The melodies are highly unusual, almost feline in their mewing quality which chimes nicely with the cover.
A high-pitched mewing cry during infancy is a classic feature of cri du chat.
Children born with this chromosomal deletion have a characteristic mewing cat-like cry as infants that is thought to be caused by abnormal development of the larynx (organ in the throat responsible for voice production).
Of the various other genera allied to Mimus, the best known are the thrashers (genus Harporhynchus) of which six or eight species are found in North America, which are thrush-like and shy in their habits and do not mimic; and the cat-bird (Galeoscoptes carolinensis), which in addition to having an attractive song, utters clucks, whistles and mewing sounds.