Mimus polyglottos

• Common Names
• Description
• Biology
• Taxonomy
• Similar Species
• More Info
• Further Reading
• Notes

Common Names

Click on the language to view common names.

Description

Physical Description

Habitat

The Northern Mockingbird lives in a wide variety of natural and human-modified areas and is common in suburban areas and towns.

Vegetation: arid lowland scrubs, arid montane scrubs, arid lowland scrubs, second-growth scrub, tropical lowland evergreen forest, second-growth forests and woodlands, tropical deciduous forests • Maximum Elevation: 3,100 meters • Foraging Strata: Canopy • Center of Abundance: Lower subtropical: lowlands, lower than 500 m.; subtropics. • Sensitivity to Disturbancet: Low

Typically found at an altitude of 0 to 3,793 meters (0 to 12,444 feet).[1]

Ecology: List of Habitats : 1.5 Forest - Subtropical/Tropical Dry 3.5 Shrubland - Subtropical/Tropical Dry 3.7 Shrubland - Subtropical/Tropical High Altitude 14.6 Artificial/Terrestrial - Subtropical/Tropical Heavily Degraded Former Forest

Biology

Diet

Mockingbirds eat a wide variety of food items, including insects, berries , earthworms, and occasionally small lizards.

Reproduction

The breeding season lasts from late February through September. Nests are built 1-3 m (3-10 ft ) above ground in shrubs and trees . Males build the nest cup with twigs , and females line the nest with grass . The female lays 3 - 5 greenish-blue eggs heavily marked with brown spots and squiggles. The female incubates these for 12 days, and the young are altricial when they hatch . Both the male and female feed the young, which fledge after spending 12 days in the nest.

• Breeding Habitat : Urban
• Nest Location: Ground-low nesting
• Nest Type: Open-cup
• Clutch Size: 3-5
• Length of Incubation : 12-13 days
• Days to Fledge: 11-13
• Number of Broods: 2, occasionally 3 or 4

Migration

Northern populations migrate; most are nonmigratory

Behavior

In addition to being well-known for its extensive song repertoire, the Mockingbird is notorious for its conspicuous and aggressive nest defense. Mockingbirds are often seen chasing large birds such as crows and hawks away from their nests. Common predators include hawks, owls, and snakes .

When Mockingbirds sing, they mimic the songs of other birds, animals, and even machinery. Several different songs are sung consecutively, and each song is usually repeated twice before switching to a different song.

Taxonomy

Notes

Name Status: Accepted Name . Latest taxonomic scrutiny: 17-Oct-2001.

Similar Species

Three species of mimic-thrushes (Mimidae) to compare: Brown Thrasher, Northern Mockingbird, and Gray Catbird. All sound similar, but are easily distinguished. Thrashers generally repeat phrases twice, then move on to the next phrase. Mockingbirds repeat phrases 3-7 times before moving on to the next phrase, while catbirds do not generally repeat phrases.

Bahama Mockingbird, Townsend's Solitaire

Members of the genus Mimus

There are approximately 48 species in this genus:

M. apicalis · M. columbianus · M. dorsalis (Brown-Backed Mockingbird) · M. fretus · M. gilvus (Tropical Mockingbird) · M. gilvus antelius (Blue-Gray Mockingbird) · M. gilvus antillarum · M. gilvus gilvus (Tropical Mockingbird) · M. gilvus gracilis · M. gilvus leucophaeus · M. gilvus magnirostris · M. gilvus melanopterus · M. gilvus rostratus · M. gilvus tobagensis · M. gilvus tolimensis · M. glacialis · M. graysoni (Socorro Mockingbird) · M. gundlachi · M. gundlachii (Bahaman Mockingbird) · M. gundlachii gundlachii (Bahaman Mockingbird) · M. gundlachii hillii · M. laevistriatus · M. longicaudatus (Long-Tailed Mockingbird) · M. longicaudatus albogriseus · M. longicaudatus longicaudatus (Long-Tailed Mockingbird) · M. longicaudatus platensis · M. macdonaldi · M. magnirostris · M. melanotis · M. modulator · M. natalensis · M. parvulus · M. patagonicus (Patagonian Mockingbird) · M. polyglottis · M. polyglottos (Northern Mockingbird) · M. polyglottos leucopterus (Northern Mockingbird) · M. polyglottos orpheus · M. polyglottos polyglottos (Northern Mockingbird) · M. polyglottus · M. saturninus (Chalk-Browned Mockingbird) · M. saturninus arenaceus · M. saturninus frater · M. saturninus modulator · M. saturninus saturninus · M. thenca (Chilean Mocking-Bird) · M. trifasciatus · M. triurus (White-Banded Mockingbird) · M. usambaricus

