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Northern Mockingbird - Michigan Breeding Bird Atlas Website

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<strong>Northern</strong> <strong>Mockingbird</strong> (Mimus polyglottos)<br />

Deaver D. Armstrong<br />

Goose Island State Park, TX<br />

4/7/2006 © John Van Orman<br />

(Click to view a comparison of <strong>Atlas</strong> I to II)<br />

The <strong>Northern</strong> <strong>Mockingbird</strong>’s incredible ability<br />

to not only imitate but also remember up to 200<br />

different “songs” is well known (Kroodsma<br />

2005). This remarkable bird uses songs of other<br />

bird species and non-bird species and even<br />

copies sounds of mechanical devices like<br />

telephones and sirens. Historically, the species<br />

was captured and caged for this very ability and<br />

many early records in <strong>Michigan</strong> were<br />

discounted as being attributed to escaped pets<br />

(Sprunt 1948, Barrows 1912).<br />

The <strong>Northern</strong> <strong>Mockingbird</strong> regularly breeds as<br />

far north as the southern part of the eastern<br />

provinces of Canada west to Ontario and then<br />

only casually north of a line drawn west across<br />

the U.S. from the southern half of <strong>Michigan</strong>.<br />

There are scattered reports of the species<br />

breeding as far north as Alaska (Sibley 2000,<br />

National Geographic Society 2002). It nests as<br />

far south as southern Mexico (Derrickson and<br />

Breitwisch 1992). In <strong>Michigan</strong> it is a rare but<br />

regular breeder in the southern and western part<br />

of the LP and rare but regular during the<br />

breeding season in the UP (Binford 2006,<br />

Hickman 2008). Except for one 1954 record of a<br />

bird wintering at a feeder in Marquette, in late<br />

winter the <strong>Northern</strong> <strong>Mockingbird</strong> is found only<br />

in the LP where it is rare to casual (Zimmerman<br />

and Van Tyne 1959, Chartier and Ziarno 2004).<br />

Distribution<br />

The <strong>Northern</strong> <strong>Mockingbird</strong> was first listed in<br />

<strong>Michigan</strong> by Sager (1839). Barrows (1912)<br />

called it a rare summer visitor to southern<br />

<strong>Michigan</strong> and attributed at least some of the<br />

reports to escaped caged birds. Wood (1951)<br />

mentioned a total of seven nest records between<br />

1910 and 1934, all in the SLP in counties which<br />

have records in both <strong>Atlas</strong>es and most other<br />

historical accounts (Zimmerman and Van Tyne<br />

1959, Payne 1983). Zimmerman and Van Tyne<br />

(1959) added records from Clare and<br />

Cheboygan Counties in the NLP. Payne (1983)<br />

added 16 more counties to the list of those<br />

reporting <strong>Northern</strong> <strong>Mockingbird</strong>s in the<br />

breeding season. Most of these newly added<br />

counties were in the NLP and the western UP.<br />

Binford’s records of <strong>Northern</strong> <strong>Mockingbird</strong><br />

nests in the Keweenaw Peninsula in 2005 and<br />

2006 are the northernmost nesting records for<br />

the species in the state and the first ever for that<br />

region of the UP (Binford 2006). Statewide,<br />

most of the birds recorded during both <strong>Atlas</strong><br />

periods were in the fruit producing counties in<br />

the southwestern part of the state and around<br />

Grand Traverse Bay. Southeastern counties in<br />

© 2011 Kalamazoo Nature Center


<strong>Northern</strong> <strong>Mockingbird</strong> (Mimus polyglottos)<br />

Deaver D. Armstrong<br />

the lower two tiers and southwestern counties in<br />

the lower three tiers have the most records.<br />

Elsewhere in the state, observations of breeding<br />

birds are scattered though there appears to be<br />

some increase in numbers in the very center of<br />

the LP from the first to the second atlas. Few<br />

birds were found in the eastern part of the UP in<br />

MBBA I, and they were not present at all during<br />

MBBA II. Despite being at the northern edge of<br />

its range, <strong>Michigan</strong>’s <strong>Northern</strong> <strong>Mockingbird</strong><br />

population seems to be expanding slightly in<br />

both the LP and UP.<br />

<strong>Breeding</strong> Biology<br />

Most <strong>Mockingbird</strong>s in <strong>Michigan</strong> are migratory<br />

