Sound Journal
        supplemental information for entry
        05/20/2007 dawn

        Besides the hermit thrush (Catharus guttatus) you may also hear:
        yellow-rumped warbler, red-breasted nuthatch, chipping sparrow,
        common raven, great horned owl, saw-whet owl, brown creeper,
        western tanager, dark-eyed junco, and Williamson's sapsucker.

        Related Files:
        Sound Journal 05/20/2007 dawn audio clip
        http://www.rockscallop.org/ear/jh_070520-5am_birds.mp3

        Close-up of hermit thrush
        http://www.rockscallop.org/ear/jh-070520_hermit-thrush.mp3

        12 minute single: Ochoco Mountians: Dawn Awakening
        available as single or included in album Oregon Soundscapes:
        http://oregonsoundscapes.com/track/ochoco-mountains-dawn-awakening?permalink



        Here is a bit of pertinent dialog between John Hartog and other nature sound recordists
        on the naturerecordists Yahoo group.

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        May 26 2007

        I'm assuming I hear a Hermit Thrush, and in the background a Red
        Breasted Nuthatch, and a few other birds I'm not certain of.
        I am interested to hear what group members have to say about the
        "tic-tok" call. And also what woodpecker is drumming?

        (2:04min, 1.9MB, 128kbps)
        http://www.rockscallop.org/ear/jh_070520-5am_birds.mp3

        Recorded May 20, 2007 about 5:00 am, while I was taking a 722 out for
        a test drive in the Ochoco Mountains of central Oregon.
        Recorder: SD722, 24bit/44.1, with gain setting at 50 out of 70.
        Mics NT1-A (x2), head height, head spaced, ~20deg, with barrier
        Edits: 44dB digital amplification, and some high shelf eq to the hiss.

        Any comments or IDs will be greatly appreciated.

        John Hartog

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        Nice recording -
        I hear (at least): hermit thrush, yellow-rumped warbler, red-breasted
        nuthatch, chipping sparrow, common raven, great horned owl, brown creeper,
        western tanager, dark-eyed junco and sapsucker (species?)

        the calls ending with a loud 'toc' are the raven - a higher pitched call
        (possibly young) is given later. The drumming woodpecker has the distinctive
        pattern of a sapsucker - not sure which species you have there.

        Mark Phinney:

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        Lovely morning sounds, John. The drumming does sound like a
        woodpecker to me.

        Suzanne Williams

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        Thanks for commenting Mark.

        I will have to study up on several of those bird's calls. I was pretty
        sure that tic-tok sound was a common raven, but thanks for the
        confirmation. And the sapsucker, I believe is a Williamson's.

        John Hartog

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        Nice recording, John as usual. F.Y.I. I can hear: hermit thrush, yellow rumped warbler, red-breasted nuthatch,
        chipping sparrow, common raven "Tic-toc call", great horned owl, brown creeper,
        western tanager, dark-eyed junco. red-breasted sapsucker drumming... Very nice ambient...

        Martyn Stewart

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        Sounds like you've got the Hermit Thrush, Red-breasted Nuthatch,
        Yellow-rumped Warbler, Western Tanager, Crow (species?),
        Dark-eyed Junco, and your drummer. The drummer is a sapsucker.
        I'm guessing fromthe rhythm that it is Williamson's Sapsucker.
        I recorded a female Williamson's drumming in this abbreviated manner
        a couple of years ago. She didn't drum as long as the male does.
        Most woodpeckers drum a steady rhythm, the sapsuckers do the
        syncopation and irregularities. The Red-breasted and Red-naped
        tend to drum rapidly at first then throw in the variation at the end
        of the sequence.

        Kevin J Colver

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        Speaking of touring, the Ochoco mountains recording (from John Hartog, I
        think?) is nice. I biked the Trans American trail in 1996, and that goes through
        the Ochoco area and over the Ochoco pass. So I have been there. But at that
        time, I didn't pay attention to sounds like I do now, I loved the scenery, it is
        beautiful there! I can look at my old pics of Ochoco, and listen to the
        recording ! :)

        David Barnas

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        A lovely recording! I would love to be there.

        Volker Widmann:

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        I want to thank all on this list who responded – your comments were
        all kind and very helpful. I am glad to now feel fairly familiar with
        at least one call of Catharus guttatus the Hermit Thrush.

        Here is another short cut of when a Hermit thrush was somewhat closer
        to the mics. (1min, 927kb)

        http://www.rockscallop.org/ear/jh-070520_hermit-thrush.mp3

        John Hartog

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        'Any chance that the Hermit Thrush in your Ochoco Mountains recording
        might be a Veery? Several years ago, I heard a Veery for the first
        time in eastern Washington. At first I thought it was a Hermit
        Thrush. But, the experienced birders in my group excitedly described
        it as a Veery. (To me, the Veery sounds like a Swainson's thrush--but
        in reverse--with its sounds spiraling downward instead of upward.)

        FYI, here's the Cornell University recording of a Veery:

        http://www.birds.cornell.edu/....

        Rodger "rchapanis":

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        I am no expert on birds, but I still think hermit thrush is the best
        bet. If you go to the hermit thrush page on that same Cornell site,
        you will hear their recording sounds very similar to mine. I don't
        hear much similarity at all with their Veery recording. It seems the
        hermit thrush starts each phrase with a clear single note and then the
        fluttering twinkles.

        John Hartog

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        I just had a listen to your bird, and no doubt - it is a Hermit Thrush

        Mark Phinney

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        Very nice, John!

        Suzanne Williams

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        This webpage was last upated 6/25/2011.