Night bird that gives one whistle.

by Mireille McKell
(Chillicothe, OH)

This bird gives one long high-pitched whistle every 20 t0 60 seconds. We live in the country with various kinds of trees around our house. This whistling started around the first of August and we hear it every night. It comes from several of the trees near our home. We usually only hear one bird calling at a time, but from different trees. We hear it when we wake up in the night, and it is still calling early in the morning when it is light outside, but stops very soon after. I don't remember hearing it other years. We have lived here 35 years; maybe we just weren't paying attention other years!

Comments for Night bird that gives one whistle.

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Aug 08, 2018

I Have Heard The Long Whistle Too NEW
by: ROsuch

It could have whistled before but it was at dusk and it has now captured my attention for several nights. Initially I thought it was a child with a whistle that he just blew on it with a long blow, not loud but long 6 to 7 secs. Night after night I realized it was not a child but could be a bird. I am now hypnotized at dusk waiting for the whistle and step outside with a recorder but have yet to capture on audio. I will keep trying and have emailed myself this link to come back and report.

Jul 28, 2018

SHRILL WHISTLING SOUND NEW
by: Linda

Looking for an answer to the shrill whistle sound. The past couple of weeks in the woods behind me. So loud. Dusk & dawn mostly. Doesn’t anybody know what it is?

Jul 24, 2018

High pitched whistle but daytime
by: Linda

Long high pitched single note whistle repeated over and over definitely coming from trees. Central NC, USA. Sounds similar to cedar waxwing but not raspy and note held longer.
Similar to what has been described here but during the day. Pretty confident it is a bird.
Any ideas?

Jul 16, 2018

Baby Barred Owl in Central PA! Agreed
by: JohnRider

I can finally stop listening to YouTube bird calls. Barred Owl Babies nailed it spot on.

Jul 13, 2018

Baby Barred Owl in Central PA!
by: Anonymous

Came across this thread after many nights of research! didntsleepfor48hours THANK YOU, we had identified the adult Barred Owls and never thought the mysterious night whistling would be the BABY Barred Owls!
Exactly what we are hearing here in Pennsylvania :)
Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wegQ5GX8DdA

Jun 22, 2018

No Matches
by: JohnRider

Navigated to this site and after reading a few comments I was sure someone had identified this sound/bird. Like other commenters, I’ve listened to so many night bird sounds and none of them are even close. Eastern Panhandle WV. One long whistle only at night. Wooded area, thought maybe it was a possum or raccoon not being familiar with either of their calls. The whistle will move location now and then so its certainly a bird of sorts. I hope someone can finally nail this down.

Jun 21, 2018

Long whistle at night
by: Anonymous

I heard it last night. (MA south shore). After researching i believe it's the distress call of the woodchuck aka groundhog/whistle pig. Check out this utube vieo: Groundhogs-Sounds of Whistle Pigs 2009 & 2010.AVI
chuckland200953,465 views

May 30, 2018

long whistle in Medford, MA outside of Boston
by: Anonymous

I thought it was some kind of kid's prank - it just started tonight, first time I've ever heard it. Exactly as people describe, but does not match any of the links people are giving. It actually sounds like a soccer whistle and lasts as long as 8 seconds. Only one pitch, with a very slight fading at the end. I recorded it on my phone. Don't know how to upload this for others to hear.

May 29, 2018

Birds that don't sleep
by: Wagner

Hello everyone, speaking of birds I've tried to figure these little guys out for a while. Look like tiny grey brown seagulls running around my large parking lot chirping all day and night. White bellies, lines on thier faces from beak to back of head. Eastern Pa spring time thank you much.

Dec 26, 2017

That one or two second whistle noise
by: Anthony

Ornothologists will explain that the noise that can be faint and varies in location can be an owl. Many species of owls 🦉 that live in a parliament. So those noises of a faint higher pitched brief steam sound is a means of communication or ways to stir up the small prey such as mice. This is done primarily so the owls can startle their prey so they move. once the mouse moves the owl's acute sense of hearing picks up the lower frequencies. Owls hearing is the way they zero in on the exact point of target. Nocturnal predators so you will hear those noises late. I have them frequently, and are a welcoming sound to me.

Nov 20, 2017

Nightly whistle
by: Selina

I cannot figure out what the whistle is. It started about 2 weeks ago. Every night around 11pm it starts, it whistles about every 20-60 seconds just like above described. It’s a one tone whistle. So far, it is 215am and it is still whistleling. This is the longest I’ve stayed searching what it could be. I went through all the other posters links and bird names and none of them match the sound. Though we don’t hear any movement, it sounds as if it is either on our roof or traveling through our vents, or maybe in the attic. It sounds very close as if within our walls, from one end of the house then it travels throughout the night. I’m certain it has access from the outside. We have a lot of nosy wildlife that could have made a hole. I will most certainly keep looking for answers and hopefully continue to allow it to shelter here. Hopefully, it’s not a snake or rodent.

