bird call at night

Hi Mary, is this a duplication of another post "bird call at night" on the following link? https://community.rspb.org.uk/wildlife/f/identify-this/278735/bird-call-at-night

If it is please have a look at the replies.

No, this is a second recording I have just posted which I made last night and is hopefully louder than the night before. Have been following up all the suggestions and can see the similarity to fox yaps but it seems more fluty - maybe it's a soprano fox? Have also worked my way through some possibilities on the UK birdsong link you kindly sent but nothing certain there (unless it is an accomplished starling mimic?). I'd better stop bombarding everone with poor recordings!

Definitely a lot clearer, alas, I'm sorry I'm not able to help, but hopefully someone will.

If you've no objection, I'll cross ref this post on the other thread, and hopefully it will lead to an answer.

This is a much clearer recording, Mary Liz, well done. It does sound more like a bird than a fox but I'm none the wiser. It almost seems one call is being answered by another or, if it a bird, it's flying closer then further away. I guess one of owls (Little or Tawny) is the most likely bird suspect but I can't find a recording that matches.

I hope you don't mind but I've put your latest recording on here to make it easier for people to listen to.directly. It would be nice if we could solve the mystery.

Thanks for that Tony, as I could not open the original on iPad. Sounds like two different birds, one near and the other distant, no idea really, at a guess Owls?

Thanks for the link - enjoyed listening to all the owl recordings but nothing seems to match - the culprit seems to have gone quiet anyway, If I hear it again, may try for another recording.

Hi Mary Liz. I was wondering if you’d had any joy identifying your sound? I’ve recently moved house ( I live in the Southwest) and I’ve heard exactly the same sound. I’ve only heard it twice so far, last night was the second time and I did get up to peek out of the window but couldn’t see anything. It does sound like it’s either two separate calls or perhaps one bird flying very fast and calling as it goes. One second it seems to be directly outside my house and within a couple of seconds it sounds like it’s far away. I’d be very interested if you’d managed to find out what it was.

I thought it might be a common snipe? Not long after the post I was watching Chris Packham on TV and he recorded a bird that sounded very similar. Only now when I watch it I’m not so sure. I haven’t heard the noise since probably the winter so I’m hoping maybe it will return later in the year. Anyway this is the link to the tv clip I mentioned, the relevant part is about 3 minutes 30 secs in.

Chris Packham & Gary Moore record the drumming of a Snipe | Our Wild Adventures | Jul 2021 - YouTube