New Bird on the Block: Gray Catbird

 

The thrill of Baltimore Orioles at my feeders is no more. They’ve flown north for the spring, to Canada, according to my birding friend Richard. 

But then a new visitor with a sweet tooth began to frequent the grape jelly tray. 

What a handsome species is the Gray catbird! 

The All About Birds website says Gray Catbirds are related to Mockingbirds and Thrashers, sharing their skill at mimicking other bird calls. The name Catbird comes from a call that sounds like a meow. I did hear that myself once when on my back porch. I read that this bird can also imitate the croak of a frog! 

Click here to hear the Gray Catbird kind of sounding like a cat.  (credit to the Cornell Lab)

For about three weeks lately, this bird- and it may have been the same one- was recorded several times daily by my camera feeder (clips to follow). 

It really liked the grape jelly that was also a favorite of the Baltimore Orioles. 

This bird is distinctive for the wide black strip or stripe on its head and its black tail. I didn't spot an orange/auburn color near its rump but click here to see that. 

This bird much larger than the black-headed Carolina Chickadee that we see often here in the Charleston area. 

I still have the barbed wire installed to deter squirrels from getting to the feeders. I did recently try to remove it but found it extremely difficult to separate the several entwined strands.

Moving the camera feeder to my main feeder a few months ago solved the squirrel problem-knock on wood. 

To follow are a few 10 second video clips of my interesting new feathered friend, the Gray Catbird.