The northern mockingbird (Mimus polyglottos) is a mockingbird commonly found in North America, of the family Mimidae. The species is also found in some parts of the Caribbean, as well as on the Hawaiian Islands. It is typically a permanent resident across much of its range, but northern mockingbirds may move farther south during inclement weather or prior to the onset of winter. The northern mockingbird has gray to brown upper feathers and a paler belly. Its tail and wings have white patches which are visible in flight.

The species is known for its ability to mimic bird calls and other types of sound, including artificial and electronic noises. Studies have shown its ability to identify individual humans and treat them differently based on learned threat assessments. It is an omnivore and consumes fruit, invertebrates, and small vertebrates. It is often found in open areas, open woodlands and forest edges, and is quite common in urbanized areas. The species breeds from southeastern Canada throughout the United States to the Greater Antilles. It is listed as a species of least concern by the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

The mockingbird is influential in United States culture, being the state bird of five states, appearing in book titles, songs and lullabies, and making other appearances in popular culture.

Taxonomy

Swedish zoologist Carl Linnaeus first described this species in his Systema Naturae in 1758 as a species of thrush, Turdus polyglottos. Its current genus name, Mimus, is Latin for "mimic" and the specific polyglottos, is from Ancient Greek , "harmonious", from polus, "many", and glossa, "tongue", representing its outstanding ability to mimic various sounds.

The closest living relative of the northern mockingbird is the tropical mockingbird (Mimus gilvus); the two form a superspecies, and occasional hybrids have been recorded where they overlap in Oaxaca and Veracruz in southeast Mexico.

Subspecies

There are three recognized subspecies for the northern mockingbird. There have been proposed races from the Bahamas and Haiti placed under the orpheus section. Males and females look alike. Its upper parts are colored gray, while its underparts have a white or whitish-gray color.

It has parallel wing bars on the half of the wings connected near the white patch giving it a distinctive appearance in flight.

Northern mockingbirds measure from including a tail almost as long as its body. The wingspan can range from and body mass is from . Males tend to be slightly larger than females. Among standard measurements, the wing chord is , the tail is , the culmen is and the tarsus is .

Distribution and habitat

The mockingbird's breeding range is from the Maritime provinces of southern Canada, westwards to southern Oregon, and south through practically the entire continental United States south of the northern Plains states and Pacific Northwest, the Greater Antilles, and the majority of Mexico to eastern Oaxaca and Veracruz. and three times as transatlantic vagrants in Britain,

In the 19th century, the range of the mockingbird expanded northward towards provinces such as Nova Scotia and Ontario and states such as Massachusetts, although the sightings were sporadic. Within the first five decades of the 20th century, regions that received an influx of mockingbirds were Maine, Vermont, Ohio, Iowa, and New York. In western states such as California, the population was restricted to the Lower Sonoran Desert regions but by the 1970s the mockingbird was residential in most counties.

Islands that have had human-mediated introductions of mockingbirds include Hawaii (where it was introduced in the 1920s), Barbados, St. Helena, Socorro Island, the Cayman Islands, Tahiti, and Bermuda (in which it failed). and generally resides in the same habitats year round.

Behavior

Diet

thumb|With [[crane fly larvae ]]

The northern mockingbird is an omnivore. The birds' diet consists of arthropods (such as spiders, grasshoppers, wasps, bees, ants, beetles, butterflies, and caterpillars), earthworms, berries, fruits, seeds, and occasionally flowers, small crustaceans, and lizards (Anolis spp.). Mockingbirds can drink from puddles, river and lake edges, or dew and rain droplets that amass onto plants.

Breeding

thumb|A boundary dance between two mockingbirds

thumb|right|Displaying

Both the male and female of the species reach sexual maturity after one year of life. The breeding season occurs in the spring and early summer. The males use a series of courtship displays to attract the females to their sites.

Both the male and female are involved in the nest building. The male does most of the work, while the female perches on the shrub or tree where the nest is being built to watch for predators. The nest is built approximately three to ten feet above the ground.

