Mystery Night Bird

[Hypognosis]

Was in the garden watching for shooting stars last night. Pitch dark because the local council turns the street lights off.

I heard a bird calling out and then realised it was actually in flight, heading down the street. There is open countryside about 100 yards further in the direction it was heading.

It was a high pitched 'cherret cherret cherret' sound. Raptor-like but failed to match any of the various sounds and call patterns typical of them.
It was:-
Not quite a "kee-wick" sound.
Not like a blackbird's alarm-type call (and not flying fast enough)
Not a 'piping' call, like redshank or other waders

I know Redwing fly at night but have never encountered this first hand. I've listened to sound recordings of the in-flight call and it wasn't that.

So, any suggestions?

Know any online libraries with owl sounds over and above the usual calls they make while perched?

[Chipchopper]

I actually had a similar experience last night and it turned out to be two jay's having a tiff.

[Hypognosis]

To me, jays sound like a crow with a sore throat. ;-)
So I don't thing it was one of those.

Thanks for the reply though.

[cupid04]

Nightjar?

[Mojo-Jo-Jo]

It sounds like it could have been a distant owl.
I want to live under your council.

[Svejk]

I don't know would this help;
http://www.wildaboutbritain.co.uk/forums/british-birds/49038-bird-thats-keeps-us-awake-night.html

I vaguely remember a story about a chap who got a new app on his phone. This app could identify bird calls & transmit reciprocal calls.
First night, great excitement. A rare Owl or somesuch. Several sleepless nights ensued 'communicating' with said owl before he discovered one of his neighbours had the same app.
They'd been up night after night hooting to each other.

[Hypognosis]

@Cupid04

Nightjar would be a new life tick, for me! The book says
//Flight call, a soft nasal "goo-eck"; alarm, a high "quick-quick-quick."//

and the alarm call description is a fairly good match.

[Hypognosis]

@Mojo jo jo,

I like that you like the lights out idea - a lot of people don't. It was dark enough for the milky way to really stand out and the brighter shooting stars left a trail which stayed visible for a few seconds.

The written descriptions of owl calls don't match what I heard. Would like to set eyes on one properly, one of these days but this isn't that time. :-/

[jomifl]

Nightjars flying at night that I can only describe as a bandsaw or router heard down a long pipe.

[jomifl]

I missed out a few words but what the hell.

[Hypognosis]

@Svejk

Heh heh.

I've got an app, now you mention it. Luckily my sound source was at rooftop height and moving down the street at 15-20mph.

Back in the days when kids had to make their own entertainment, there was a way to make owl hoots by cupping your hands and blowing between your thumbs. No owl song-ID 'sighting' was worth a thing unless you set eyes on whatever the sound was coming from.

[Hypognosis]

So far google cannot find me anything other than the 'churrrr' call of nightjar, which is not what I'm looking for. I will keep searching and post a link (and select a Best Answer) if I find a matching recording. Thank you for the replies so far.

[chrisgel]

Possibly a bat?
They fly over my garden every night and occasionally make high pitched cheep cheep sort of noise but different if you know what I mean.

[Hypognosis]

Hi chrisgel,

Coincidentally, as I turned my head to track the sound, a bat flew the opposite direction, two feet from me, diverting my attention for a second. The ones I sometimes see in the car headlights look smaller than a blue tit - this one was about twice that size.

I have seen a bunch of circling bats and heard the (faint) high pitch sounds you mention (at a different house) but what I heard wasn't that high pitched. Like I said - similar pitch and loudness to a raptor call but a different phrasing.

Interesting suggestion though. Thanks.

[carrust]

Could be a roding woodcock?

[Hypognosis]

Hi Carrust,

Woodcock is another one of those species I've never set eyes on and am unlikely ever to stumble across. On the "wish list", if you like.

I had to look up "roding" in the bird book and the written description seems to match the recording which the phone app has. Again, it didn't match the thing I heard. (Basically, _none_ of the sound samples in the App match what I heard, which is the whole problem).

It's weird how some bird species are able make sounds which I would otherwise think were being made by a music synthesiser. :-)