Catbirds

Gray catbirds inhabit my back yard. I have cats inside, why not outside? Catbirds generally chatter a lot, like mockingbirds mimicking other birds and sounds they’ve learned. But they can actually sound like cats with one of their single vocalizations, until you really listen to it.

I rescue cats, and I’ve done so for at least 40 years. If there’s a cat in my vicinity I want to know about it just to be sure it doesn’t have any needs. When I first moved in I heard cats or maybe kittens meowing out in our back yards, intermittently, and I was out there with a flashlight looking for the cat or kitten. Catbird was probably laughing. It wasn’t until one was tucked into a forsythia that I saw it move to make the sound when I heard the sound.

They are kind of silly, and I really enjoy their chatter. My cats chatter back at them, but their chatter has a different meaning.

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