So...yesterday, I heard THE mockingbird! The way he changes sounds so quickly, I'm not really thinking he's the mystery bird now. Especially since the mystery bird makes his one sound over and over. Catherine, it's a monotone, for sure. It's usually 2 "teets", separated by a pause, then many "teets" in a row before pausing and starting over. It appears to be speeding up, but now my memory is fading. It's been so long since I've heard it as close to the house as it was the first 2 days. It's a strong sound, not very high pitched, just solid. I have absolutely nothing to compare it to, so I'm sorry for the vague descriptions! As I mentioned earlier, the tempo of the song of the vermilion flycatcher is VERY similar, albeit it's MUCH more high-pitched than the mystery bird's. (I just listened to the song on the Cornell site, and it sounds nothing like the vermilion song in my book - "The repeated territorial song of the male Vermilion Flycatcher!" Ack!) DH did say the bird was a tad smaller than our scrub jays. He said the tail appeared black on the top with "some white underneath"....although trying to view anything against the harsh glare of the sky is NOT very accurate. LOL Thanks for continuing to try, ladies!! The wind is here until Friday, so I may not get another chance to see it until then. :( Brenda

Folks over at birdforum identified it for me. It's a Common Nighthawk.

I live in Southwest Missouri and I hear them all the time. I have seen them in the trees, but can't get a close enough look at them to see them enough to identify it. It is a gray colored bird though. We call them "kitty, kitty, kitty" birds.

LOL! Yes tree frogs are incredibly loud! I had about 5-6 singing to each other yesterday evening in the back yard and I could hardly hear my family talking to me while out on the deck! They are really hard to find too. I have one that retires to a little ledge on the top of my shed every year.....same spot. He's so cute! I love going to sleep with my windows open so I can hear them, but sometimes, I just have to close the window 'cause they are sooooooo loud! They are pretty amazing little creatures. I think they are attracted to my backyard because I have several little water gardens. They deposit their eggs in the water. They are so sensitive to the presence of water, that if I go out to just water a few plants, they start singing! I don't know if they see the water, or just hear or smell it! Ain't nature grand? :)