About the Author: Diana Doyle authors Birding magazine’s popular—and tremendously useful—“Tools of the Trade” column. A former university professor, Diana now whiles away her days a boat that always seems to take her to the most improbable of places. Last time I actually talked to her, for example, she was in the Texas panhandle. Go figure.
When she’s not conducting SeaBCs and filing copy for Birding, Diana and husband Mark Doyle write books about boating and navigating.
—Ted Floyd
Hic! Three Beers!
by Diana Doyle
In the May/June 2013 issue of Birding (“Hic! Three Beers!—Bird Song Apps,” pp. 56–59), I compare several apps that include bird songs and calls. Throughout my review, there are references to transliterations of bird songs—all of which included the word “beer.”
Birds and beer? Sharon Stiteler, a.k.a. Birdchick, began a trend of monthly social gatherings she calls “Birds and Beers.” That seems doubly appropriate, given how many bird songs we remember with a beer mnemonic.
Can you identify the six species of birds that match the beer-related transliterations from the article?
Do you know other transliterations for these species? Do you personally rely on transliterations to remember bird songs? Do you use transliterations to teach others bird songs? Do we feel compelled to put bird songs into words because our own language is words? Please comment below.
All recordings are from the magnificent Xeno-Canto website. Click on the recordings below, then scroll down for the answers to each track's identity and recordist.
Beer, beer, little bit PLEASE!
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Hic! THREE beers!
Olive-sided Flycatcher.
Recorded by © Eric DeFonso. Antelope Valley, Sierra County, California; 21 June 2012.
Xeno-Canto catalog no. XC131569
Chuck! Get your BEER, Chuck!
White-eyed Vireo
Recorded by © Chris Parrish. Welder Wildlife Refuge, San Patricio County, Texas; 29 May 2008.
Xeno-Canto catalog no. XC21959
Free
BEER!
Alder Flycatcher
Recorded by © Jelmer Poelstra. Algonquin Provincial Park, Ontario; 28 May 2008.
Xeno-Canto catalog no. XC83550
WHEAT beer.
Willow Flycatcher
Recorded by © Andrew Spencer. Foss Farm, Strafford County, New Hampshire; 20 May 2010.
Xeno-Canto catalog no. XC51764
Beer,
beer, little bit PLEASE!
Cerulean Warbler
Recorded by © Tayler Brooks. Coverly Sods, Randolf County, West Virginia; 3 May 2010.
Xeno-Canto catalog no. XC59109
Beer, beer, beer, beeee.
Black-throated Blue Warbler
Recorded by © Todd Wilson. Kettle Moraine State Park, Waukesha County, Wisconsin; 9 May 2010.
Xeno-Canto catalog no. XC49810
I just heard a Lesser Goldfinch fly over, and, I swear, it said, in a tinny little voice, beeeeeeer.
If we get the right folks involved (I won't name names, but you know who you are), I bet we can easily come up with 50, maybe even 100, bird species that say "beer."
Bring it on, y'all.
Posted by: Ted Floyd | 06/27/2013 at 08:32 AM
I always thought Willow Ptarmigans were saying "A bear! A bear!". In hindsight, I suppose I could have misheard them, when they were actually calling for beer.
Posted by: Kirby Adams | 06/27/2013 at 09:24 AM
I did see an alcoholic Bannanaquit in Tobago. In an open-air bar at a beach hotel, the BQ would fly to the liquor bottles and take the drop left on the bottle after a drink was poured!
Posted by: Bill | 06/27/2013 at 09:32 AM
When doing point counts in remote locations I always thought of the Western Wood-pewee as offering me a beer. It was usually fairly hot and I'd come over a dry grass covered hill to find a few trees along a seasonally ephemeral creek and hear the familiar offer of refreshment. I'd always thank the bird then start the count.
In other situations where I was in bear country, the bird's song turned into "FEAR!".
Posted by: Matt Webb | 06/27/2013 at 09:36 AM
Benton Basham told me the White-eyed Vireo said : "Chick, pick up the beer check!" Ha!
Posted by: Claire Baker | 06/27/2013 at 11:49 AM
friendly tip: your xeno-canto link isn't working.
Posted by: jmj | 06/27/2013 at 01:12 PM
Thanks, jmj, for letting us know. My bad, and I've fixed it. Take a look, er listen, now, please, and confirm that it's okay.
By the way, there's a pair of Say's Phoebes outside the window, and, honest, they too are saying BBEEEeeer.
Posted by: Ted Floyd | 06/27/2013 at 01:50 PM
I don't drink, so that's most likely why those transliterations fall flat to me.
Posted by: Jack Snipe | 06/27/2013 at 04:16 PM
Jack, that may be due to the fact that you've left your browser window open for too long.