The northern mockingbird pairs hatch about two to four broods a year. In one breeding attempt, the northern mockingbird lays an average of four eggs. After about 10 to 15 days of life, the offspring become independent. Unmated males sing songs in more directions and sing more bouts than mated males. In addition, unmated males perform more flight displays than mated males. Depending on the stage of breeding and the mating status, a male mockingbird will vary his song production. The unmated male keeps close track of this change. He sings in one direction when he perceives a chance to lure a female from the nest of the mated male.

An observational study by Logan demonstrates that the female is continuously evaluating the quality of the male and his territory. The assessment is usually triggered by the arrival of a new male in a neighboring territory at the beginning of a new breeding season. In those cases, the mated female is constantly seen flying over both the original and the new male's territory, evaluating the qualities of both territories and exchanging calls with both males. Local resource competition predicts that the parents have to share the resources with offspring that remain at the natal site after maturation. In passerine birds, like the northern mockingbird, females are more likely to disperse than males. Hence, it is adaptive to produce more dispersive sex than philopatric sex when the population density is high and the competition for local resources is intense. Since northern mockingbirds are abundant in urban environments, it is possible that the pollution and contamination in cities might affect sexual hormones and therefore play a role in offspring sex ratio.

Mating

Northern mockingbirds are socially monogamous. The sexes look alike except that the male is slightly larger than the female. Mutual mate choice is exhibited in northern mockingbirds. Both males and females prefer mates that are more aggressive towards intruders, and so exhibit greater parental investment. However, males are more defensive of their nests than females. In a population where male breeding adults outnumber female breeding adults, females have more freedom in choosing their mates. High nesting success is associated with highly aggressive males attacking intruders in the territory, and so these males are preferred by females.

Mockingbird nests are also often parasitized by cowbirds. The parents are found to reject parasitic eggs at an intermediate rate. A recent study has shown that foreign eggs are more likely to be rejected from a nest later in the breeding season than from earlier in a breeding season. Early nesting hosts may not have learned the pattern and coloration of their first clutch yet, so are less likely to reject foreign eggs. There is also a seasonal threshold in terms of the overlap between the breeding seasons of the northern mockingbirds and their parasites. If the breeding season of the parasites starts later, there is less likelihood of parasitism. Hence, it pays the hosts to have relatively lower sensitivity to parasitic eggs.

<gallery widths="200px" heights="200px">

File:NOMO feeding.webm|An adult northern mockingbird feeding berries to a fledgling

File:Mimus polyglottos MWNH 1851.JPG|Egg, Collection Museum Wiesbaden

File:Mocking Bird eggs.JPG|Eggs in a nest

</gallery>

Ontogeny

A laboratory observation of 38 mockingbird nestlings and fledglings (thirty-five and three, respectively) recorded the behavioral development of young mockingbirds. Notable milestones, including the eyes opening, soft vocalizations, begging, and preening, began within the first six days of life. Variation in begging and more compact movements such as perching, fear crouching, and stretching appeared by the ninth day. Wing-flashing, bathing, flight, and leaving the nest happened within seventeen days (nest leaving occurred within 11 to 13 days). Improvements of flight, walking and self-feeding took place within forty days. Agonistic behavior increased during the juvenile stages, to the extent that one of two siblings living in the same area was likely killed by the other.

Song and calls

thumb|Songs and calls

thumb|right|Calling during spring

Although many species of bird imitate the vocalizations of other birds, the northern mockingbird is the species best known in North America for doing so. Among the vocalizations it imitates are songs of the Carolina wren, northern cardinal, tufted titmouse, eastern towhee, house sparrow, wood thrush, and eastern bluebird, calls of the northern flicker and great crested flycatcher, jeers and pumphandles of the blue jay, and alarms, chups, and chirrs of the American robin. It imitates not only birds, but also other animals such as cats, dogs, frogs, and crickets and sounds from artificial items such as unoiled wheels and even car alarms. As convincing as these imitations may be to humans, they often fail to fool other birds, such as the Florida scrub jay. A 2013 study attempted to determine model selection in vocal mimics, and the data suggested that mimicry in the mockingbird resulted from the bird being genetically predisposed to learning vocalizations with acoustic characteristics such as an enlarged auditory template.

