonies. When they communicate, dozens of birds in a colony will utter their individual "tink" notes at slightly different frequencies and times. To human ears, this staggered, overlapping chorus blends together to sound like a peal of chiming bells or a set of wind chimes.

snot

(11,928 posts)
6. Wow, thanks for the info!
Fri Jun 12, 2026, 02:31 PM
Jun 12

I once heard a very different but similarly metallic-sounding birdsong, of the Black-Faced Solitaire (examples at https://ebird.org/species/blfsol1 ); I wonder if it has the same type of syrinx?

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