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Capercaillie

Kate Humble presents the capercaillie.

Tweet of the Day is a series of fascinating stories about our British birds inspired by their calls and songs.

Kate Humble presents the capercaillie. The bizarre knife-grinding, cork-popping display of the male capercaillie is one of the strangest sounds produced by any bird. The name 'Capercaillie' is derived from the Gaelic for 'horse of the woods', owing to the cantering sound, which is the start of their extraordinary mating display. These are the largest grouse in the world and in the UK they live only in ancient Caledonian pine forests.

Available now

2 minutes

Last on

Fri 12 Jan 2024 05:58

Capercaillie (Tetrao urogallus)

Webpage image courtesy of RSPB (rspb-images.com).

Broadcasts

  • Wed 23 Apr 2014 05:58
  • Wed 22 Apr 2015 05:58
  • Sun 26 Apr 2015 08:58
  • Mon 11 Jul 2016 05:58
  • Sun 17 Jul 2016 08:58
  • Mon 10 Dec 2018 05:58
  • Tue 14 Jan 2020 05:58
  • Wed 17 Nov 2021 05:58
  • Tue 8 Mar 2022 05:58
  • Fri 12 Jan 2024 05:58

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