Both male and female mockingbirds sing, with the latter being generally quieter and less vocal. Male commencement of singing is in late January to February and continues into the summer and the establishing of territory into the fall. Frequency in female singing is more sporadic, as it sings less often in the summer and fall, and only sings when the male is away from the territory.

There are four recognized calls for the mockingbird: the nest relief call, hew call, chat or chatburst, and the begging call. though their tenacious behavior makes them less likely to be captured. Scrub jays also have killed and eaten mockingbirds. Snakes rarely capture incubating females. Fledglings have been prey to domestic cats, red-tailed hawks, and crows. Eggs and nestlings are consumed by blue jays, fish crows, American crows, red-tailed hawks, swallow-tailed kites, snakes, squirrels, and cats. Blowfly larvae and Haemoproteus have been found in Florida and Arizona populations, respectively.

Winter storms limit the expansion of mockingbirds in their range. The storms have played a role in the declining of the populations in Ohio (where it has since recovered), Michigan, Minnesota and likely in Quebec. Dry seasons also affect the mockingbird populations in Arizona.

Intelligence

In a paper published in 2009, researchers found that mockingbirds were able to recall an individual human who, earlier in the study, had approached and threatened the mockingbirds' nest. Researchers had one participant stand near a mockingbird nest and touch it, while others avoided the nest. Later, the mockingbirds recognized the intruder and exhibited defensive behavior, while ignoring the other individuals. A similar paper published in 2023 had several participants exhibit varying levels of threatening behavior towards nesting mockingbirds. During a three-day training period, "high threat" participants were instructed to touch the nest daily while accompanied by a "medium threat" participant who stood three meters away. "Low threat" participants approached the nest separately and also stood three meters away for 10 minutes. When flushed from their nests by participants during a testing period, the mockingbirds retreated further from individuals who had exhibited more threatening behavior during the training period.

Another study tested the ability of mockingbirds to differentiate between different options when foraging. Mockingbirds were tasked with removing sticks supporting a platform that held food. The birds most often chose to remove as few sticks as possible when given the option to remove two or five sticks, and did not appear to improve in this ability between trials. This suggests that mockingbirds may have an innate ability to compare quantities of objects that allows them to make more optimal decisions in some cases.

Adaptation to urban habitats

thumb|right|alt=A northern mockingbird on top of a [[Duke University Hospital sign reading "Duke medicine is 100% tobacco-free INSIDE AND OUTSIDE" in Durham, North Carolina|In the urban habitat at Durham, North Carolina]]

The northern mockingbird is a species that is found in both urban and rural habitats. There are now more northern mockingbirds living in urban habitats than non-urban environments, so they are consequently known as an urban-positive species. Biologists have long questioned how northern mockingbirds adapt to a novel environment in cities, and whether they fall into the typical ecological traps that are common for urban-dwelling birds. Urban birds are more likely to return to the nest where they had successfully bred the previous year and avoid those where breeding success was low. One explanation for this phenomenon is that urban environments are more predictable than non-urban ones, as the site fidelity among urban birds prevents them from falling into ecological traps. The adaptation of the mockingbird in urban habitats has led it to become more susceptible to lead poisoning in Baltimore and Washington, D.C. populations.

In culture

thumb|upright|Painting by [[John James Audubon]]

This bird features in the title and central metaphor of the 1960 novel To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee. In that novel, mockingbirds are portrayed as innocent and generous, and two of the major characters, Atticus Finch and Miss Maudie, say it is a sin to kill a mockingbird because "they don't do one thing for us but make music for us to enjoy. They don't eat up people's gardens, don't nest in corncribs, they don't do one thing but sing their hearts out for us."

