Since it’s Halloween I thought it might be appropriate to have something a bit creepy to identify – and what’s more creepy than clowns? Apart from maybe dolls. So here’s a clown doll:
Any idea what this creepy little object is made from?
While you’re pondering on that you may want to also have a think about what this eerie noise from the British Library Wildlife Sound Archive is made by:
…and it’s not the sound of a tiny wild clown chasing sheep in the dead of night.
Probably.
Last Friday I gave you this sound and skull combination to have a go at identifying:
As many of you worked out, the skull and call belong to quite different species that share a love of the seaside.
The call belongs to the somewhat enigmatic Common Eider Somateria mollissima (Linnaeus, 1758) as identified by mark b, Chris, Melanie, Henry McGhie, Anne Åslaug Holder and stuart petch.
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A male Somateria mollissima (Common Eider) at the London Wetland Centre, Barnes, UK. By Diliff, 2013
These large marine ducks are at home on the water, where they feed on molluscs and crustaceans. They are probably best known for their super-soft downy breast feathers, that the females use to line their nests and humans use to fill their pillows.
The skull belongs to a Razorbill Alca torda Linnaeus, 1758, as identified by Ric Morris, mark b, Chris, Melanie, Henry McGhie, Anne Åslaug Holder and stuart petch.
Razorbill at bird cliff in Westfjords, Iceland. By Gsd97jks, 2005
These birds are great divers, using their wings to ‘fly’ underwater. They feed on small fish and other slippery critters, caught using that characteristic bill.
Congratulations to everyone who managed to work out what the two species were – there’ll be a final mystery sound from the British Library Wildlife Sound Archive to identify next week, courtesy of curator Cheryl Tipp!
This week I have another mystery sound from Cheryl Tipp at the British Library Wildlife Sound Archive and skull from the Horniman Museum & Gardens:
Do you think the sound and the skull are from the same species, and can you recognise which species?
You can send your answers on a postcard, or if you prefer just pop them in the comments section below… Have fun!
Last week I gave you this mystery sound and skull to identify, with a the additional challenge of asking whether they belong to the same species:
As it turns out several of you managed to get the bird in question. The wide variation and complexity of the song suggested a passerine bird, with a high degree of control of its syrinx. In fact, this species is named for its ability to produce loud and intricate calls containing a range of phrases (incidentally including mimicry of noises it has heard) – it’s a Song Thrush Turdus philomelos Brehm, 1831.
Song Thrush singing a song in a tree. By Taco Meeuwsen 2006
So well done to mark b, Mieke Roth and Melissa Harrison, who all managed to get the right bird. A big thanks also goes to Cheryl Tipp, curator of the Wildlife Sound Archive at the British Library, for supplying the song. I’d heartily recommend checking out the ‘language of birds‘ pages for more information on birdsong!
This week I have a double mystery for you. There is a sound recording from the British Library SOund Archive, courtesy of curator Cheryl Tipp and there is also a skull for you to identify:
Do you think that the sound and the skull belong to the same species, or do you think I’m trying to trick you?
You can put your thoughts, questions and suggestions in the comments section below. Have fun!
This week I don’t really have a mystery object, I have a mystery sound for you to identify from the British Library Sound Archive via the Curator of Wildlife Sounds, Cheryl Tipp.
Any idea what this is?
Patches is listening carefully
As usual you can put your thoughts in the comments section below. Have fun!
Zygoma 