How to Call Birds Without Making a Sound

There's a cartoon that captures birding perfectly: a birder stands at the edge of a thicket, making their best pishing noise, and from deep in the bushes a small bird pokes its head out — not to come closer, but to hold a tiny wing up to its beak and whisper: “Shhhh.” Turns out the bird was already watching. It knew you were there the whole time.

That's not just a joke. It's actually how birding works — and once you understand it, you may find you need to make far fewer silly noises than you thought.

The Alert Zone

Every bird has what we can call an Alert Zone: the area around it where, if a creature enters, the bird becomes aware of the potential threat. The moment you step into a bird's Alert Zone, it notices you. It may not flush, but it will almost certainly make a contact call — a soft chip, a quiet note, a brief alarm — to let other birds nearby know that something is moving through the area.

That contact call is useful information. It tells you a bird is there, roughly where it is, and often what species it is. You don't need to pish to find out what's in the thicket. You just need to slow down and listen.

Act Like a Cow

Here's where it gets interesting. What the bird does next depends almost entirely on what you do.

If you stop and stare directly at the bush where you heard the contact call, the bird sees you watching — and it stays hidden. A bird that perceives a direct threat will wait you out long after you've given up and moved on.

But if you behave like something that is clearly not a predator — slow, unhurried, completely uninterested — the bird will often relax and come out on its own.

Act like a cow. Slow your movements. Stare off into the middle distance. Check your phone and scroll for a bit (digital grazing). Turn slightly away from the area. Let the bird reassess you as a non-threat, and watch what happens.

This technique works because you are working with the bird's natural behaviour rather than trying to override it. A contact call tells you where to look. A cow impression gets you the view.

When You Want to Go Active

Passive technique works — often better than active calling — but sometimes you want to coax a bird a little further. Pishing, squeaking, and other active calls can help, provided you use them thoughtfully.

The idea behind active calls is that a repeated alarm-like sound simulates the commotion of a small flock that has spotted a predator. This mobbing behaviour draws other birds in to investigate. When it works, a mixed flock can appear around you all at once. When it doesn't, you silence every bird in the area and stand there feeling somewhat foolish.

A good way to blend the two approaches: act like a cow, but toss out a few casual pishes — as if you've accidentally blundered through a nest rather than deliberately calling. Then go back to being uninterested. A curious bird may pop out to assess what just happened, and your cow impression convinces it there's nothing to worry about.

Before going active, read the situation:

Breeding season (roughly April through July) — don't. A bird that responds to a pish does not simply look around and return to what it was doing. It may stay alert and agitated for several minutes. That is time not spent foraging or tending to young — a real cost at the most demanding time of year. Leave the birds in peace.

Popular and heavily birded locations — skip it. A bird at a well-visited site may already be disturbed many times a day by other birders just walking the trails and actively searching. The cumulative effect is significant. Save active techniques for quieter, less visited spots.

Song and call playback — not appropriate for recreational birding. Playing a territorial song or alarm call to draw a bird into view exploits its instincts against it, and the effect on behaviour can last well beyond your visit. Using Merlin or another recording app to identify a bird you are already watching is perfectly fine. Using it as bait is not.

Pishing and squeaker devices can be acceptable — briefly, outside of breeding season, away from popular locations. Keep it short, stop when you have your answer, and do not repeat it at the same spot throughout a visit.

When in doubt, do nothing. Passive technique costs the bird nothing.

Active Calling Techniques

Pishing: A drawn-out “Psssshhhhhh” or short rapid “Pish pish pish pish” repeated several times. Variations in speed and pitch work — consistent repetition is the key.

Calling: Some birders can mimic a bird's call or song by whistling or throat-calling. A Raven, for instance, may respond in kind. Owls often respond as well if the call is at the right time (dawn, dusk).

Gadgets: The Audubon Bird Call — sometimes called a “squeaker” — is a small birchwood-and-metal instrument that produces varying squeaking sounds when twisted.

For ducks, a standard duck call can work. (Watch out for the duck hunters though!)

Some Tips

Stand beside some bushes or under a low tree and remain absolutely still before making any sound. If a bird comes in to investigate, give it somewhere to land.

Louder is not always better. A short, subtle call can be more effective than a loud one.

After any active calling, wait several minutes and watch carefully. Birds that came in to investigate may be quietly moving through the bush without announcing themselves. If nothing shows up, the birds are likely not around.

Experiment — there are no hard-and-fast rules to pattern and rhythm. What works in one area might not work in another.

Here on the West Coast, a brief pish in the right location and season might attract any of these species — and this is far from a complete list. Many others will respond depending on the habitat and time of year.

Black-capped Chickadee, Chestnut-backed Chickadee, Bushtit, Spotted Towhee, Dark-eyed Junco, Bewick's Wren, Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Golden-crowned Kinglet, Song Sparrow, Fox Sparrow, Golden-crowned Sparrow, White-crowned Sparrow, Yellow-rumped Warbler.

Finally, don't be surprised when you call in something that doesn't fly. That prowling cat enjoys your bird calls as much as the birds.

Enjoy your birding!

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