---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We’ll do a bit of reconnaissance. If it’s…"
description: "\"“We’ll do a bit of reconnaissance. If it’s safe, I’ll make a call like a sparrow hawk.’ ‘Like a sparrow hawk?’ said Munro Bruys, anxiously moving his c..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1be/andrzej-sapkowski-1769_bird_we-ll-do-a-bit-of-reconnaissance-if-it-s_2525548.jpg"
---

#  We’ll do a bit of reconnaissance. If it’s safe, I’ll make…

![“We’ll do a bit of reconnaissance. If it’s safe, I’ll make a call like a sparrow hawk.’ ‘Like a sparrow hawk?’ said Munro Bruys, anxiously moving his chin. ‘Since when did you know anything about mimicking bird calls, Zoltan?’ ‘That’s the whole point. If you hear a strange, unrecognisable sound…” quote by Andrzej Sapkowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1be/andrzej-sapkowski-1769_bird_we-ll-do-a-bit-of-reconnaissance-if-it-s_2525548.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1be/andrzej-sapkowski-1769_bird_we-ll-do-a-bit-of-reconnaissance-if-it-s_2525548.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1be/andrzej-sapkowski-1769_bird_we-ll-do-a-bit-of-reconnaissance-if-it-s_2525548.jpg)

> ““We’ll do a bit of reconnaissance. If it’s safe, I’ll make a call like a sparrow hawk.’ ‘Like a sparrow hawk?’ said Munro Bruys, anxiously moving his chin. ‘Since when did you know anything about mimicking bird calls, Zoltan?’ ‘That’s the whole point. If you hear a strange, unrecognisable sound, you’ll know it’s me.””

[Andrzej Sapkowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrzej-sapkowski/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

A character uses a bird call disguise to signal safety, turning an odd sound into a recognizable personal cue.

**In simple terms:** Using a strange sound as a personal signal for safety.

Key Takeaway

Create a unique signal to identify yourself in risky situations.

Themes

identity signal survival deception trust

Mood

tense strategic

Type

literary dialogue

When to use this quote

- exploration
- military ops
- search and rescue
- team coordination

Key Concepts

semiotics contextual signaling risk management

Questions to Reflect On

- How can you design a personal signal that others will recognize?
- What risks arise when using deceptive sounds?

A Different Perspective

Reliance on a sound may fail if others misinterpret it.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bird/) [Bird Calls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bird-calls-1293781/) [Hawk Like](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hawk-like-1293787/) [Like Sparrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-sparrow-1293785/) [Mimicking Bird](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mimicking-bird-1293784/) [Sparrow Hawk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sparrow-hawk-1293789/)

## Related quotes

> [“Hawk was like a man gone mad. He'd hardly slept all night for worrying about her, and here she was, calmly riding back to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kat-martin/hawk-was-like-a-man-gone-mad-he-d-hardly-slept-all-night-for-worrying/)

[Kat Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kat-martin/)

> [I don't always answer bird calls, but, when I do, they're from Tom Brady and Gronk.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martellus-bennett/i-don-t-always-answer-bird-calls-but-when-i-do-they-re-from-tom-brady/)

[Martellus Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martellus-bennett/)

> [“Like a sparrow in its flitting, like a swallow in its flying, a curse that is causeless does not alight.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-b-brewer/like-a-sparrow-in-its-flitting-like-a-swallow-in-its-flying-a-curse/)

[Nancy B. Brewer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-b-brewer/)

> [“Be like a sparrow aspiring to be an ostrich, and I’ll be like a cowboy with no horse looking for a speedy land runner…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/be-like-a-sparrow-aspiring-to-be-an-ostrich-and-i-ll-be-like-a-cowboy/)

[Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/)

> [Some of the most beautiful bird calls are cries of distress and fear…these sculptures are a way for me to express my cry.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kari-byron/some-of-the-most-beautiful-bird-calls-are-cries-of-distress-and-fear/)

[Kari Byron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kari-byron/)

> [Every wife ought to answer for her man. If the husband be engaged in a seditious club, or drinks mysterious healths, or be frugal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/every-wife-ought-to-answer-for-her-man-if-the-husband-be-engaged-in-a/)

[Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/)

