Bird vocalizations are music to the ears of birders. But can humans really learn how to do a bird call? The good news is, you can make bird sounds with your mouth and hands.
And though it is difficult at first, with practice and the right tutorial, you can easily learn how.
With this newfound skill, you can attract more birds to your yard. And whether you’re in the wild or a park, calling birds would surely help you take beautiful photos.
Table of Contents
Materials Needed to Generate a Bird Call
Making bird calls is a fun experience for hundreds of bird enthusiasts. It allows them to connect with their favorite avian species and catch their attention. Plus, the process is not complicated. In fact, you only need four things to imitate a bird call.
- Hands
- Mouth
- Fingers
- Bird caller whistle
- Wood
Tutorial on Making Bird Calls
In this bird call tutorial, we will explore the most common tactics for making avian calls.
Performing Avian Calls Using Hands
A bird call can be easily performed with hands by blowing air through them. It takes time to perfect this method, but with practice and determination, you will eventually generate bird calls on your own.
- Join your hands closely together in a prayer position.
- Keep your palms tight together as you shift your right hand 90 degrees from the body.
- Squeeze your hands in an airtight clap, and keep your thumbs in a vertical position to each other.
- Allow a small hole to form between your knuckles.
- With your mouth, try whistling.
- Move your lips closer to your thumbs, making sure the gap you created isn’t covered.
- Blow through the small hollow gap to create a bird call.
Don’t get discouraged if after the first, second, or more tries, you can’t hear a whistle from your blowing. Try to adjust the formation of your mouth, thumbs, and cupped hands until you can finally generate a bird call.
How to Copy a Bird Call With the Use of the Mouth
There are numerous easy bird calls to imitate with the use of your mouth only. Once you master them, you can seamlessly call birds and they will appear in front of you. The best part of this is the freedom to use your hands for something else while attracting avians.
Let’s check out a few methods of performing bird calls without the use of hands or other tools.
Method #1: Pishing
Bird whistles can be done through a pishing method. In this tactic, all you have to do is simply say the word “pish” in a prolonged manner. By saying “piiiishhh”, small songbirds will listen to your call.
Method #2: Gobble
For attracting a tom turkey, hunters and birders utilize what is called a gobble. This avian call is a gurgling sound that mimics a turkey call. Once you perfect this bird call, then you can expect to draw tom turkeys to your location.
Method #3: Whit-wheet sound
An easy bird call to gain the attention of thrasher birds is a “whit-wheet” whistle sound. You can perform this avian call with your mouth alone, but it can prove to be difficult if you don’t know how the basic whistle works.
Method #4: Owl whistle
A hoot owl whistle that sounds like “who cooks for you, who cooks for you all” is perfect for calling owls to your location. Another owl call is “hoot-hoot.” But take note that no matter which owl whistle you will use, smaller birds are scared of them.
Method #5: Cutting
Cutting is another technique used by bird hunters to lure their prey into traps. This is performed by clucking your tongue to produce short and continuous sounds. The bird call produced by cutting resembles a hen sound.
Method #6: Other bird calls
As a soon-to-be bird caller, aside from the mentioned four bird calls tactics, you should try out other sounds, such as:
- “chit chit chit” (attracts songbirds)
- Kissing noises (calls smaller birds)
- “coo” (attracts ducks)
- Crow “caw” (astonishes turkeys)
Mimicking Avian Calls Using Bird Whistles
In order to create a loon call whistle as well as other amazing bird calls, it’s essential to use a bird whistle. This tool is perfect for reproducing complex bird calls that are not easy to do with the hands and mouth alone.
Using a bird whistle is also good for young children. They can experience calling birds and seeing them come closer.
Here’s the guide in using a bird whistle:
- Clean the bird whistle.
- Position the tool’s opening at your lips.
- Blow air slowly until you hear a bird sound.
Test the bird whistle with varying blowing pace, as well as shifting the angles of the tool. Make use of your lips and tongue to play with the avian whistle. You’ll surely have fun experimenting with the sounds you create.
Bird Call Imitation Using Wood
To make a bird call out of wood, you can purchase a wooden avian whistle. There are many products to choose from, and using them is quite easy. Plus, there are detailed instructions on how to use the wooden whistles to call your feathered friends.
In a nutshell, simply place the whistle between your lips and blow air into the hole. Using this bird sound whistle, you can create various avian calls to attract different bird species.
Helpful Tips on Making a Bird Call
Making bird calls can be exhausting, but there are a couple of helpful tips that will benefit your performance.
- An abundance of air is required in order to successfully do a bird call. Take breaks in between blowing to gather more air into your lungs. This applies to using your hands, mouth, and whistles.
- Acknowledge the fact that it may take days to master a single avian call. Trying to perfect a bird vocalization in one go can make you feel dizzy. So take things slowly, and practice with patience.
- In opting for a wooden bird whistle, make it a point to not share the tool with someone else, even with family. Always put personal hygiene as your top priority.
- Keep yourself hydrated while you practice making bird calls. You’ll risk a sore throat or dryness of the mouth if you do not drink enough water while practicing. And in chasing birds in the wild, bring a bottle of water with you.
- In using your hands to do bird calls, make sure to wash your hands first. And if you perform this act in a park, forest, or somewhere outside of your home, always bring a sanitizer with alcohol.
Conclusion
There are indeed multiple tactics on how to do a bird call. You have the option to use your hands, mouth, and a bird whistle.
We hope you now have the knowledge on how to mimic bird calls. It’s our goal to provide insight on how to connect with feathered creatures. If you enjoyed this post, kindly share it on your social media. Also, you are welcome to leave us your ideas and thoughts.
Besides, you also can refer more to other interesting topics of birds behavior:
George and I became friends after a birdwatching trip with our new group. And we have been enjoying every adventure together. When he told me the idea of establishing a site that shares our experiences and fun, I immediately agreed. After trials and errors, here we have Thayerbirding.