More Info

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Further Reading

• A bibliography of birds: with special reference to anatomy, behavior, biochemistry --. by Reuben Myron Strong Chicago: Field Museum of Natural History, 1959 UND url p. 114, p. 115.
• A catalogue of the flowering plants and higher cryptogams, both native and introduced, found within about thirty miles of Hanover, N. H., including a few cultivated species, to which is appended a list of vertebrate animals of the same region. By Henry Je [Hanover?]Printed for the Author, 1891. ENG url p. 76.
• A checklist of the vertebrate animals of Kansas / George D. Potts, Joseph T. Collins. [Lawrence, Kan.]: Museum of Natural History, University of Kansas, 1991. ENG url p. 15.
• A guide to the birds of New England and eastern New York; containing a key for each season and short descriptions of over 250 species, with particular reference to their appearance in the field, by Ralph Huffmann...with four full page plates by Louis Agas BostonHoughton, Mifflin and company1904. ENG url p. 355, p. 96.
• A history of the birds of Colorado, by William Lutley Sclater.. . London, Witherby and amp; co., 1912. ENG url p. 569.
• A list of the birds of New Hampshire. By Glover M. Allen. Manchester, N.H., Nature Study press, 1903. ENG url p. 191, p. 214.
• A manual of North American birds. By Robert Ridgway. Illustrated by 464 outline drawings of the generic characters. Philadelphia, J. B. Lippincott Company, 1887. ENG url p. 541.
• A naturalist in the Bahamas: John I. Northrop, October 12 1861 - June 25, 1891; a memorial volume, ed., with a biographical introduction by Henry Fairfield Osborn. New York, The Columbia university press[c1910] ENG url p. 48, p. 52.
• Abstract of proceedings of the Delaware Valley Ornithological Club of Philadelphia. [Philadelphia]Delaware Valley Ornithological Club. ENG url p. 26, p. 42.
• Annual report of the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution. Washington: Smithsonian Institution, -1965. ENG url p. 124, p. 152, p. 154, p. 154, p. 155, p. 434, p. 574, p. 74, p. 770.
• Archiv für Naturgeschichte. Berlin: Nicolai, 1835- GER url p. 55.
• Bird guide: land birds east of the Rockies from parrots to bluebirds / by Chester A. Reed. Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, Page, 1916, c1909. ENG url p. 181.
• Bird-life: a guide to the study of our common birds / by Frank M. Chapman; with seventy-five full-page colored plates after drawings by Ernest Thompson Seton. New York: D. Appleton, 1901. ENG url p. 192.
• Bird-lore. New York, National Association of Audubon Societies. ENG url p. 172.
• BirdLife International. 2000. Threatened Birds of the World. Lynx Edicions and BirdLife International, Barcelona, Spain and Cambridge, U.K.
• BirdLife International. 2004 Threatened Birds of the World 2004. CD-ROM. BirdLife International, Cambridge, U.K.
• Birdcraft: a field book of two hundred song, game, and water birds / by Mabel Osgood Wright.. .; with eighty full-page plates by Louis Agassiz Fuertes. New York: Macmillan Co., c1897. ENG url p. 76.
• Birds from Gabon and Moyen Congo [by] Austin L. Rand, Herbert Friedmann [and] Melvin A. Traylor, Jr. [Chicago]Chicago Natural History Museum, 1959. ENG url p. 322.
• Birds of Washington and vicinity, including adjacent parts of Maryland and Virginia, by Mrs. L. W. Maynard, with introduction by Florence A. Merriam.. . Washington, D. C., 1898. ENG url p. 200.
• Birds of eastern Canada, by P. A. Taverner. Ottawa, J. de L. Tachprinter, 1919. ENG url p. 206, p. 286.
• Birds of the Rockies, by Leander S. Keyser... with eight full-page plates [four in color] by Louis Agassiz Fuertes; many illustrations in the text by Bruce Horsfall, and eight views of localities from photographs; with a c Chicago, A. C. McClurg and co., 1902. ENG url p. 342.
• Birds of the United States east of the Rocky Mountains; a manual for the identification of species in hand or in the bush, by Austin C. Apgar. New York, American book company[c1898] ENG url p. 406.