Oct 22, 2017

Southern Oregon
by: aguablanco

I came to this blog for the same call: a long, shrill, sustained single note in the middle of the night. I didn't see it, but the call proceeded downstream along the river through the wooded riparian zone. I went to both the Audubon and Cornell websites, and the call is nothing like the barn owl or barred owl or flycatcher or nighthawk calls that I found there. The single high note (about 4-8 seconds long) was followed by 2-3 raspy...I don't know....maybe raspy cackles. A blogger below described it as what a dog whistle might sound like if humans could hear it gives an apt description of what I heard.

Sep 06, 2017

Unidentified
by: AnonymousKelly

I've been hearing the exact same thing, that's what brought me here, I've been looking everywhere trying to find out what ths is, it's been landing in a tree in my garden around 1 am and I can't find anything online that sounds like it, it's been here every night around the same time for 4 nights, I'm in the uk, it sounds like a high pitch screech with a slight paste then another and another then it goes quiet for a while before starting again, of anyone finds out I would be gratefull to ear as this has had me racking my brains

Aug 19, 2017

single rusty whistle
by: Gretchen

I have been hearing this single note bird at night here on Orcas Island in NW Washington. tonight it started earlier so I walked across the field as quietly as I could to see into the woods at the edge. There is a bit of the seasonal stream left down in a draw and I suspect it was there for water as we have had drought for months here. There was an answer to the main call as well, less loud. I expected a Night Hawk but I think those birds are much smaller than the very large winged birds that flew away through the trees at my approach. Wings a bit larger than a Red Tail but dark colored. Now that I look up Night Hawk and see that it's wing span is 24" I suppose it may have been though it seemed larger. I did not see the tell tale white mark on its wings though. Perhaps my eyesight is not keen enough to see in dusk light.

Aug 11, 2017

One whislte
by: sKo

A Great Crested Flycatcher is my mysterious whistler.

Cornell university has an awesome bird reference site.

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/search/?q=Whistle%20one

Aug 10, 2017

High pitched tea kettle
by: Anonymous

One long high pitched tea kettle like sound that occurs between 10 and 11 at night. I'm in a wooded area in northern CA... I'm really puzzled by this noise, never heard it before ! Closest sound is a shrill barn owl but it's not a barn owl, just similar!

Aug 01, 2017

Identified (finally) here in Rio
by: Anonymous

All, we got it: ours is a a Hydropsalis longitostris - name in English Band-winged Nightjar. There are subspecies with different lilts in the whistle. Check it out.

Jul 31, 2017

Same here
by: Anonymous

I live in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with a big rock and palm trees at the back of the building. Whistling in the night driving me bonkers with curiosity...what is it?!? Bird? Bat? Water pump? Single note clean whistle, up lilt at the end. Someone mentioned "as if one is calling a dog". Sounds about right. All night long, till dawn. Spent hours today trying to find an answer online, nothing checks. This trail here is the closest in similarities.

Jul 28, 2017

WHISTLE
by: Anonymous

I'M IN WASHINGTON STATE AND HEAR IT! 1 LONG WHISTLE THEN TWO THAT FOLLOW. FIRST TIME IVE HEARD IT HERE AND IVE BEEN HERE 12YRS.
REMINDS ME OF AN OLD SLIDE WHISTLE TOY, BUT TOO PERFECT. I LIVE ON A GREEN BELT AND HAVE SEEN A LOT OF DIFFERENT ANIMALS AND BIRDS INCLUDING A SNOWY WHITE OWL.

Jul 27, 2017

One Whistle - all night long
by: Lynn

I live in Northern Michigan in a forest valley. I keep hearing a bird all night that moves through the forest making one shrill whistle. I have checked all that have been suggested in this thread and they don't match. This call is VERY loud. There have been some replies tonight - more like a loud chirp. Ideas???? I have been searching the past few nights.

Jul 21, 2017

One whistle from different birds at dusk
by: Anonymous

Same here in Northern Ireland. Just this year I can hear exactly the same as othes describe. Havent heard this before

Jul 15, 2017

Ireland
by: Mack

We have exactly the same thing. We have a lot of bats here but we think it's a bird. Nighthawk sounds closest to what we hear but not sure they are common here and there at least 5 of them. It's driving us batty to coin a phrase

Jun 28, 2017

Whistle sound every 6-10 seconds
by: Buddy or buggy?

