'Singing' bellbird

General birdwatching discussion, help with bird identification, and all other things relating to wild birds and birding in NZ that don't fit in one of the other forums.
JohnG
Posts: 18
Joined: Fri Oct 03, 2014 9:00 am

'Singing' bellbird

Postby JohnG » Sun Dec 02, 2018 10:12 am

Walking past a mature roadside tree in Redcliffs (Christchurch) we heard birdsong which we first thought was blackbird or starling but couldn't actually see the bird. However it was a continuous 'song' with a variety of notes - we listened to it for 3 or 4 minutes. We had a quick errand up the road and when we walked back it was still singing. Unfortunately we weren't able to record it. The bird then flew across the road and landed in a front garden tree, carried on singing and turned out to be a bellbird - not uncommon here. In Sumner just around the corner I hear bellbird most days so am familiar with its calls/song. It definitely didn't have any of the normal 'ringing' notes normally associated with bellbirds in any of its song and so far I've not managed to find any audio online that matches what we heard. Is what we heard unusual?
Joanna10
Posts: 117
Joined: Tue Jan 28, 2014 10:20 pm

Re: 'Singing' bellbird

Postby Joanna10 » Mon Dec 03, 2018 7:56 pm

Perhaps a young bird learning to sing. I remember being puzzled by a call which didnt sound at all like a tui but turned it that was one: an immature bird just learning the ropes.
JohnG
Posts: 18
Joined: Fri Oct 03, 2014 9:00 am

Re: 'Singing' bellbird

Postby JohnG » Tue Dec 04, 2018 3:28 pm

Hi Joanna,
Thanks for this. I think you are right. I've spent a bit more time and found something similar to what we heard on NZbirdsonline - "Solo song, possibly bird of the year...".

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