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The Northern Mockingbird

© Glenda Gibbons

Mockingbirds belong to the Family Mimidae. There at least thirty-five known species of mockingbirds in the world, twelve of them in North America. Their species is then sorted into varieties such as Mimus polyglottos, also known as the Northern Mockingbird. Whatever name this vocal songster travels under, it's for sure that the very title suggests mimicry. The ability to mimic other birds provides quite an advantage to the Northern Mockingbird in fooling its stalkers.

The Northern Mockingbird seems modest in appearance, until it takes to flight. The bird is a beautiful combination of blacks, grays, and white. The white area shows in the form of stripes and patches on the wings. Northern Mockingbirds are also mistaken for the Shrike, another flying companion. A good way to tell them apart is to observe them in flight. The mockingbird has a white patch and two white bars on each wing while the shrike has one bar of white stripe and no white patches. Both males and females look alike, one of the identifying factors in the Family Mimidae.

Our little mockingbird friend is slim-bodied, about 9-10" long (23-25.5cm) with long legs and a straight-to downward curved little beak that ends in a sharp point. They will tend to nest in the branches of dense shrubs, seeking food on the ground in the form of spiders, earthworms, and insects. Come winter, some migrate south to Argentina, or Chile while others tend to stay within the temperate neotropical or warm tropical regions of the southern United States. I have personally seen ( and heard) them in South Carolina as late in the year as October, and as early in Spring as March. Sometimes, they will fly to the West Indies.

Nesting is done in bulky, cup shaped pouches that are made of twigs, with grasses, hair, and roots of plants. The structure is built by both sexes and usually lasts for three or more seasons. Female Northern Mockingbirds lay a clutch of 2-6 eggs that are anywhere from a pinkish white to a blue or green color with brown speckles. The female tends the eggs by herself while the male keeps guard. The eggs hatch within four days, and the tiny nestlings will be tended by both parents for about 13-19 days. During this time, the hatchlings will begin to exchange the fuzzy down on their bodies for a lush feather coat. They will have honed their flying skills and be ready to move out of the parental nest and on their own, to join the chorus of gray, barred-wing mimics.