though a few are always found on Christmas<br />

<strong>Bird</strong> Counts (NAS 2009). Successful nesters<br />

who do migrate tend to return to their previous<br />

year’s breeding territory and re-pair (Derrickson<br />

and Breitwisch 1992). <strong>Mockingbird</strong>s prefer<br />

cultivated lands or gardens and their nests are<br />

usually built in shrubs or small trees (Sprunt<br />

1948, Derrickson and Breitwisch 1992). The<br />

four eggs are incubated for about 12 days. <strong>Bird</strong>s<br />

will have two, sometimes three broods,<br />

sometimes beginning a new nest while still<br />

caring for young of the previous brood.<br />

(Derrickson and Breitwisch 1992, Smith and<br />

Poon 2007). The earliest reported date for a<br />

<strong>Michigan</strong> nest is early June, but Ontario birds<br />

have been found to be on nests as early as mid-<br />

April and Wisconsin birds were seen nest<br />

building in early May (Dziepak 1991, Harriman<br />

2006, Smith and Poon 2007).<br />

Abundance and Population Trends<br />

While the southernmost states in USFWS<br />

Region 3 (OH, IN, IL) have by far the region’s<br />

largest population estimates for <strong>Northern</strong><br />

<strong>Mockingbird</strong> (approximately 160,000 per state),<br />

the northern states in the region, including<br />

<strong>Michigan</strong> and Wisconsin, have estimates of only<br />

900 and 300 individuals respectively, and<br />

Minnesota did not detect any (PIF 2007). A<br />

comparison of the township summaries between<br />

the first and second <strong>Atlas</strong> periods shows some<br />

obvious increases in the number of records in<br />

the SLP. BBS data also show an increasing<br />

trend statewide between MBBA I and MBBA II,<br />

but in <strong>Michigan</strong> and adjacent states, none of<br />

these are significant. The USFWS Region 3<br />

trend shows a slight increase of 0.96% per year<br />

(Sauer et al. 2008).<br />

Conservation Needs<br />

Because the <strong>Northern</strong> <strong>Mockingbird</strong> is at its<br />

northern range limit in <strong>Michigan</strong>, populations<br />

will likely continue to be small and there are no<br />

current specific management plans for this<br />

species. However, documentation of its range<br />

expansion by Binford (2006) and others calls for<br />

careful observation and reporting to the<br />

<strong>Michigan</strong> Audubon Society of all potentially<br />

nesting individuals, especially those in the UP.<br />

Literature Cited<br />

Barrows, W.B. 1912. <strong>Michigan</strong> <strong>Bird</strong> Life.<br />

Special Bulletin. <strong>Michigan</strong> Agricultural<br />

College. Lansing, <strong>Michigan</strong>, USA.<br />

Binford, L.C. 2006. <strong>Northern</strong> <strong>Mockingbird</strong><br />

breeding in Houghton Co., <strong>Michigan</strong>.<br />

<strong>Michigan</strong> <strong>Bird</strong>s and Natural History 13(2):<br />

61-64.<br />

Chartier, A.T., and J. Ziarno. 2004. A <strong>Bird</strong>er’s<br />

Guide to <strong>Michigan</strong>. American <strong>Bird</strong>ing<br />

Association. Colorado Springs, Colorado,<br />

USA.<br />

Derrickson, K.C. and R. Breitwisch. 1992.<br />

<strong>Northern</strong> <strong>Mockingbird</strong> (Mimus polyglottos).<br />

The <strong>Bird</strong>s of North America Online.<br />

Cornell Lab of Ornithology.<br />

. Accessed 15<br />

April 2009.<br />

Dziepak, P. 1991. <strong>Northern</strong> <strong>Mockingbird</strong><br />

(Mimus polyglottos). Pages 362-363 in R.<br />

Brewer, G.A. McPeek, and R.J. Adams, Jr.<br />

1991. The <strong>Atlas</strong> of <strong>Breeding</strong> <strong>Bird</strong>s of<br />

<strong>Michigan</strong>. <strong>Michigan</strong> State University Press.<br />

East Lansing, <strong>Michigan</strong>, USA.<br />

© 2011 Kalamazoo Nature Center


<strong>Northern</strong> <strong>Mockingbird</strong> (Mimus polyglottos)<br />

Deaver D. Armstrong<br />

Harriman, B.R. 2006. <strong>Northern</strong> <strong>Mockingbird</strong><br />

(Mimus polyglottos). Pages 360-361 in N.J.<br />

Cutright, B.R. Harriman, and R.W. Howe,<br />

editors. <strong>Atlas</strong> of the <strong>Breeding</strong> <strong>Bird</strong>s of<br />