Posted by: Matt Webb | 06/28/2013 at 02:25 PM
Hi Ted,
I meant the main link to xeno-canto in the sentence "... the magnificent Xeno-canto website." Still not fixed. :)
Posted by: jmj | 06/30/2013 at 04:49 PM
When it rains, it pours.
Fixed that link too.
Thanks, jmj, for your persistence with this.
At least, we got our basic facts right. The Xeno-Canto website is indeed magnificent. See for yourself: http://xeno-canto.org/
Posted by: Ted Floyd | 07/01/2013 at 11:24 AM
Turning the tables on "birds and beer," here is a great story of a *beer* named after a familiar and declining bird, to support its conservation. It's "Flying Cigar Ale" — http://today.uconn.edu/blog/2013/07/celebrating-a-threatened-bird/
Maybe this will start a trend? Any other ideas for catchy brew names to spotlight a species?
Posted by: Diana Doyle | 07/05/2013 at 06:55 PM
It's amazing what you can find with the literal click of a mouse. I googled BEER+NAMED+FOR+BIRDS, and got this:
Kingfisher beer. Wild turkey bourbon. Goose Island Honker's Ale. Pelican beer. BAYHAWK HONEY BLONDE ALE (USA), BIRD CREEK BREWERY PORTER (USA), BLACK EAGLE CLASSIC PREMIUM LAGER BEER (Mauritius), BLACK HAWK STOUT (USA), BLUE HEN CHOCOLATE PORTER (USA), BLUE HERON ALE, Bridgeport Brewing Co. (USA), BULMER’S WOODPECKER MEDIUM SWEET CIDER (UK) WOODPECKER ENGLISH CIDER (USA) WOODPECKER (China) - woodpecker, BUZZARD BREATH ALE (Canada),BUZZARDS BAY GOLDEN ALE, CANVASBACK ALE (Canada), COCK O’ THE ROCK PORTER (Canada), CROW VALLEY BITTER (UK), DOUBLE BALE QUAIL ALE – IMPERIAL IPA (USA), EAGLE BLUE ICE BEER / EAGLE BLUE TRADITIONALLY BREWED LIGHT BITTER BEER (Australia), EAGLES ROOST PALE ALE - Admiralty Ale (USA), EARLY BIRD SPRING HOP ALE (UK), EYE OF THE HAWK SELECT ALE (USA), FALCON EXPORT [can],
FALCON EXTRA BREW (Sweden), FALCON PALE ALE (USA), GOLDEN EAGLE LAGER BEER / MOHAN MEAKIN LIMITED (India), GOLDEN EAGLE MALT BEER (China), GOLDEN PEACOCK PREMIUM LAGER BEER (India), GOLDEN PHEASANT LAGER BEER (Slovakia), KIWI ORGANIC ALE (UK), LAUGHING LOON LAGER (USA),LOON HAND CRAFTED PALE ALE (USA), MAGPIE RYE ALE (BREW ALE) de Seigle (Canada), MALLARD BAY RED ALE (USA), OLDE BUZZARD LAGER (USA),
OSPREY STRONG & RICH ALE (UK), PELICAN PUB & BREWERY DORYMAN’S DARK ALE, PEREGRINE GOLDEN ALE (USA), PINTAIL ALE (USA), QUAIL SPRINGS IPA (USA), RAVEN ALE (Scotland), RAVEN CREAM ALE (Canada), RAVEN’S EYE IMPERIAL STOUT (USA), RAVENS RIDGE PALE ALE (USA), RED ROOSTER DRAFT AMBER (Palau), RED TAIL ALE (USA),
ROADRUNNER RED ALE (USA), ROOSTER TAIL ALE (USA), SANDPIPER PREMIUM BEER (India), SPARHAWK GOLDEN ALE (USA), STONE KETTLE SWALLOW I.P.A. (Scotland), SWAN LAGER LIGHT (Australia), THE DUCK-RABBIT MILK STOUT (USA), THE RAVEN SPECIAL LAGER (USA), WHITEFACE PALE ALE (USA) - bald eagle, WHITE HAWK ORIGINAL IPA (USA), WHOOPER BREW (USA), WILD GOOSE AMBER BEER (USA), YOUNGER’S KESTREL PILSNER LAGER (UK), OLD PECKERHEAD NUT BROWN ALE (USA), MORELAND "OLD SPECKLED HEN" ENGLISH FINE ALE (England), YELLOWHAMMER DEVON’S GOLDEN ALE (England).
Posted by: Ted Floyd | 07/09/2013 at 08:11 AM
Just had a Loon's Eye Red ale (brewed by the Leech Lake Brewing Co., Walker, MN) last night.
Posted by: Jim Hengeveld | 07/09/2013 at 05:07 PM