The Hunger Games franchise depicts "mockingjays", mockingbirds hybridized with jabberjays, genetically engineered birds which could memorize and repeat entire human conversations. These birds appear throughout the series as a rebellious symbol.

The traditional lullaby "Hush Little Baby" has a line that goes "Papa's gonna buy you a mockingbird".

The song of the northern mockingbird inspired many American folk songs of the mid-19th century, such as "Listen to the Mocking Bird".

Thomas Jefferson had several pet mockingbirds, including a bird named "Dick".

In the fictional Neighborhood of Make-Believe on Mister Rogers' Neighborhood, one of King Friday's "pets" is a wooden northern mockingbird on a stick, which he refers to by the scientific name Mimus polyglottos.

In 1951, Patti Page, a popular vocalist, recorded "Mockin' Bird Hill", which was sold in 10" 78 RPM format. The song reached #2 on Billboards pop music chart and reflected gentle postwar values of the period.

State bird

The northern mockingbird is the state bird of Arkansas, Florida, Mississippi, Tennessee, and Texas, and previously the state bird of South Carolina.

See also

  • List of birds of Puerto Rico

References

<!-- ==Further reading==

Book

  • Derrickson, K. C. and R. Breitwisch. 1992. "Northern Mockingbird (Mimus polyglottos)". In The Birds of North America, No. 7 (A. Poole, P. Stettenheim, and F. Gill, Eds.). Philadelphia: The Academy of Natural Sciences; Washington, DC.: The American Ornithologists' Union.