It June 27th 2017 in Missouri southeast of Kansas City, went out to the barn to water the horses and heard a whistle call back and forth between two birds or bugs in the trees. Obviously weren't too concerned about me or my horses. None of the examples on the previous messages matches at all.

Jun 14, 2017

Broad winged hawk
by: Anonymous

I may have found it. Check out broad winged hawk.

Jun 03, 2017

Common Nighthawk
by: Mary W

peeps and more dusk to dawn Common Nighthawks are easiest to see in flight at dawn and dusk as they forage for aerial insects. Pick a high overlook with a good view of a river, if possible. In towns, look for nighthawks over brightly lit areas such as billboards, stadium lights, and streetlights. Scan the darkening sky and you’ll likely find some bats zipping around with their frenzied flapping—but look for a larger, bounding, long-winged shape. If you don’t see one, listen for low, buzzy peent calls. If you are in an area with breeding nighthawks, pay attention for the bizarre booming noise of a territorial or courtship flight.
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Common_Nighthawk/sounds?gclid=CM6h5JDgotQCFQU0aQod3xcOFQ

May 12, 2017

Whistling Bird
by: Anonymous

I live in the country in SW Michigan. Got up to let dogs outside and I heard the oddest sound. It sounded like someone or thing was whistling the exact same note every 10-20 seconds. This is a first. What is it?

Apr 25, 2017

Correction to first sentence
by: Pam

Sorry, I meant, "whistle" not "while" in the first sentence.

Apr 25, 2017

Whistles same note almost at one second intervals! A baby bird that's hungry?
by: Pam

Well the whistle is the same high pitched note. The bird begins around 9pm or so. The interval between chirps is tiny and Nonstop!! Then it rests about 20 seconds and starts again....Help! Could it be an orphaned bird? Now it's almost a frantic whistle. Where's Sherlock Holmes when you need him!?

Apr 25, 2017

Whistles same note almost at one second intervals! A baby bird that's hungry?
by: Pam

Well the while is the same high pitched note. The bird begins around 9pm or so. The interval between chirps is tiny and Nonstop!! Then it rests about 20 seconds and starts again....Help! Could it be an orphaned bird? Now it's almost a frantic whistle. Where's Sherlock Holmes when you need him!?

Apr 22, 2017

Same bird in South Central Kansas
by: Anonymous

One, long, sustained note - I'm hearing one bird with one pitch and another answers with same type of whistle only at a lower pitch. None of the answers posted here sound like what I'm hearing!

Mar 19, 2017

In the UK too
by: Terry

I thought at first someone was blowing a whistle
A single note always identical and about 30 to 60 seconds Appart.It was around midnight

This is in the UK, first time I have ever heard it and I'm 52, I also hunt and fish so am used to the countryside.
It's driving me insane

Mar 04, 2017

Fisher Mn, And I hear it too.
by: Anonymous

It's only at night. It's one pitch. I've found an almost matching tone for the Golden Crowned Sparrow, but it doesn't change notes. It's just one long one. I originally thought it was just the wind,(it's windy here everyday) But I only hear it at night.

Golden Crowned Sparrow

http://www.sibleyguides.com/bird-info/the-basics-of-identifying-bird-sounds/pitch-and-bird-song-identification/

Nov 27, 2016

I saw the bird
by: Anonymous

I heard the same whistle every night, until one day it came crashing down the window, its a night bird,its an owl type, we took care of it and set it free days later, i still hear it sometimes, but i forgot the name

Nov 11, 2016

eny idea..?
by: Anonymous

Im in KZN Newcastle ..have been hearing the same sound..my daughter told me about the noise ..has enyone seen how it look like...im very anxious to knoe what this bird is

Sep 17, 2016

Low-medium, one nite call whistle
by: Anonymous

I've been hearing a medium to low whistle this summer that's new to our yard. It's almost along the same pitch as a morning dove though it's not a coo. It's definitely a single whistle with a 5-7second delay in between.

Sound familiar to anyone?

Aug 28, 2016

Night Whistle
by: mary

Just heard this "sound" one whistle - intermittent 1 a.m. late august in southwestern Ontario Canada. Anyone ever identify it?

Aug 13, 2016

One whistle every 20 second.
by: Anonymous PH

Im here at Philippines. I hear this sound from August 12-14 every night. I don't know what bird it is but may be it is a pokemon. Seriously we need to know what it is because it totally bothers me every night when it whistle.

Jul 28, 2016

Very clear /high
by: Anonymous

None of the YouTube vids match what I'm hearing. Most of you are describing it the way I would though. One very high-pitched, loud & clean sounding whistle... one note! I live up a hill from White River in Indiana, and hear it every night from my front porch around 11 to midnight (like several said) with approx 20 seconds between whistles, and always the same note. No warble. Not really what I would describe as a screech either. Seems to come from high in the trees. Sure is driving me batty! HEY! I hadn't thought of it being a bat! ????

