emergency whistle sounds just like a bird call …

Interesting.

"except presumably the subject would be blowing more frantically. "

I don't know if I'd count on that! If you're sitting there, leg lodged under a rock or whatever your situation is, for hours and hours with no sign of help, my guess is you're meekly blowing the whistle every minute or so, and not at all frantically.

I was once in a situation where I was hiking and heard what I soon found out was a whistle (from a sternum strap).

I distinctly remember thinking to myself: "What and interesting Birdcall, I should really start learning birdcalls".

I think this is a good reason why you should use the universal sign of distress: 3
I think three blasts on a whistle close together at regular intervals, would sound less "organic"?
Maybe the first set could get mistaken for a bird(s), but I think after a few rounds it would seem unnaturally consistent to most people, especially SAR.

yes, 3 blasts (not SOS) is how the Boy Scouts are taught and it is what i listen for. SOS in Morse code would be (dit dit dit) (dah dah dah) (dit dit dit), 3 blasts is much quicker and easier esp. in an excited state.

Steve, WM3O

3 tweety birds ;)

"3 tweety birds ;)"

i tawt i taw a puddy tat.

A youth SAR group in New Zealand did some testing on whistles to determine which were the best (and worst) in dense New Zealand bush. Some interesting results were noted. The Storm Whistle followed by the Acme Thunderer were best with an audible range out to 400m (1/4 mile), yelling and screaming were just as effective if only for short periods, the Fox 40 whistle was good for 238m. The link below as more results and the methodlogy used.

http://www.ysar.org.nz/technology/Testing.htm

It makes sense that a complex waveform with many harmonics and tonal variations (human voice) would be much better-suited to being heard through / around acoustic impediments such as trees, than a single high-frequency blast (a whistle), which is very directional and more quickly absorbed by any material in the way.

I got a couple of the Storm whistles after reading about this test – man, they are big! The Fox 40 tucks neatly into a t-shirt; the Storm is a huge big thing! I've yet to actually take it along!

Just wait until this bird learns all of the different whistle models!