Rattle-like bird vocalizations
mail to: joyesm at gorge.net

Hi Tweets and Nancy;
On Sunday I too heard a rattle-like sounding bird. It sort of reminded
me of a rattlesnake but louder and more musical. When I got closer to
the sound I briefly saw a little brown bird standing on a log over the
creek singing. It was a bird and a sound I had never seen or heard
before; it was not an Orange-crowned warbler, Spotted towhee, Dark-eyed
Junco or Chipping sparrow. This bird was plain brown with a long thin
tail (that once flipped upward.) When I looked in Sibley's guide the
only bird that I could find that resembled it was a Wrentit. However the
distribution map shows Wrentits are on the west side of the Cascades. We
live on the east side north of White Salmon. Any ideas?
Joy Stickney-Markgraf