Northern Mockingbird

Northern Mockingbird

I’m a bird of high places…look for me at the tops of trees, fences, etc. I love to sing, sometimes right through the short summer nights. My songs are imitations of other birds, but one way to distinguish me from the real birds is that my songs tend to repeat, six times in a row. I like suet and insects. Watch for me to hop around displaying my wings as I search for my dinner.

Most Likely Found: In the treetops, In your backyard

When: Year-Round

Where I've photographed: Bok Tower, Circle B Bar Reserve, Fort De Soto, Joe Overstreet Road, Oakland Nature Preserve

Read more: Northern Mockingbird at Cornell Lab of Ornithology

Ebird: Northern Mockingbird eBird range


I have written 30 posts including a photo of a Northern Mockingbird

Northern Mockingbird

Lawn Service

October 27, 2016 - Northern Mockingbird on American Beautyberry I'd been in the blind for a while before the Painted Buntings ventured out.... Read more

Busy Birdbath

Colorful Backyard Fun

April 20, 2016 -  We had so many different birds that day - red cardinals, our new visitor the Blue Jay, our pretty Painted Buntings, the red House Finches, Mourning and Common Ground Doves, Northern Mockingbirds, the Brown Thrashers that are nesting nearby, our wintering Gray Catbird, American Goldfinches that are turning bright yellow,…... Read more

Defending His Turf

Interesting Branch-Mates

September 24, 2012 - ...Yesterday I wrote about seeing my first Rufous Hummingbird and how the bird was very territorial. Well, she had competition from this mockingbird. Mockingbirds are the most territorial birds in my backyard, especially during nesting season. Yesterday this mocker had laid claim to the same firebush as the hummingbird. They ended up defending the same […] Read more

A Quick Stop at Joe Overstreet

April 7, 2012 - The road is lined on both sides with fences, and birds often pose out on the fenceposts.  We didn't see any many birds out this time, though.  There were just a few Eastern Meadowlarks, a few Loggerhead Shrikes, and a small flock of Savannah Sparrows.  We reached the lake shore…... Read more

Happy Mockingbird

January 31, 2012 - ...I had to do some minor repairs to the fountain in our front yard.  I drained it right before we had freezing temperatures for several nights around Christmas.  The poor cardinals are used to coming to the fountain for their nightly drinks and baths, and they found it empty!  Mr. C kept coming back to […] Read more

Happy Mockingbird

September 13, 2011 - ...I had a good time watching this mockingbird in the backyard a few nights ago. He was standing on the roof of the house, doing his little flap-the-wing-to-shadow-the-insects routine. Except there aren’t many insects on the roof! Every once in a while, he hopped into the crape myrtle and grabbed one of the seed pods […] Read more

The Photography Bug is Spreading…

June 20, 2011 - ...Rich went for a walk without me the other night, and wouldn’t you know that he found a baby mockingbird at the base of a tree, posing beautifully in the setting sun?  I was proud of him — he took out his iPhone and took a picture of it!  (Probably just to rub in what […] Read more

It’s Embarrassing when You’re Missing a Tail!

May 18, 2011 - ...There’s a mockingbird that hangs out at the entrance to Fox Hunt a lot these days.  He has no tail!  We wondered if he lost it in a fight with one of the crows or other big birds (hint: if you see a tiny bird flying after a big bird and fussing, it’s likely that […] Read more

Mockingbird Fledglings Underfoot

May 5, 2011 - ...The backyard was alive tonight with calls of the mockingbird fledglings.  It’s fun to see them come out of the hedge and learn to feed themselves.  They remain quite fussy, and when this guy saw his mom fly by, he was sure was going to get a snack.  He pouted when he didn’t!   Read more

Tiny Baby Mockingbird

May 3, 2011 - ...On our walk tonight, a girl showed us a tiny baby mockingbird that she had found on the ground.  It had fallen from its nest.  While I was happy to have an opportunity to photograph such a young bird, I wish it had been under better circumstances. The baby mockingbird in our backyard is still […] Read more

From my Favorite Blind…a.k.a. my Back Window

April 27, 2011 - ...This weekend I spent some quality time at my favorite bird blind, my back window.  I had fun watching the birds hopping around the backyard in the evening.  I’ve been letting the wild grasses and weeds grow a bit in the rosebeds, because the Painted Buntings clearly enjoyed them.  Apparently they also promote good bugs, […] Read more

Say Hello to Stoneybrook’s Newest Resident

April 26, 2011 - Rich and I ate dinner on the porch tonight with Squirt.  The backyard was very active, pairs of Northern Cardinals, Northern Mockingbirds, and Brown Thrashers hunting for worms and bugs.  We watched one mockingbird in particular as he grabbed worm after worm, then carried it repeatedly to the same spot…... Read more

Stoneybrook Signs of Spring

April 6, 2011 - House Finch There are Northern Mockingbirds all over the place!  They've already started to raise their first broods of the year.  You can hear the babies' shrill calls all over the neighborhood.  Baby birds aren't exactly as discrete as their adult parents; they fuss and fuss until their parents feed…... Read more

Mockingbirds Abound in Spring

March 23, 2011 - ...It’s that time of year again!  Everywhere we go in Stoneybrook West, we see mockingbirds hopping around.  It’s fun to watch the mating rituals — it’s like birdie hokey-pokey.  One hops to the left, the other hops to the right, they have this great little dance.  Now do the hokey pokey and let the nesting […] Read more

My First Orange-Crowned Warbler at the Circle B Bar Reserve

January 30, 2011 - A Northern Mockingbird caught our eye as he landed on a bush full of berries.... "See you next weekend!" Swamp Sparrow Species List: American Bittern, American Coot, American Goldfinch , American Robin, American White Pelican, American Wigeon, Anhinga, Bald Eagle (heard), Barred Owl (heard), Belted Kingfisher, Black-and-White Warbler, Black-Bellied Whistling…... Read more

Neighborhood Mockingbirds

January 11, 2011 - There seem to be more Northern Mockingbirds than usual in our neighborhood.  They like to pose on tops of bushes, where they blend in pretty well.  It's just the annoying woman who carries what Rich calls the "bird deterrent device" (a.k.a.... my camera!) who seems to spook the birds into…... Read more

Quiet morning at the Circle B Bar Reserve

September 18, 2010 - Gulf Fritillary butterflies Species list: Anhinga, Belted Kingfisher (heard), Black-Bellied Whistling Duck, Blue-Gray Gnatcatcher, Blue Jay, Boat-Tailed Grackle, Cardinal, Caspian Tern, Common Moorhen, Double-Crested Cormorant, Glossy Ibis, Great Blue Heron, Great Egret, Green Heron, Limpkin, Little Blue Heron, Magnolia Warbler, Mourning Dove, Northern Mockingbird, Northern Parula (heard), Osprey, Red-Shouldered Hawk,…... Read more

Mockingbird

September 13, 2010 - ...There were three mockingbirds in the backyard tonight, all foraging for their dinners. They are fun to watch when they flash their wings to try to scare up some insects. This mockingbird probably didn’t realize how he was posing in great sunset light – but he did let me walk right up to him and […] Read more

Juvenile Mockingbird

June 24, 2010 - ...The neighborhood is alive with calls from baby birds.  Most have fledged and are fairly easy to spot on our evening walks.  Just listen for shrill calls and watch for “I’m hungry” kinds of wing-flapping.  This juvenile mockingbird attracted my attention with his calls, then he sat and watched me as I walked closer for […] Read more