bird call at night

I hear two different sounds Mary but hard to fathom out what they could be although 2nd sound could be female tawny owl. Also to consider are various fox sounds too. Hopefully someone else can come up with suggested IDs for them.

To be honest, Mary Liz, I'm struggling to hear much even with my speakers turned up to full volume. The only thing I'm picking up is a very faint yapping sound. Is it even a bird? Do you get foxes around where you live.? Dog foxes can make a sound like that. Sorry, not much help but it's the only thing I can suggest.

Thanks for responding - I know it was very faint although I did try to turn up the volume on the recording - if it comes back tonight I'll try and get a better one. As regards foxes, we do get them in the garden (in fact had 3 cubs turn up in 2020 during the daytime) but the sounds i have heard from them are much harsher - sometimes even screamlike - whereas this sound was flute-like. I guess a female tawny owl may have a more varied repertoire on top of the "keewick" calls i have previously identified..

Hi Mary Liz

As Tee Jay has noted a soft yapping sound is typical of a male fox whereas the "scream" you describe is typical of the vixen and, given that you can hear something walking about out there, a dog fox seems a fairly likely candidate.

As the others have said, distinctive fox calls, plus lots of other noises, possibly an owl.

You could try a search using the link below, starting with known birds in your area along with the habitat, woodland, water, open fields etc to break down the species to search for initially.

https://www.british-birdsongs.uk/

For those who have been following this thread, Mary has posted a clearer recording on the following link.

https://community.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/f/identify-this/278742/bird-call-at-night/1372173#1372173