Wisconsin. Wisconsin Society for<br />

Ornithology. Waukesha, Wisconsin, USA.<br />

Hickman, S. 2008. Checklist of The <strong>Bird</strong>s of<br />

<strong>Michigan</strong>’s Upper Peninsula.<br />

. Accessed 29 June 2009.<br />

Kroodsma, D.E. 2005. The Singing Life of<br />

<strong>Bird</strong>s: The Art and Science of Listening to<br />

<strong>Bird</strong>song. Houghton Mifflin Company, New<br />

York, New York, USA.<br />

National Geographic Society. 2002. Field<br />

Guide to The <strong>Bird</strong>s of North America.<br />

National Geographic Society, Washington,<br />

D.C., USA.<br />

National Audubon Society (NAS). 2009. The<br />

Christmas <strong>Bird</strong> Count Historical Results.<br />

.<br />

Accessed 1 April 2009.<br />

Partners in Flight [PIF]. 2007. PIF Landbird<br />

Population Estimates Database. Version<br />

2004. Rocky Mountain <strong>Bird</strong> Observatory.<br />

. Accessed 15 April 2009<br />

Payne, R.B. 1983. A Distributional Checklist<br />

of the <strong>Bird</strong>s of <strong>Michigan</strong>. Miscellaneous<br />

Publication 164. University of <strong>Michigan</strong><br />

Museum of Zoology. Ann Arbor, <strong>Michigan</strong>,<br />

USA.<br />

Sager, A. 1839. Report of Doctor Abraham<br />

Sager, zoologist of Geological Survey.<br />

House Documents of the State of <strong>Michigan</strong>:<br />

410-421.<br />

Sauer, J.R., J.E. Hines, and J. Fallon. 2008.<br />

The North American <strong>Breeding</strong> <strong>Bird</strong> Survey,<br />

Results and Analysis 1966-2007. Version<br />

5.15.2008. USGS Patuxent Wildlife<br />

Research Center. Laurel, Maryland, USA.<br />

Accessed 1 April 2009.<br />

Sibley, D. A. 2000. The Sibley Guide to <strong>Bird</strong>s.<br />

Alfred A. Knopf, New York, New York,<br />

USA.<br />

Smith, R. and W. Poon. 2007. <strong>Northern</strong><br />

<strong>Mockingbird</strong> (Mimus polyglotton). Pages<br />

446-447 in M.D. Cadman, D.A. Sutherland,<br />

G.G. Beck, D. Lepage, and A.R. Couturier,<br />

editors. 2007. <strong>Atlas</strong> of the <strong>Breeding</strong> <strong>Bird</strong>s<br />

of Ontario, 2001-2005. <strong>Bird</strong> Studies<br />

Canada, Environment Canada, Ontario Field<br />

Ornithologists, Ontario Ministry of Natural<br />

Resources, and Ontario Nature. Toronto,<br />

Ontario, Canada.<br />

Sprunt Jr., A. 1948. Eastern <strong>Mockingbird</strong>.<br />

Pages 295-315 in A.C. Bent. Life Histories<br />

of North American Nuthatches, Wrens,<br />

Thrashers and Their Allies. U. S. National<br />

Museum Bulletin 195.<br />

Wood, N.A. 1951. The <strong>Bird</strong>s of <strong>Michigan</strong>.<br />

Miscellaneous Publication 75. University of<br />

<strong>Michigan</strong> Museum of Zoology. Ann Arbor,<br />

<strong>Michigan</strong>, USA.<br />

Zimmerman, D.A., and J. Van Tyne. 1959. A<br />

Distributional Checklist of the <strong>Bird</strong>s of<br />

<strong>Michigan</strong>. Occasional Paper 608.<br />

University of <strong>Michigan</strong> Museum of<br />

Zoology. Ann Arbor, <strong>Michigan</strong>, USA.<br />

Suggested Citation<br />

Armstrong, D. D. 2011. <strong>Northern</strong> <strong>Mockingbird</strong><br />

(Mimus polyglottos). in A.T. Chartier, J.J.<br />

Baldy, and J.M. Brenneman, editors. The<br />

Second <strong>Michigan</strong> <strong>Breeding</strong> <strong>Bird</strong> <strong>Atlas</strong>.<br />

Kalamazoo Nature Center. Kalamazoo,<br />

<strong>Michigan</strong>, USA. Accessed online at:<br />

.<br />

© 2011 Kalamazoo Nature Center

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