BirdNote; Jay's Whisper Song
- Transcript
BirdNote®
Jay’s Whisper Song
By Frances Wood
This is BirdNote!
[Loud squawking of a Steller’s Jay]
Do you recognize the loud, demanding call of the Steller’s Jay? Often in small family groups, these birds swoop out of a conifer, scattering the smaller birds at the feeder. Steller’s Jays have a wide array of vocalizations. Here are a few:
[Variety of Steller’s Jay calls]
It’s hard to imagine that these boisterous jays could possibly have a softer aspect to their blustery behavior. But they do. Listen to this very different jay sound called the “whisper song.”
[Jay “whisper”]
Male jays use this whisper song during courtship. This expression of the softer, gentler side of jays also emanates from solitary birds for no apparent reason. Imagine, for a moment, the familiar cobalt-blue jay with black crested head sitting upright. Quietly, the bird extends its head slightly forward, slowly turns it from side to side, and begins to softly sing.
[More jay whisper]
BirdNote is independently produced and funded by a non-profit organization called Tune In to Nature. If you’d like to make a gift to support BirdNote, come to our website, birdnote.org. I’m Frank Corrado.
###
Steller’s Jay audio provided by The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. Calls recorded by W.W.H. Gunn and G.A. Keller.“Whisper Song” recorded by G.A. Keller.
Producer: John Kessler
Executive Producer: Chris Peterson
© 2010 Tune In to Nature.org (Rev. Nov. 2007) Feb. 2010
ID# 020907STJA3KPLU STJA-04-2008-02-XX-KPLU
- Series
- BirdNote
- Episode
- Jay's Whisper Song
- Producing Organization
- BirdNote
- Contributing Organization
- BirdNote (Seattle, Washington)
- AAPB ID
- cpb-aacip-6966887fdff
If you have more information about this item than what is given here, or if you have concerns about this record, we want to know! Contact us, indicating the AAPB ID (cpb-aacip-6966887fdff).
- Description
- Episode Description
- It's hard to imagine that the boisterous Steller's Jay could possibly have a softer aspect to its blustery behavior. But it does. It's called the "whisper song." Male jays use this whisper song during courtship, and it also emanates from solitary birds for no apparent reason. Quietly, the bird extends its head slightly forward, slowly turns it from side to side, and begins . . . very softly . . . to . . . sing.
- Created Date
- 2010-02-27
- Asset type
- Episode
- Topics
- Science
- Subjects
- Birds
- Rights
- Sounds for BirdNote stories were provided by the Macaulay Library at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Xeno-Canto, Martyn Stewart, Chris Peterson, John Kessler, and others. Where music was used, fair use was taken into consideration. Individual credits are found at the bottom of each transcript.
- Media type
- Sound
- Duration
- 00:02:00.215
- Credits
-
-
Producing Organization: BirdNote
Writer: Wood, Frances
- AAPB Contributor Holdings
-
BirdNote
Identifier: cpb-aacip-eaef6259cd3 (Filename)
Format: Hard Drive
Generation: Master
Duration: 00:01:45
If you have a copy of this asset and would like us to add it to our catalog, please contact us.
- Citations
- Chicago: “BirdNote; Jay's Whisper Song,” 2010-02-27, BirdNote, American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC, accessed June 23, 2024, http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-6966887fdff.
- MLA: “BirdNote; Jay's Whisper Song.” 2010-02-27. BirdNote, American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC. Web. June 23, 2024. <http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-6966887fdff>.
- APA: BirdNote; Jay's Whisper Song. Boston, MA: BirdNote, American Archive of Public Broadcasting (GBH and the Library of Congress), Boston, MA and Washington, DC. Retrieved from http://americanarchive.org/catalog/cpb-aacip-6966887fdff