Jul 27, 2016

Night bird that gives one whistle
by: Anonymous

We live in NE Ohio on edge of woods. Trying to figure out whether this is a bird or insect! Gives one quick whistle, sounds like when a human whistles for a dog, then pauses for anywhere from 10 seconds to 2 minutes. Just started hearing it about a week or two ago. Any ideas!!??

Jul 13, 2016

Night whistle mystery solved
by: didntsleepfor48hours

This same exact "call" kept my wife and I up ALL night the other evening. Every google search and discussion like this one I found held no answer at all. "Owl" kept coming to mind but no recording matched. Then! An epiphany! Babies! Our "whistler" is a baby Barred Owl! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wegQ5GX8DdA

Apr 21, 2016

Eastern Screech Owl
by: Elaine

I heard this call last night, 1 a.m. sharp. The bird was on my window sill and flew away silently when I got up to look out. About blue jay size, no obvious markings, lighter than black, it was sitting on its bent legs leaning forward, calling out toward the street. It did sound just like this Eastern Screech Owl posted by Anonymous. A long high one note whistle, repeated at intervals.

http://youtu.be/DOMCHegQA7A

Its silhouette shape was like a plump sitting bird without a noticeable neck. When it flew, there was no wing sound.

We live on the Space Coast, Florida, and have heard a pair of these calling back and forth in the trees this time of year.

Mar 03, 2016

Bird Whistle
by: Holly

Buffalo Tx. I have several here too. Only at night. Its a whistle like one would call their dog. I whistle they answer. What is it??

Feb 18, 2016

One whistle bird
by: Anonymous

It would not be a mockingbird, since they compulsively sing a variety of songs. It is more likely a raptor. Go to Cornell Lab Ornithology online and click on Hawks and see if you can identify the sound. I've been trying to identify a bird song in my backyard for two years. It is the first bird up in the morning and it has a loud whistle followed by a trill. It almost sounds like the birds is singing Weeee-ahhhhh. I haven't seen it but I hear it and I've gone through every bird sound on the internet and can't find it. Good luck with your whistler. Let us know if you figure it out.

Jan 13, 2016

one note night bird
by: Anonymous

I'm listening to a one note bird call that never varies right now. It sounds similar to a human whistle - a single note followed by a long pause. I can hear it just outside my front window. It's 8:15pm in southern Ontario (Canada). I live in a city, but there is a ravine across the street and I've heard this call periodically since the summer, always at night. No idea what bird it could be.

Dec 02, 2015

Brooklyn
by: Anonymous

One whistle birds, sounding like a single whistle, similar if not exactly the same as a human. Only at night. And only when you pass by their area. Like a warning of sorts. Can't find the type yet. So if anyone knows that be great. And focus on the single whistle. Same over and over and every 20-60 seconds. No other variation of it.

Aug 01, 2015

I've heard it tonight here in Ca
by: Anonymous

Did you ever figure out what it was.... I've been hearing one whistle one note too.,,, trying to figure it out???

Mar 10, 2015

birdites that whistle at n
by: Anonymous

I hear them every night at dark

Jan 31, 2015

perhaps this??
by: Anonymous

http://youtu.be/DOMCHegQA7A

Jan 31, 2015

searching for the same answer
by: Anonymous

Mireille, I heard this in my woods last night (I'm in Annapolis, MD) and in searching online to solve the mystery found your comment.

Oct 17, 2012

Night bird that gives on whistle
by: Lola

Are you sure it wasn't a fisher cat. If you go on the web you can find videos of the sound to see if that is what you heard. We had the same thing and we live in New York.

Oct 12, 2012

Night bird with one whistle.
by: Mireille McKell

We have lots of mockingbirds here, and they sing in late spring and early summer. They sing lots of different songs, and they are very entertaining! This night bird sings just one note. Never anything else! It is a fairly long one-note whistle. It whistles after night fall when not many other birds are singing. I would really like to know what it is! Any other ideas, anyone? Northern mockingbirds sing some at night during mating season, but their songs are very tuneful and can be recognized as mockingbirds.

Aug 30, 2012

Night bird that gives one whistle!
by: Anonymous

Doesn't the Northern Mockingbird mock other birds songs like the mocking birds here in Ohio and the south? This bird just gives one shrill whistle every 20 to 60 seconds. It doesn't sing anything else, at least at night! I have never seen it in the dark so I don't have any description. I have listened for it at dusk, hoping to see it, but it doesn't whistle until full darkness descends! Thanks for trying to help me though. I hope others will chime in!

Aug 29, 2012

Possibly...
by: Susan

A Northern Mockingbird sings at night.

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