Red-breasted nuthatch
Chapter 10: More birds! More Sounds!
Subchapter: More birds! More Sounds!—Americas
From page 169 in the book.
His songs are a simple series of nasal yank notes, easily overlooked in the morning chorus. Little is known about these songs, but some attentive listening reveals that he varies both the speed of delivery and the frequency of those yanks, suggesting that the simple story for the closely related white-breasted nuthatch would be worth revisiting (see Explore 2).
♫688. At 4:17 in this recording, this nuthatch noticeably slows the pace of his yank notes, but if you listen carefully you will hear that he also lowers the pitch. In this selection, he sings two different series of yank songs, the first (let's call it A) for about the first four minutes, then B for the last eight. When listening to a red-breasted nuthatch, it is clear that you might have to listen for some minutes before you hear him switch to a new version of his song. April 4, 2012. Rattlesnake Gutter, North Leverett, Massachusetts. ( 11:50)
♫689. In this selection, believed to be from the same male ten days later, he lowers the pitch at the one minute mark, but the rate stays pretty much the same. The first series of yank songs (call it C) is different from those recorded ten days earlier (A), whereas the second series is the same as B above. April 14, 2012. Rattlesnake Gutter, North Leverett, Massachusetts. (8:51)
♫690. Listen here to just three songs, A, B, and C, back to back, and I think you'll appreciate better the potential for variation in the yank songs of this nuthatch. (0:19)