catbird

noun

Etymology: From cat + bird, because its cry is said to resemble that of a cat.

1. An American passerine bird of the genera Dumetella and Melanoptila.

   “The catbird’s note exactly resembles the voice of a kitten, that a stranger to it would instantly conclude that such an animal "had got bewildered in the branches".”

   “I recall a catbird high in the water oak above, swinging like a rag amid the branches, jabbering and screeching [...].”

2. Any of four species of Australasian bowerbirds of the genera Ailuroedus and Scenopoeetes.

   “The cat bird had a forlorn cry, like a whimpering child or the animal it is named for.”

3. A babbler-like bird from eastern Africa, Parophasma galinieri.