• Birds of village and field: a bird book for beginners, by Florence A. Merriam. Illustrated. Boston, Houghton, Mifflin and company, 1898. ENG url p. 403, p. 63.
• Brigham Young University science bulletin. Provo, Utah: Brigham Young University, [1955-1976] ENG url p. 45, p. 48, p. 70.
• Bulletin - United States National Museum. Washington: Smithsonian Institution Press, [etc.];1877-1971. ENG url p. 137, p. 178, p. 223, p. 225, p. 228, p. 230, p. 231, p. 233, p. 263, p. 295, p. 316, p. 386, p. 397, p. 410, p. 453, p. 467, p. 470.
• Bulletin / Peabody Museum of Natural History. New Haven: The Museum, ENG url p. 186.
• Bulletin of the Bird Club of Princeton University. Princeton, N.J.: The Club, 1901. ENG url p. 19, p. 33, p. 77.
• Bulletin of the California Academy of Sciences. [S.l.: The Academy], 1884- ENG url p. 308.
• Bulletin of the Illinois State Laboratory of Natural History. Bloomington, Ill.: The Laboratory, 1878-[1918]. ENG url p. 332, p. 401, p. 401.
• Bulletin of the Museum of Comparative Zoology at Harvard College. Cambridge, Mass.: The Museum, ENG url p. 194, p. 201, p. 235, p. 240, p. 366, p. 406, p. 416, p. 649.
• Bulletin, Gulf Biologic Station, Baton Rouge, Louisiana State Board of Agriculture and Immigration., 1902-1910. ENG url p. 81.
• Cassinia. Philadelphia, Delaware Valley Ornithological Club. ENG url p. 35, p. 42, p. 62, p. 66, p. 80, p. 88, p. 98.
• Catalogue of Canadian birds, by John Macoun.. . and James M. Macoun.. . Ottawa, Government printing bureau, 1909. ENG url p. 691.
• Catalogue of birds of the Americas and the adjacent islands in Field Museum of Natural History. by Charles E. Hellmayr. Chicago: Field Museum of Natural History, 1934. ENG url p. 310.
• Catalogue of scientific papers, 1800-1900. Compiled by the Royal Society of London. London, C.J. Clay and Sons, 1867-1902 [etc.] Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 1914-25. ENG url p. 340, p. 754.
• Check-list and bibliography on the occurrence of insects in birds' nests. Ames, Iowa State College Press[1959] ENG url p. 208, p. 258, p. 489.
• Check-list of North American birds / prepared by a committee of the American ornithologists' union. Lancaster, Pa.: The Union, 1931. ENG url p. 251, p. 502.
• Check-list of North American birds: according to the canons of nomenclature of the American Ornithologists' Union. [s.l.]: The Union, 1889. ENG url p. 62.
• Color key to North American birds, by Frank M. Chapman.. . with upward of 800 drawings by Chester A. Reed, B. S. New York, Doubleday, Page and amp; company, 1903. ENG url p. 285.
• Entomological news. [Philadelphia]American Entomological Society, 1925- ENG url p. 45.
• FWS/0BS. [Washington]Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Dept. of the Interior. ENG url p. 139.
• Fauna of New England, 11: list of the aves / by Glover M. Allen. Boston: Society of Natural History, 1909. ENG url p. 205, p. 9.
• Fauna of New England. List of the Araneida. Boston, For Society, 1908. ENG url p. 9.
• Fishery circular / U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of Fisheries. [Washington]: The Bureau, 1931-1939. ENG url p. 89.
• Great Basin naturalist memoirs. [Provo, Utah]Brigham Young University, 1976-1992. ENG url p. 220.
• History of the birds of Kansas. By N. S. Goss. Illustrating 529 birds. Topeka, Kan., G. W. Crane, 1891. ENG url p. 600.
• Jahresbericht über die Neuerungen und Leistungen auf dem Gebiete der Pflanzenkrankheiten. Berlin: P. Parey, 1903-1905. GER url p. 352, p. 394.
• Memoirs of the Nuttall Ornithological Club. Cambridge, Mass.: The Club, 1886- ENG url p. 303, p. 343, p. 361.
• Memoirs of the San Diego Society of Natural History. San Diego, Calif.: The Society, 1931- ENG url p. 167, p. 19, p. 272.
• Miscellaneous publication - University of Kansas, Museum of Natural History. Lawrence, University of Kansas, 1946-1996. ENG url p. 40.
