Comment by try_the_bass | Hacker News Reader

Comment by try_the_bass | Hacker News Reader

I love this, love the writing, and share the joy of watching hummingbirds and swallows, but....

Hard disagree on the mockingbirds. Fuck those guys. A long time ago, I had one singing less than a block away all night, every night, for the whole summer. Loud enough to be heard with the windows closed. I either didn't try earplugs (this was a long time ago), or maybe they just didn't work for me. It woke me up and kept me awake for long periods due to the unpredictability of its song. By the end of the season I was seriously considering getting a bb or pellet gun and shooting the thing. Not to kill it, just to get it to shut the hell up. I still can't hear one today without getting vague twinges of anger over all the lost sleep.

Fuck those guys.

Huh. Here they only sing in the morning. Are you sure it was a mockingbird? I've heard people have that reaction to whippoorwills and other nightjars that sing loudly and repetitively all night.

They will sing at night if they're "frustrated" and haven't found a mate. I've seen song sparrows do this as well, but it was near a well lit area, so that may had some influence.

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/news/what-can-i-do-about-a-bir...

I honestly figured it was something like that. How else could he afford to spend so much energy all night?

100% positive it was a mockingbird. Huge variety in calls, including a handful that sounded vaguely like sirens and car alarms and such

When I first moved to the city, I had a mockingbird in a small copse of trees right outside my bedroom window, open to the summer heat. He imitated car alarms all night.

I envisioned him as a punk rock kid who liked to replay our human obnoxiousness back at us to see how we liked it.

I had a great deal of appreciation for that bird.

You and I had a very similar experience, and walked away with opposite conclusions. I find that pretty funny!

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