Talk of The Villages Florida - View Single Post - A Bird in Biscayne Villas neighborhood
View Single Post
 
Old 05-21-2016, 10:49 AM
Madelaine Amee's Avatar
Madelaine Amee Madelaine Amee is offline
Sage
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: The Villages North
Posts: 4,269
Thanks: 1,210
Thanked 1,038 Times in 372 Posts
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by CFrance View Post
In the evening, I take my dogs for a stroll around Biscayne Villas behind our house. There is a bird who flies all around, about 100 feet up, cheeping--a single cheep, over and over, is his "song." Then the bird swoops down to about 15 feet, and its wings make a very loud vibration sound, after which back up he goes to start the whole routine again. The bird is dark colored and about the size of a bluejay.

Does anyone know what kind of bird this is and what it's doing?
It may be a Loggerhead Shrike (look for one on the internet). It's about the right size, greyish with black wing tips and white underbelly. They are not the nicest of birds, the common name for them is Butcher Bird, which probably says it all. The bird probably has a nest close to where you walk and is basically warning you off. We had one in an oak tree next door to us, the crows stole the eggs and they never came back. My book describes their song as a grating shak shak.

Whatever it is, I think it is warning you and the dog off their nesting area.
__________________
A people free to choose will always choose peace.

Law of Logical Argument: Anything is possible if you don't know what you are talking about!

Since light travels faster than sound, some people appear bright until you hear them speak