April 21, 2008
Neighborhood pests - aka The Mockingbird
Written by Anne Mallory in Jaunty PostRaccoons, opossums, deer, rabbits…neighborhood pests can often be classified by what gets into your trash, your vegetables, or your begonias. But there is a more foul foe about — the mockingbird. Oh, this little bird may look small and sweet, but inside it packs the lungs of a first tier opera singer, one of those shrieking eels from The Princess Bride, and a jackhammer. “Look at the pretty bird!” you might say. Or, “Oh, what a beautiful melody!” But put one of those feathery sociopaths outside your window at 12am and have it sing nonstop for 10 hours, and we’ll see how lovely you find it!
When we first moved here it was fall, and the street was blessedly silent at night. Perhaps the hoot of an owl, the rustle of the trees, or the sporadic noise of a car might sound at night. Then spring came. Mating season. Mockingbird season. Our first guy lasted from February to June laboring in 12 hour shifts from 11pm to 11am. Sometimes he would sing longer. And his vocal range! Truly a talented little featherbrain. He had at least 60 different songs that lasted for a mere 5 seconds each - every one of them loud enough to pierce your soul. A never ending buffet that promised heaping plates of stinging variety. One can never grow bored of a mockingbird.
I nearly pulled my hair out that spring. 
Last year we were spared a mockingbird (blissful silence!), but this year they were on the rebound and we were gifted with one that I have to assume is an immature. He only has a handful of songs, and he bops from one place to another. He is ours from 4:30am to 5:15. I had started to think unkind thoughts about the fluffball until the other night when a terrible ruckus was raised and all of a sudden we had a fully matured piercer singing his three dozen tunes outside our window. He stayed ALL night. The horror! He had chased away our pre-pubescent mockingbird! Needless to say, darkness descended.
But thankfully the little guy is back! Our little 45 minute wonder is at it again and boy, am I relieved. Because at least with him on duty we get two or three song repeats (much easier to lull to sleep) and 45 minute shifts. So rock on, little mockingbird. I hope you soon find a young mockingbird lady friend to date! 
I’ve taken the tactic of just enjoying him - I can do that for 45 minutes. But honestly, I do not want one of those hundred song singing wonders again! And as they are protected by law, there is not much to be done other than to do this - 
or 
Anyone else have experience with mockingbirds? Or other pesky beasties? Any tricks to tame them? Or ways you’ve learned to coexist peacefully?
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Margo Maguire Says:
My only experience with mockingbirds was in the movie FAILURE TO LAUNCH. I think it was the heroine’s sidekick who bought a rifle to deal with the one outside her window. It was a humerous gag.
At my house, our worst pest is skunks. And there are quite a few of them in our neighborhood. Since we don’t have air conditioning, we’ve got the windows open in summer, and the smell of the skunks will sometimes wake us up. It’s horrible!
No worries now, though … I’m still in Europe - heading home tomorrow.
Shana Says:
Oh, my goodness! I had no idea about this problem. The birds are all quiet around here. No wonder why Harper Lee named her book TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD. Nt that you would ever do that, Anne, but I hope you found some good ear plugs.
Shana Says:
Margo! Fun to hear from you in Europe!
brownone Says:
Nope, no mockingbirds here. We do get an occasional turtle in the road that won’t move, snakes, possum, armadillo, but the worst is the pest that SHOULD be controlled…my neighbor’s dog
! UGH!! She walks it right by my house and lets it do it’s business on my lawn. Does she pick it up? NO! She leaves it there. Why would she think I want HER animal’s business on the lawn my children play? I don’t have a dog because my son is very allergic to them. Oh, and it’s even better when she lets him loose on garbage day so he can come rummage around and knock my trash cans over. I know it sounds mean, but I just wish the darned thing would get lost far far away!
Jenna Petersen Says:
Holy crap, Anne, that sounds awful! Earplugs? That’s my best advice. LOL
We’ve had howling dogs before, oh and the neighbors that like to ride by in their car at 3am with the windows rolled down and the music cranked up LOUD, but no mockingbirds.
Yet.
Amy Addison Says:
Anne: Well, we have frogs. But, Mother Nature’s keeping spring at bay and the night temps are down in the low 30s again, so they frogs have gone back to sleep…but I just know they’ll be back soon, and I’ll be an insomniac once again.
Kathryn Says:
I sympathize about the mockingbird… we had a woodpecker one summer attack the cedar siding on our house. Very, very loud staccato pecking, he was around for a few weeks and it went on all day long. He left us with several good sized holes, took out some of the natural knots in the wood. AND it gave me the creey crawlies thinking of all the insects (and how big they are) between the siding and the insulation. Like the mockingbird, we weren’t allowed to hurt him and there was no way to catch him, he just went higher up on the house.
Kathryn Says:
Sorry, that would be creepy crawlies…
Shirley Karr Says:
For a couple springs we had a crow who’d hang out in the big evergreen at the corner of our property and *caw caw caw* all day every day to the point my dh wished we had a BB gun. Last fall we had to cut down the tree because it was pushing up the neighbor’s driveway, so now there are no birds, but also no shade from the afternoon sun.
RobynDeHart Says:
The mockingbird is the state bird of both Texas and Tennessee - the only two places I’ve ever lived. So we have plenty of them. Growing up, they were most annoying because they would dive bomb our cat and the poor baby would have sores on his back. He caught a few of them, but he was so mild-mannered he mostly just let them torment him. But they don’t bother me much now. Can’t really think of any critters that are annoying, but I swear the people who live behind us mow their lawn every other day so if I try to work in my bedroom it drives me nuts with the constant lawn mower noise.
Anne Mallory Says:
Skunks, dogs, frogs, woodpeckers, crows and lawn mowers too! Earplugs for all of us!
Sending quiet vibes out into Jauntydom. *Ohmmmmmmm*
Anne Mallory Says:
Have a good trip back, Margo!