Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory Audio Quiz

RMBO Audio Quiz #7

2010-01-01T11:30:00.008-07:00

Play audio on player below or click here to download mp3.

Sorry this is so late! This is the last quiz for the prize. We will start a new round in a couple weeks.

The hint for this week.... think bridges!

Click here to submit your answer!

Submit your quiz answers to audioquiz@rmbo.org by the end of the day on Sunday, January 10, 2010. Put "RMBO Audio Quiz #7" in the subject. Put the full name of the bird species, your first and last name, and hometown in the body of your email.

As a reminder, the quiz rules can be found here.

Happy New Year!

Jeff and Jason
RMBO Audio Quizmasters

RMBO Audio Quiz #6 - Answer

2009-12-02T08:55:00.019-07:00

Play audio on player below or click here to download mp3.

In this quiz, there were three audible species. One, is a vocalization that I believe every should know and was fairly obvious – Pinyon Jay. One of the other calling species, Red-winged Blackbird, shouldn’t have been too difficult, I think. The last calling species was a toughy! This one was a super-bonus and I would have been surprised if anyone guessed correctly (no one did). It was a Lewis’s Woodpecker and you can hear it do a sharp call in the beginning and the end of this recording. I obtained this recording in my yard near Paonia, Colorado on March 7th, 2008.

The following people correctly identified Pinyon Jay on this quiz and three of them identified Red-winged Blackbird as well (* = 1 bonus point):

Andy Bankert
Carl Ingwell *
Joel Such *
Marcel Such *

Thanks,

Jason
RMBO Audio Quizmaster

RMBO Audio Quiz #5 - Answer

2009-11-18T09:55:00.014-07:00

Play audio on player below or click here to download mp3

This week's quiz wasn't too difficult and everyone that answered was correct. This audio clip of a Northern Pygmy-Owl and European Starling was recorded in the Paonia town park (Delta County, Colorado) by Jason Beason. A pair of Northern Pygmy-Owls attempted to breed unsuccessfully in April of 2008. The pair was seen copulating and the female was seen exiting from a cavity in a large silver maple in the park. Of course, there are a large number of starlings breeding here. When I returned one evening and saw a starling poking its head out of the same cavity the female Pygmy-Owl had been using, I lost hope that the owls would actually breed.

The following people answered correctly on this quiz (* = 1/2 bonus point):

Andy Bankert *
Taylor Brooks *
Eric DeFonso *
Kirk Huffstater
Katie Stassen *
Joel Such *
Marcel Such *

We have a three-way tie for first place right now. Here is a list of the top five quizzers and their current scores:

Andy Bankert 6
Joel Such 6
Marcel Such 6
Eric DeFonso 4
Nathan Pieplow 3.5

Thanks,

Jeff and Jason
RMBO Audio Quizmasters

RMBO Audio Quiz #4 - Answer

2009-11-04T08:25:00.008-07:00

Play audio on player below or click here to download the mp3.

Our first owl species for the quiz! Owls can be difficult simply because we just don’t hear them often. I thought that this would be an easy quiz and was surprised that a few folks answered incorrectly. These simultaneously vocalizing owls are Eastern Screech-Owls that I recorded at the infamous Crow Valley campground on August 17, 2008. As I began to write the answer to this week’s quiz it occurred to me that I was not certain if either of the vocalizations heard here (the “whinny” or the “trill”) can be called a “song”. Some species of owls have what can be called a “male advertising song” but are either of these known to be vocalizations exclusive to male Eastern Screech-Owls? I would be curious if anyone out here has an answer to that question!

Here are the seven respondents that answered correctly this week:

Andy Bankert
Tayler Brooks
Jack Chiles
Katie Stassen
Joel Such
Marcel Such
Charles Swift

Thanks,

Jason Beason
RMBO Audio Quizmaster

RMBO Audio Quiz #3 - Answer

2009-10-20T09:13:00.011-06:00

Play audio on player below or click here to download the mp3.

In this recording you can hear a lot of creek noise which is a big hint. One songbird comes to mind when fast-flowing water is involved; the American Dipper. This species is a loud singer and it often has to be loud to be heard over the rushing torrent in the creeks where they are found. They are capable of singing very long songs of rhythmic whistles and trills. An interesting little tidbit: both dipper sexes sing year-round.

Four respondents guessed correctly on this quiz:

Joel Such
Marcel Such
Andy Bankert
Nathan Pieplow

Thanks,

Jason and Jeff
RMBO Audio Quizmasters

Audio Quiz Rules

2009-10-07T09:25:00.001-06:00

1. DO NOT discuss the identification in the comment section on facebook. Such comments will be deleted to give everyone a chance at identifying the photo without hints.

2. Submit your answer with as many species as you can hear and identify in the recording. Just the loudest species will be counted for the correct answer, but we will give bonus points for other species found on recordings.

3. Please submit your quiz answers to audioquiz@rmbo.org by the end of the day on the second Sunday after the quiz is put up. Put "RMBO Audio Quiz #(fill in number!)" in the subject. Put the name of the bird species, your full name and hometown in the body of your email. Click here to submit your answer!

4. At the end of the year, the person with the most correct answers, or in the event of a tie a randomly selected winner, will receive a RMBO hat.

Good luck!

Jason and Jeff
RMBO Audio Quizmasters

RMBO Audio Quiz #2 - Answer

2009-10-06T23:06:00.010-06:00

Play audio on player below or click here to download mp3.

OK, maybe the second RMBO Audio quiz was too easy! All seven of the participants guessed the easily-heard singing bird correctly; White-crowned Sparrow. There was a calling bird in the background that a few people guessed at, but it was difficult to hear without high-quality speakers or nice headphones. My guess is that the calling species is a Pine Siskin, but I could be wrong! Two of the brave participants that guessed at the second species agree with me.

The following people answered correctly for quiz #2:

Andy Bankert
Jacob Cooper
Eric DeFonso
Nathan Pieplow
Joel Such
Marcel Such
Eric Wood

Thanks!

Jason
RMBO Audio Quizmasters

RMBO Audio Quiz #1 - Answer

2009-09-23T13:51:00.004-06:00

Here is the first RMBO audio quiz. We will be putting up a new audio file every two weeks. Click on the player below (requires flash) to listen to the quiz or click here to be redirected to the audio website.

Answer to Audio Quiz #1:

In the quiz #1 recording, you can immediately hear a very unique bird sound – a singing Common Poorwill. Then, almost right away an American Robin sings and also a Mourning Dove.

I was surprised how many didn’t notice the Mourning Dove. It is especially interesting to me because this is something that we warn about during RMBO point-count training sessions for our field staff. Mourning Doves are apparently missed quite frequently by biologists doing point-count surveys (a “window” species!). I just did a quick internet search and I could not find any information to support this statement, but this would be a great research project for someone!

Also, if you are curious about that metallic popping in this recording that is some metal part of the under-carriage of my vehicle cooling off. There are also some audible insects in there too (crickets or grasshoppers?).

Here are the people who submitted correct answers (* = bonus 1/2 point for Mourning Dove):

Andy Bankert *
Eric DeFonso *
Grant Gardner *
Bill Maynard *
Jen McCabe *
Nathan Pieplow *
Marcel Such *
Joel Such *
Debbie Barnes
Chuck Bell
Bryan Guarente
Chuck Hundertmark
Carl Ingwell
Harley Winfrey

Thanks!
Jason Beason