A fun way to impress your friends with your bird knowledge is to identify the species on television and the movies. Birds sounds are commonly used as a backdrop in movies, TV. shows, and commercials, but the average non-birder probably does not take notice. By learning the sounds of a few common species, you can easily impress your non-birding friends by identifying bird species while you are watching movies or TV.

I am talking about productions for which the main subject is not birds or natural history. I have not done a systematic study of birds on film or TV., but some of the more common species I have heard or seen on TV. or film include the House Sparrow, American Crow (pictured above), Rock Dove (i.e. pigeons), various gull species, and Red-tailed Hawks. Manufacturers of American pickup trucks seem especially fond of using Red-tailed Hawk sounds in their commercial. To be honest, I haven’t started a TV. or films bird list, but maybe its not a bad idea.

It’s also fun to identify bird species when you watch TV. or movies with other birders. Soon you will come to notice that you know a lot more about birds than the average movie or TV. producer – because often they make simple mistakes. Common mistakes include mismatching video and sounds of the wrong species or trying to pass off an exotic species as native to North America. There is one TV. commercial that tries to pass off Collared Crows (native to China) as a wild North American species. The most common blunder is the use of Red-tailed Hawk sounds to represent the sounds of another species, such as the Bald Eagle. Maybe placing the species out of context is meant to be artistic, but I suspect its more likely an oversight. Somebody should tell the producers that there are millions of birders watching their videos who are potentially distracted by bird species placed out of context.

Photo © William C. Webb