Several times a day, a male catbird serenades us in our yard. His songs are peppered with samples of other birds’ calls and songs, always entertaining. Catbirds are part of the Mimidae family, which includes catbirds, mockingbirds and thrashers. Our couple is shy, so we’re much more likely to hear them than see them when we’re outside.

Our friend Dea alerted me to an amazing David Attenborough video of a lyrebird (Menura novaehollandiae) going through its repertoir of songs. The video’s hosted at Google’s video service, but I’ve embedded the content here for your convenience. Take special note of the non-organic environmental sounds it has learned to immitate. All I can say is, I am glad our catbirds don’t immitate car alarms and chainsaws!

If you would like to see it in better quality video, try viewing it right at Google’s site.