• Naturalist's guide to the Americas, prepared by the Committee on the Preservation of Natural Conditions of the Ecological Society of America, with assistance from numerous organizations and individuals, assembled and edited by chairman, Baltimore, Williams and amp; Wilkins, 1926. ENG url p. 749.
• Nests and eggs of North American birds; by Oliver Davie. Columbus [O.]Hann and amp; Adair, 1889. ENG url p. 393.
• North American birds eggs, by Chester A. Reed...illustrating the eggs of nearly every species of North American birds. New York, Doubleday, Page and amp; company, 1904. ENG url p. 346.
• Occasional papers of the California Academy of Sciences. San Francisco: California Academy of Sciences, ENG url p. 226, p. 271.
• Ornithologische Monatsberichte. Berlin. GER url p. 13.
• Ornithologist and oist. Pawtucket, R.I. ENG url p. 106.
• Our living resources: a report to the nation on the distribution, abundance, and health of U.S. plants, animals, and ecosystems / [edited by], Edward T. LaRoe.. . [et al.]. Washington, DC: U.S. Dept. of the Interior, National Biological Service, 1995. ENG url p. 509.
• Pacific coast avifauna / Cooper Ornithological Club of California. Santa Clara, Calif.: The Club, 1900-1974. ENG url p. 106, p. 124, p. 67, p. 94.
• Point Lobos Reseerve; State Park, California. Interpretation of a primitive landscape. Sacramento, [State Print. Off., 1954] ENG url p. 96.
• Postilla. New Haven, Peabody Museum of Natural History, 1950-2004. ENG url p. 32.
• Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia. [Philadelphia, Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia] ENG url p. 111, p. 124, p. 163, p. 217, p. 346, p. 458, p. 498, p. 589, p. 594, p. 687.
• Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington. [Washington, Biological Society of Washington] ENG url p. 123, p. 196.
• Proceedings of the California Academy of Sciences, 4th series. San Francisco, California Academy of Sciences. ENG url p. 781.
• Proceedings of the Nebraska Ornithologists' Union. Lincoln, [1900-15] ENG url p. 33, p. 49, p. 58.
• Proceedings of the United States National Museum. Washington: Smithsonian Institution Press, [etc.] ENG url p. 132, p. 15, p. 161, p. 162, p. 199, p. 213, p. 220, p. 24, p. 30, p. 302, p. 31, p. 33, p. 420, p. 49, p. 510, p. 550, p. 574, p. 599, p. 6, p. 607, p. 629, p. 669, p. 689.
• Scientific survey of Porto Rico and the Virgin Islands / New York Academy of Sciences. New York, N.Y.: The Academy, 1919- url p. 590.
• Teachers' manual of bird-life: a guide to the study of our common birds / by Frank M. Chapman. New York: D. Appleton and Co., 1899. ENG url p. 192.
• The Canadian bird book: illustrating in natural colors more than seven hundred north American birds, also several hundred photographs of their nests and eggs / by Chester A. Reed. Toronto: Musson Book Co., c1914. ENG url p. 420, p. 461.
• The Great Basin naturalist. Provo, Utah, M.L. Bean Life Science Museum, Brigham Young University. ENG url p. 499, p. 50, p. 520, p. 578, p. 59, p. 723.
• The Popular science monthly. [New York, Popular Science Pub. Co., etc.] ENG url p. 258.
• The bird book: illustrating in natural colors more than seven hundred North American birds; also several hundred photographs of their nests and eggs / by Chester A. Reed. Garden City, New York, Doubleday, Page and amp; company, 1915. ENG url p. 461.
• The birds of Illinois and Wisconsin. Chicago, 1909. ENG url p. 266, p. 266, p. 680, p. 680, p. 758, p. 758.
• The birds of Ohio; a complete scientific and popular description of the 320 species of birds found in the state. With introd. and analytical keys by Lynds Jones; illustrated with photos. taken by the author and others. Columbus, Wheaton Pub. Co., 1903. ENG url p. 251, p. 666.
• The birds of Ontario; being a concise account of every species of bird known to have been found in Ontario with a description of their nests and eggs and instructions for collecting birds and preparing and preserving skins By Thomas McIlwraith. London, T. F. Unwin, 1894. ENG url p. 386.
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Notes

