What’s the difference between the egg song and the alarm call?

[EEforMe]

What’s the difference between the egg song and the alarm call? I know they’re different, but I can’t figure it out. I think maybe my chickens just don’t sound the alarm very often…?
Thanks!

 

[BlindLemonChicken]

I had a raccoon attack and heard my chickens screaming. They sounded like angry seagulls. I think that was an alarm call

 

[BielefelderFanatic]

You can kind of figure it out if you know what time of day your layers lay and how the other chickens respond. If you stick your head out the door and all of them are fully erect and concerned, it isn't an egg song, it is a potential problem. However, they have done this with deer, squirrels, etc. With the deer I was glad they were on point because they were trying to eat my apple trees.

 

[Blue Raptor]

What’s the difference between the egg song and the alarm call? I know they’re different, but I can’t figure it out. I think maybe my chickens just don’t sound the alarm very often…?
Thanks!

If it’s the egg song, it will be (most of the time) one chicken almost casually squawking loudly.
If it’s an alarm, more than one chicken will be doing it and they will be looking in the fixed direction of the threat (feild, sky, coop). They also run for cover, and let out what sounds like a moan of alarm.

 

[EEforMe]

Thanks! I wonder why they evolved to have them sound so similar

 

[rosemarythyme]

They actually do sound different but you'd have to hear them one after another to be able to tell, in most cases.

As a precaution I look out the window if I hear a vigorous egg song, just in case.

 

[igorsMistress]

FWIW, when one of my girls sings, often they all get going so just because they’re all cackling doesn’t mean anything. It’ll start as one and the rest join in. It’s when they sound off suddenly and then total silence that they’re hiding from something.

 

[aart]

What’s the difference between the egg song and the alarm call? I know they’re different, but I can’t figure it out.

IME, they are not much different.

 

[KyCoop]

The alarm sound is faster and more urgent. Something like bak bak BAGAUGH bak bak BAGAUGH bak bak BAGAUGH. and that means they see the danger run for your lives. The egg song is more relaxed but just as loud. Bak bak bak bagaugh bak bak bak bak bagaugh.
I know I sound like a weirdo but I spent A LOT of time listening to my girls (when they were young) on the monitor while I worked from home. I had to learn then to go check them and when they were just singing.
What is more fascinating is trilling. They do that sometimes 2 or 3 mins before the hawk even appears and they were always spot on.

 

[Chicken poppy]

As everyone else said, there is some difference to it, but at a glance, it sounds very similar.

Honestly, if you had just just one chicken, and they did the call, and you couldn’t see how they were acting, it would be really, really hard to tell the difference.

Mine will freeze, others will typically join in, and panic spreads like wildfire. Heres some clips (not mine) that show the difference between an egg song and a alarm call.

alarm:

egg:

If others join in, that doesn’t mean its an alarm, it could also be an egg song, but i find mine are much more likely to join in on an alarm call.


They sound very similar, but the behavior is much different. Mine often won’t move, or will hide.