MOCKINGBIRDS AND THRASHERS (MIMIDAE)
(Mimus polyglottos)
Year-round
HABITAT: Common in suburban habitats, singing from rooftops, foraging on lawns; also more natural parklands with similar features
DESCRIPTION: Pale gray above and whitish below with long tail and legs; blackish wings with two white wing bars visible while perched, large white wing patches and outer white tail feathers revealed in flight
The mockingbird is best known, of course, for its mimicry, “many-tongued mimic” being the literal translation of its Latin name. He sings tirelessly by repeating a brief sound several times over a second or so, usually pausing ever so slightly before racing on to the next series, and the next, hurrying through as many as fifty different bursts of sound within a minute’s time. Sometimes he launches a few feet into the air, flashing the white in his wings and tail while singing, and then resumes his blistering pace from the perch.
Pull up a chair and listen. Feel the tempo—how many times he repeats a sound and how the transitions between sounds are sometimes abrupt, other times gradual. If you know the sounds of local birds, tick off those he has mastered: titmouse, cardinal, jay, flicker, nuthatch, on and on, perhaps even the sound of a cell-phone ringer thrown in, too! As with other highly versatile songsters, wait until you hear a distinctive song that you know you’ll recognize when you hear it again, then check your watch and start counting. How soon does he return to your chosen sound? How many other songs did he sing in the meantime? Try to estimate his repertoire and you’ll probably come up with one hundred to two hundred different songs!
When in mockingbird country, listen for a night singer. He’s a bachelor, seeking company from all those females who can hear him in the still of the night. During the winter, listen to how mockingbirds awake in their roosts, waves of harsh chats and chits sweeping among them from males and females alike.
Song beginning with imitations of flickers and ending with sounds of scrub-jays 
