Tweeters,

Roger's note points out one fact which I have noted previously in
this forum: namely, that attempts to represent bird vocalizations in
words are very individualistic. A verbal description of a bird call
written by one observer may be unrecognizable to another. Luckily, the
same is not true for visual field marks.
That said, I believe the "PINK PINK PINK" description provided by
Nene could not apply to an Evening Grosbeak for a very simple reason.
The loud, ringing call commonly given by Evening Grosbeaks (I would
phoneticize it as "TCHEER!") is almost never repeated. It is given
singly, with a gap of several seconds before the next call. However,
that may be hard to determine if you have a large flock of Evening
Grosbeaks that are all vocalizing.
Red Crossbills' most common call is a sharp, repeated
"chip-chip-chip", which sounds much closer, in my mind, to Nene's
"PINK PINK PINK". However, keep in mind that what we call "Red
Crossbills" may in fact be 4 or 5 (or more) separate species (studies
are continuing), each with recognizable differences in voice. The
description I gave above applies best to the "ponderosa pine" form.
The "Sitka" form of Red Crossbill (the commonest west of the Cascades,
and probably the kind seen by Nene) has a somewhat softer
"chiff-chiff-chiff". The "Douglas Fir" form has a more
metallic-sounding "tlik-tlik-tlik", which still lacks the ringing
quality of the Evening Grosbeak call. These differences in Red
Crossbill calls may escape many of you, but they are striking enough
that I was aware of them when I was only about 13, and thought I was
dealing with different species of birds. In the end, it may turn out
that I was right!
All these attempts to turn bird calls into words, however, give at
best a wretched approximation of what the call really sounds like.
Nene, if you do not have one of the numerous good recordings (CD's or
cassettes) of bird songs and calls, I would recommend rushing out to
buy one-- most of them are not expensive. That way, after seeing your
"mystery birds" and narrowing them down to a few possible species of
finches, you could play the tapes shortly afterward. With luck, after
playing the Red Crossbill calls, you would say to yourself "Aha--
that's my bird", and be much more certain than you could from anything
that Roger or I might say.
Keep on birding, Tweeters, and if you haven't paid much attention
to bird songs and calls before, try doing so. It might open up a whole
new world for you.

Wayne C. Weber
114-525 Dalgleish Drive
Kamloops, B.C. V2C 6E4
Phone: (250) 377-8865
wayne_weber at bc.sympatico.ca


-----Original Message-----
From: Roger <rcraik at home.com>
To: tweeters at u.washington.edu <tweeters at u.washington.edu>
Cc: Tweeters <tweeters at u.washington.edu>
Date: Friday, November 26, 1999 11:18 AM
Subject: Re: Mystery Birds


>Hi all
>
>I'm not trying to stir up any controversy but "PINK PINK PINK" if it
is quite loud sounds an awful
>lot like Evening Grosbeak to me. Very noisy birds.
>
>Of course size could rule them out right away.
>
>Roger Craik
>Maple Ridge BC
>
>WAYNE WEBER wrote:
>
>> Dear Nene and Tweeters,
>>
>> It sounds to me like the birds reported by Nene were Red
>> Crossbills.
>> The interest in Douglas-fir cones and the call notes fit perfectly.
>> The "sturdy" build and finch-like bills also fit. The bills of Red
>> Crossbills are fairly thick (deep), but the crossed tips of the
>> mandibles are hard to see at a distance-- certainly not when viewed
>> through ordinary binoculars in the tops of 120-foot trees.
>> The colour, even if hard to see, also fits. Both sexes of Red
>> Crossbills have black or blackish wings, darker than the body.
Adult
>> males have dull reddish body plumage, but this colour is not bright
>> and could be hard to distinguish against the light. Females and
>> immatures are yellowish or greenish where the males are reddish. It
>> could be that this flock of 5 were all females or immatures.
>> All in all, from what was observed, I would say I'm almost
certain
>> these were Red Crossbills. (White-winged Crossbill is a
possibility,
>> but far more unlikely. They are generally quite rare in the Puget
>> Sound Lowlands, although there have been a few in the Cascades this
>> summer/fall.)
>> Nene, the next time you see Red Crossbills, I hope you get a
much
>> better look at them. They are quite striking birds when seen at
close
>> range.
>>
>> Wayne Weber
>> Kamloops, B.C.
>> wayne_weber at bc.sympatico.ca
>>
>