Monday, August 10, 2009

Lyre, Lyre, Pants On Fire

That's Not How You Do It, Mate

A lyrebird at Adelaide Zoo has been amusing staff and visitors by mimicking the sounds of construction machinery during work on a new enclosure and a new zoo entrance. Associate Professor David Paton, an ornithologist at Adelaide University, says lyrebirds are mimics and the calls are all about attracting a mate.

FOOTNOTE: Pneumatic dill.

11 comments:

Jinksy said...

Thinks:- How does a lady Lyre Bird ever tell whether her Lyre Bird mate is a liar? She couldn't believe a sound he makes...

Susan English Mason said...

Pneumonic drill, I'd say. But then again, do birds have itty bitty lungs? I'm thinking they do.

Maggie May said...

How funny!
There is a local black bird here, that sings its song and then adds a noise like an alarm from a vehicle that it must hear regularly. Really weird but clever!

i beati said...

I love the David Attenborough film documentary ..sk

darsden said...

We have a mockingbird that trys to sound like a hawk! It cracks me up and I tell him, he isn't fooling anybody ;-)

Teri and her Stylish Adventure Cats said...

Many giggles this brought on a Sunday morning. Thanks!

Eve said...

Haha... perhaps it's a girl bird - making power tool sounds to attract the men? ;)

Kay said...

haha...guess they did not get the memo that females run from construction mating calls :)

Maria said...

How would imitating a construction site attract a mate, I ask myself?

Mariana Soffer said...

Quite an interesting subject, the filrting among birds? Now I wonder how does this guy studing birds does his job with all the noice that is produced in the paragraph described above? Did they invenved a new genetically modified bird race that does not hear? So how do they communicate then? Seems like a sad idea

Shrinky said...

He'd best beware of what he wishes for (ouch, makes my eyes water just thinking about it), I'm surprised they are not an endangered species..