Contributors

• BirdLife International 2004. In IUCN 2008. 2008 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCNRedList.org. Downloaded July 18, 2008.
• Bisby, F.A., Y.R. Roskov, M.A. Ruggiero, T.M. Orrell, L.E. Paglinawan, P.W. Brewer, N. Bailly, J. van Hertum, eds (2007). Species 2000 and ITIS Catalogue of Life: 2007 Annual Checklist. Species 2000: Reading, U.K.
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility. Accessed March 11, 2008. http://www.gbif.org Mediated distribution data from 13 providers.
• Hines, J. E., Gregory Gough, J. R. Sauer, et al. USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center
• NatureServe. 2003. Downloadable animal data sets. NatureServe Central Databases. Accessed February 6, 2005.
• Parker III, T.A., D.F. Stotz, and J.W. Fitzpatrick, and quot;Ecological and Distributional Databases for Neotropical Birds, and quot; in Neotropical Birds: Ecology and Conservation, by D.F. Stotz, T.A. Parker III, J.W. Fitzpatrick, and D.K. Moskovits (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1996). ISBN 0-226-64676-9.
• Peterson, Alan P. Zoological Nomenclature Resource. Accessed June 19, 2009.
• Pippen, Jeffrey S. Jeff's Nature Page. Accessed December 2, 2007.
• Sauer, J. R., J. E. Hines, and J. Fallon. 2005. The North American Breeding Bird Survey, Results and Analysis 1966 - 2004. Version 2005.2. USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Laurel, MD
• Sauer, J. R., S. Schwartz, and B. Hoover. 1996. The Christmas Bird Count Home Page. Version 95.1. USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Laurel, MD
• The Georgia Museum of Natural History and Georgia Department of Natural Resources

Data Sources

Accessed through GBIF Data Portal March 11, 2008:

• Avian Knowledge Network: eBird
• Avian Knowledge Network: Great Backyard Bird Count
• Avian Knowledge Network: Project FeederWatch
• Avian Knowledge Network: Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory - Section Survey
• Bernice Pauahi Bishop Museum: Bishop Museum Natural History Specimen Data
• Bird Studies Canada: Marsh Monitoring Program - Birds
• Bird Studies Canada: Ontario Breeding Bird Atlas 1981-1985
• Bird Studies Canada: Ontario Breeding Bird Atlas 2001-2005
• Borror Laboratory of Bioacoustics
• Canadian Biodiversity Information Facility: Provincial Museum of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada. Birds (Aves)
• Canadian Biodiversity Information Facility: Royal British Columbia Museum
• Canadian Museum of Nature: Canadian Museum of Nature Bird Collection
• Cornell University Museum of Vertebrates: Bird Collection
• Museum of Vertebrate Zoology: Terrestrial vertebrate specimens
• New Brunswick Museum: NBM birds
• Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History: Santa Barbara Musem of Natural History
• UCLA-Dickey Bird Collection (UCLA-Dickey): Bird specimens
• UNIBIO, IBUNAM: CNAV/Coleccion Nacional de Aves
• University of Colorado Museum: Zoological specimens

Identifiers

• Biodiversity Heritage Library NamebankID: 3848243
• Catalogue of Life Accepted Name Code: ITS-178622
• Global Biodiversity Information Facility Taxonkey: 14579158
• Integrated Taxonomic Information System (ITIS) Taxonomic Serial Number (TSN): 178620
• IUCN ID: 51936
• Natural Heritage Network Species Identifier: ABPBK03010
• Zipcode Zoo Species Identifier: 274

Footnotes

1. Mean = 398.680 meters (1,308.005 feet), Standard Deviation = 935.230 based on 20,000 observations. Altitude information for each observation from British Oceanographic Data Centre. [back]

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