Here is a bird from my recent Caribbean trip, one of several that I hadn’t come across before – the Northern Mockingbird (Mimus polyglottos). These birds can be found year round throughout the southern and eastern US as well as the Caribbean islands and on through central America – it is also known as the ‘state bird’ of several US states including Texas and Florida. These tuneful birds, males can learn up to 200 different songs, were once captured and sold as pets as they just love to sing and have even been known to sing at night. But if you’re a bird do not venture unwarily on to their turf as they will harass you continually until you finally leave, even animals and people have sometimes been on the receiving end of their wrath and have had white wing patches flashed at them as a warning to go away.