Articles

  • Acosta M & Mugica L. (1989). Reproductive Ecology of the Northern Mockingbird Mimus-Poliglottos-Orpheus in the Coastal Thorny Thicket of the National Botanical Garden. Revista del Jardin Botanico Nacional. vol 9, no 2. p. 109-114.
  • Arnold JR. (1980). Distribution of the Mockingbird Mimus-Polyglottos in California USA. Western Birds. vol 11, no 2. p. 97-102.
  • Baker MC. (1968). Feeding Perching Behavior in the Mockingbird Mimus-Polyglottos Ecology. Condor. vol 70, no 3.
  • Balat F & De Las Pozas G. (1981). The Breeding of Mimus-Polyglottos and Zenaida-Macroura in a Peripheral Part of Havana Cuba. Folia Zoologica. vol 30, no 4. p. 339-352.
  • Balat F & Delaspozas G. (1981). Data On the Breeding of Mimus-oolyglottos and Zenaida-macroura in a Peripheral Part of Havana. Folia Zoologica. vol 30, no 4. p. 339-352.
  • Barrows EM, Acquavella AP, Weinstein PJS & Nosal RE. (1980). Response to Novel Food in Captive Juvenile Mockingbirds Mimus-Polyglottos. Wilson Bulletin. vol 92, no 3. p. 399-402.
  • Biedenweg DW. (1983). Time and Energy Budgets of the Mockingbird Mimus-Polyglottos During the Breeding Season. Auk. vol 100, no 1. p. 149-160.
  • Bodily RY & Neudorf DLH. (2004). Mate guarding in northern mockingbirds (Mimus polyglottos). Texas Journal of Science. vol 56, no 3. p. 207-214.
  • Boyd M & Ellison K. (2004). Golden-fronted woodpecker consumes Northern Mockingbird nestling. Bulletin of the Texas Ornithological Society. vol 37, no 2. p. 25-27.
  • Breitwisch R. (1988). Sex Differences in Defense of Eggs and Nestlings by Northern Mockingbirds Mimus-Polyglottos. Animal Behaviour. vol 36, no 1. p. 62-72.
  • Breitwisch R, Diaz M, Gottlieb N, Lee R & Zaias J. (1986). Defense of Fall Territories by Mated and Unmated and Northern Mockingbirds Mimus-Polyglottos in Southern Florida USA. Journal of Field Ornithology. vol 57, no 1. p. 16-21.
  • Breitwisch R, Diaz M & Lee R. (1987). Foraging Efficiencies and Techniques of Juvenile and Adult Northern Mockingbirds (Mimus-polyglottos). Behaviour. vol 101, p. 225-235.
  • Breitwisch R, Merritt PG & Whitesides GH. (1984). Why Do Northern Mockingbirds Mimus-Polyglottos Feed Fruit to Their Nestlings. Condor. vol 86, no 3. p. 281-287.
  • Breitwisch R, Merritt PG & Whitesides GH. (1986). Parental Investment by the Northern Mockingbird Mimus-Polyglottos Male and Female Roles in Feeding Nestlings. Auk. vol 103, no 1. p. 152-159.
  • Breitwisch R, Ritter RC & Zaias J. (1986). Parental Behavior of a Bigamous Male Northern Mockingbird Mimus-Polyglottos. Auk. vol 103, no 2. p. 424-427.
  • Breitwisch R & Whitesides GH. (1987). Directionality of Singing and Non-Singing Behavior of Mated and Unmated Northern Mockingbirds, Mimus-polyglottos. Animal Behaviour. vol 35, p. 331-339.
  • Brenowitz EA. (1982). Aggressive Response of Red-Winged Blackbirds Agelaius-Phoeniceus to Mockingbird Mimus-Polyglottos Song Imitation. Auk. vol 99, no 3. p. 584-586.
  • Buden DW. (1988). Geographic Variation and Probable Sources of the Northern Mockingbird in the Bahama Islands Atlantic Ocean. Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington. vol 101, no 3. p. 475-486.
  • Campbell RW & Anderson WJ. (1968). Mockingbird at Vancouver British-Columbia Canada Mimus-Polyglottos Recent Record. Canadian Field Naturalist. vol 82, no 3.
  • Clark HO. (2001). Use of a car alarm sequence in the northern mockingbird repertoire. California Fish and Game. vol 87, no 3. p. 115-116.
  • Cumming F. (1974). Nutrition and Niche of Mockingbirds Mimus-Polyglottos Mimidae. ASB Bulletin. vol 21, no 2.
  • David N, Gosselin M & Seutin G. (1990). Pattern of Colonization by the Northern Mockingbird in Quebec Canada. Journal of Field Ornithology. vol 61, no 1. p. 1-8.
  • Derrickson KC. (1987). Behavioral-Correlates of Song Types of the Northern Mockingbird (Mimus-polyglottos). Ethology. vol 74, no 1. p. 21-32.
