Search results
Results From The WOW.Com Content Network
The song of the lyrebird is a mixture of elements of its own song and mimicry of other species. Lyrebirds render with great fidelity the individual songs of other birds [14] [15] [16] and the chatter of flocks of birds, [17] [18] and also mimic other animals such as possums, [17] koalas and dingoes. [7]
Wild Australian magpies, lyrebirds and bowerbirds that interact with humans but remain free can still mimic human speech. [6] Songbirds and parrots are the two groups of birds able to learn and mimic human speech. [5] [7] Both belong to the clade Psittacopasseres. If then introduced to wild birds, the wild birds may also mimic the new sounds.
Superb mimics, they are known for imitating other birds, pigs, rushing water, and even human speech. The polygamous male builds a tower-like "maypole-type" bower, an elaborate courtship structure, with a central pole of twigs surrounded by a dish of moss with raised walls approximately 1 meter in diameter.
In addition, many species of bowerbird are superb vocal mimics. MacGregor's bowerbird, for example, has been observed imitating pigs, waterfalls, and human chatter. Satin bowerbirds commonly mimic other local species as part of their courtship display. Bowerbirds have also been observed creating optical illusions in their bowers to appeal to mates.
Based on specimens sent from New South Wales to England, Major-General Thomas Davies illustrated and described this species as the "superb lyrebird", which he called Menura superba, in a presentation to the Linnean Society of London on 4 November 1800, but his work was not published until 1802; [5] in the intervening time period, however, the species was described and named Menura ...
Budgerigars, like many other species of parrot, are able to mimic human speech. [47] Puck, a male budgerigar owned by American Camille Jordan, holds the world record for the largest vocabulary of any bird, at 1,728 words. Puck died in 1994, with the record first appearing in the 1995 edition of Guinness World Records.
The birds are present in Germany, but their status is unclear. They are also found in Spain, where the most common parrot present is the turquoise-fronted amazon. Portugal , California (where the birds were largely introduced during the 20th century), Puerto Rico , South Africa , and the Netherlands have also reported sightings of Amazona parrots.
The pied currawong is generally a black bird with white in the wing, undertail coverts, the base of the tail and most visibly, the tip of the tail. It has yellow eyes. Adult birds are 44–50 cm (17–20 in) in length, with an average of around 48 cm (19 in); the wingspan varies from 56 to 77 cm (22 to 30 in), averaging around 69 cm (27 in).