Species Spotlight: Northern Mockingbird

Species Spotlight: Northern Mockingbird

Full of personality, song, and found in backyards and stretches of open land across the country, Northern Mockingbirds are the wild bird in this month’s spotlight. These feathered friends can be seen perching on fences or hopping along the ground. While in flight, they flash the white wing-bars that appear on their short-round wings as a behavior trait and for no known reason. These insect and fruit eating wild birds nest, built by the male and chosen by the female, in shrubs and trees.

Although Northern Mockingbirds are aggressive towards other birds that are threatening their territory, they have many unique features that set them apart from the rest.

Northern Mockingbird fun facts

  • Northern Mockingbirds were kept in homes during the early 1800s because of their song.
  • Throughout the span of their lives, Northern Mockingbirds continuously acquire new songs to sing. A male can obtain up to 200 new songs in his life.
  • You should be able to hear the songs of a Northern Mockingbird all day long and often times throughout the night. Nocturnal singers typically are unmated males and can be heard during full moons.
  • The songs of these songbirds can be heard from February to August and again from September to November.
  •  Female Mockingbirds aren’t as vocal of a songbird as their male counterparts but their song can be heard when the male is away and when they are preparing for winter nesting.

To attract Northern Mockingbirds out of the trees and shrubs of your yard, try offering diced, dried fruit in the Perky-Pet® Holly Berry Gilded Chalet; not to mention it adds a nice decorative feel in your birdscaped backyard. Have you heard the song of a Northern Mockingbird in your back yard?

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