  • Derrickson KC. (1987). Yearly and Situational Changes in the Estimate of Repertoire Size in Northern Mockingbirds (Mimus-polyglottos). Auk. vol 104, no 2. p. 198-207.
  • Dickson RD. (1991). Northern Mockingbird and Swamp Sparrow Overwinter in Calgary Alberta Canada. Blue Jay. vol 49, no 2. p. 70-71.
  • Fairfield G & Fairfield J. (1997). Wing flashing behaviour in a Northern mockingbird. Ontario Birds. vol 15, no 3. p. 116-117.
  • Farnsworth GL. (2004). Sub-optimal foraging by a wild Northern Mockingbird in novel situations. Ecological Society of America Annual Meeting Abstracts. vol 89, no 151.
  • Farnsworth GL. (2005). Failure of a free-living northern mockingbird (Mimus polyglottos) to discriminate food rewards on the basis of number. Ohio Journal of Science. vol 105, no 4. p. 97-99.
  • Ficken RW & Ficken MS. (1982). Interspecific Plumage Similarity the Mockingbird Mimus-Polyglottos and Loggerhead Shrike Lanius-Ludovicianus. Wilson Bulletin. vol 94, no 2.
  • Fischer DH. (1981). Factors Affecting the Reproductive Success of the Northern Mockingbird Mimus-Polyglottos in South Texas USA. Southwestern Naturalist. vol 26, no 3. p. 289-294.
  • Fulk KR, Logan CA & Hyatt LE. (1987). Polyandry in a Female Northern Mockingbird. Wilson Bulletin. vol 99, no 2. p. 286-288.
  • Hedrick LD & Woody AD. (1983). Northern Mockingbird Mimus-Polyglottos Kills Cedar Waxwing Bombycilla-Cedrorum. Wilson Bulletin. vol 95, no 1. p. 157-158.
  • Hopkins MJ. (1968). Carrion Consumption by Birds Other Than Vultures Melanerpes-Erythrocephalus Mimus-Polyglottos Corvus-Brachyrhynchos Lanius-Ludovicianus. Oriole. vol 33, no 3.
  • Howard RD. (1974). Influence of Sexual Selection and Interspecific Competition On Mockingbird Song (Mimus-polyglottos). Evolution. vol 28, no 3. p. 428-438.
  • Hughes CR & Deloach DM. (1997). Developing microsatellites when they are rare: Trinucleotide repeat loci in the northern mockingbird Mimus polyglottos. Molecular Ecology. vol 6, no 11. p. 1099-1102.
  • Igl LD & Martin RE. (2002). Records of Northern Mockingbird, Mimus polyglottos, occurrences in North Dakota during the twentieth century. Canadian Field-Naturalist. vol 116, no 1. p. 87-97.
  • Joern WT & Jackson JF. (1983). Homogeneity of Vegetational Cover around the Nest and Avoidance of Nest Predation in Mockingbirds Mimus-Polyglottos. Auk. vol 100, no 2. p. 497-499.
  • Logan CA. (1983). Reproductively Dependent Song Cyclicity in Mated Male Mockingbirds (Mimus-polyglottos). Auk. vol 100, no 2. p. 404-413.
  • Logan CA. (1985). Mockingbird Mimus-Polyglottos Use of Chatbursts with Neighbors Vs. Strangers. Journal of Field Ornithology. vol 56, no 1. p. 69-71.
  • Logan CA. (1987). Fluctuations in Fall and Winter Territory Size in the Northern Mockingbird (Mimus-polyglottos). Journal of Field Ornithology. vol 58, no 3. p. 297-305.
  • Logan CA. (1988). Breeding Context and Response to Song Playback in Mockingbirds (Mimus-polyglottos). Journal of Comparative Psychology. vol 102, no 2. p. 136-145.
  • Logan CA. (1994). Fluctuations in intra-pair calling across breeding phases in northern mockingbirds (Mimus polyglottos). Behaviour. vol 130, no 1-2. p. 123-141.
  • Logan CA. (2003). "The function of 'chat' calls in northern mockingbirds (Mimus polyglottos): Vocal defense of nestlings". In Ploger, Bonnie J [Editor, Reprint Author], Yasukawa, Ken [Editor] Exploring animal behavior in laboratory and field: An hypothesis-testing approach to the development, causation, function, and evolution of animal behavior:279–286, 2003. San Diego; London: Academic Press.
  • Logan CA, Budman PD & Fulk KR. (1983). Role of Chatburst Versus Song in the Defense of Fall Territory in Mockingbirds (Mimus-polyglottos). Journal of Comparative Psychology. vol 97, no 4. p. 292-301.
  • Logan CA & Derrickson KC. (1996). Aggressive harassment by male northern mockingbirds (Mimus polyglottos) directed at their incubating mates. Bird Behavior. vol 11, no 2. p. 71-80.
  • Logan CA & Donaghey BA. (1997). Fledgling age affects female reactions to mate song in free-living northern mockingbirds (Mimus polyglottos). Bird Behavior. vol 12, no 1-2. p. 1-6.
  • Logan CA & Fulk KR. (1984). Differential Responding to Spring and Fall Song in Mockingbirds (Mimus-polyglottos). Journal of Comparative Psychology. vol 98, no 1. p. 3-9.
  • Logan CA & Hyatt LE. (1991). Mate Attraction by Autumnal Song in the Northern Mockingbird (Mimus-polyglottos). Auk. vol 108, no 2. p. 429-432.
  • Logan CA, Hyatt LE & Gregorcyk L. (1990). Song Playback Initiates Nest Building During Clutch Overlap in Mockingbirds, Mimus-polyglottos. Animal Behaviour. vol 39, p. 943-953.
  • Logan CA & Rulli M. (1981). Bigamy in a Male Mockingbird Mimus-Polyglottos. Auk. vol 98, no 2. p. 385-386.
  • Logan CA & Wingfield JC. (1995). Hormonal correlates of breeding status, nest construction, and parental care in multiple-brooded northern mockingbirds, Mimus polyglottos. Hormones & Behavior. vol 29, no 1. p. 12-30.
  • Mac-Kenzie J-A, Mac-Kenzie HN & Schouten MA. (1995). Northern Mockingbird, Mimus polyglottos, at Princeton: First successful breeding record in British Columbia. Canadian Field Naturalist. vol 109, no 2. p. 260.
  • Means LL & Goertz JW. (1983). Nesting Activities of Northern Mockingbirds Mimus-Polyglottos in Northern Louisiana USA. Southwestern Naturalist. vol 28, no 1. p. 61-70.
  • Merritt PG. (1980). Group Foraging by Mockingbirds Mimus-Polyglottos in a Florida USA Strangler Fig Ficus-Aurea. Auk. vol 97, no 4. p. 869-872.
  • Merritt PG. (1984). Observer Recognition by the Northern Mockingbird Mimus-Polyglottos. Journal of Field Ornithology. vol 55, no 2. p. 252-253.
  • Owen-Ashley NT, Schoech SJ & Mumme RL. (2002). Context-specific response of Florida Scrub-Jay pairs to Northern Mockingbird vocal mimicry. Condor. vol 104, no 4. p. 858-865.
  • Roth RR. (1979). Foraging Behavior of Mockingbirds Mimus-Polyglottos the Effect of Too Much Grass. Auk. vol 96, no 2. p. 421-422.
  • Sims CG & Holberton RL. (2000). Development of the corticosterone stress response in young Northern Mockingbirds (Mimus polyglottos). General and Comparative Endocrinology. vol 119, no 2. p. 193-201.
  • Smith KG. (1986). Brown Thrashers Respond to Calls of Northern Mockingbird Nestlings. Wilson Bulletin. vol 98, no 2. p. 313-314.
  • Smith KG. (1986). Winter Population Dynamics of Blue Jays Cyanocitta-Cristata Red-Headed Woodpeckers Melanerpes-Erythrocephalus and Northern Mockingbirds Mimus-Polyglottos in the Ozarks USA. American Midland Naturalist. vol 115, no 1. p. 52-62.
  • Smith RBH & Poon W. (2006). The changing status of the Northern Mockingbird in the Greater Toronto Area. Ontario Birds. vol 24, no 3. p. 106-159.
  • Stewart PA. (1980). Mockingbird Mimus-Polyglottos Defense of a Winter Food Source. Journal of Field Ornithology. vol 51, no 4.
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  • Utter JM, Pearson LL, Carruth GC & Hurley BJ. (1983). Over Wintering of Northern Mockingbirds Mimus-Polyglottos and Subsequent Breeding Success. American Zoologist. vol 23, no 4. p. 898.
  • Zaias J & Breitwisch R. (1989). Intra-Pair Cooperation, Fledgling Care, and Renesting by Northern Mockingbirds (Mimus-polyglottos). Ethology. vol 80, no 1-4. p. 94-110.

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  • Northern Mockingbird Species Account – Cornell Lab of Ornithology
  • Northern Mockingbird – Mimus polyglottos – USGS Patuxent Bird Identification InfoCenter
  • Learn Bird Songs: Songs of the Northern Mockingbird from the Lang Elliott website Learnbirdsongs.com
  • Northern Mockingbird Bird Sound at Florida Museum of Natural History