> [A clock struck out the hour of twelve, and the bird in the hedgerow was still singing as we marched out to the roadway,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-macgill/a-clock-struck-out-the-hour-of-twelve-and-the-bird-in-the-hedgerow/)

[Patrick MacGill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-macgill/)

> [And wheresoever, in his rich creation, Sweet music breathes--in wave, or bird, or soul-- 'Tis but the faint and far reverberation Of that great…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-sargent-osgood/and-wheresoever-in-his-rich-creation-sweet-music-breathes-in-wave-or/)

[Frances Sargent Osgood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-sargent-osgood/)

> [Surely, God could have caused birds to fly with their bones made of solid gold, with their veins full of quicksilver, with their flesh…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galileo-galilei/surely-god-could-have-caused-birds-to-fly-with-their-bones-made-of/)

[Galileo Galilei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galileo-galilei/)

> [Can you imagine any better example of divine creative accomplishment that the consummate flying machine that is a bird? The skeleton, very flexible and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-murchie/can-you-imagine-any-better-example-of-divine-creative-accomplishment/)

[Guy Murchie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-murchie/)

> [I would rather learn from one bird how to sing than to teach 10,000 stars how not to dance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-e-cummings/i-would-rather-learn-from-one-bird-how-to-sing-than-to-teach-10-000/)

[e. e. cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-e-cummings/)

> [“He unfixes the metal notch and slips his hand around the body of the bird. Feels its heat, its small heart beating. He stares…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-schuyler/he-unfixes-the-metal-notch-and-slips-his-hand-around-the-body-of-the/)

[Nina Schuyler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-schuyler/)

> [Set the bird's wings with gold and it will never again soar in thesky.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabindranath-tagore/set-the-bird-s-wings-with-gold-and-it-will-never-again-soar-in-thesky/)

[Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/)

> [Some minds corrode and grow inactive under the loss of personal liberty; others grow morbid and irritable; but it is the nature of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/washington-irving/some-minds-corrode-and-grow-inactive-under-the-loss-of-personal/)

[Washington Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/washington-irving/)

> [And I have been very blessed, having coached some of the greatest that have ever played the game. But if I had to start…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/red-auerbach/and-i-have-been-very-blessed-having-coached-some-of-the-greatest-that/)

[Red Auerbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/red-auerbach/)

## More by Andrzej Sapkowski

> [“The princess looks like a striga!” he yelled. “Like the most strigish striga I have heard of!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrzej-sapkowski/the-princess-looks-like-a-striga-he-yelled-like-the-most-strigish/)

[Andrzej Sapkowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrzej-sapkowski/)

> [“There are things in heaven and earth that even philosophers have never dreamed about.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrzej-sapkowski/there-are-things-in-heaven-and-earth-that-even-philosophers-have/)

[Andrzej Sapkowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrzej-sapkowski/)

> [“The moon shines bright, The vampire alights Swish, swish goes his cloak . . . Maiden, are you not afeared?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrzej-sapkowski/the-moon-shines-bright-the-vampire-alights-swish-swish-goes-his-cloak/)

[Andrzej Sapkowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrzej-sapkowski/)

> [“For whoever doesn’t overcome the cowardice inside themselves will die of fear to the end of their days. The”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrzej-sapkowski/for-whoever-doesn-t-overcome-the-cowardice-inside-themselves-will-die/)

[Andrzej Sapkowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrzej-sapkowski/)

> [“I predict a bad end for your race, humans,’ Zoltan Chivay said grimly. ‘Every sentient creature on this earth, when it falls into want,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrzej-sapkowski/i-predict-a-bad-end-for-your-race-humans-zoltan-chivay-said-grimly/)

[Andrzej Sapkowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrzej-sapkowski/)

> [“But, Dandelion, I could never resist the temptation of having a look at something that doesn’t exist.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrzej-sapkowski/but-dandelion-i-could-never-resist-the-temptation-of-having-a-look-at/)

[Andrzej Sapkowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrzej-sapkowski/)

> [“Your mother gives birth to you only once and only once do you die,' the witcher said calmly. 'An appropriate philosophy for a louse,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrzej-sapkowski/your-mother-gives-birth-to-you-only-once-and-only-once-do-you-die-the/)

[Andrzej Sapkowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrzej-sapkowski/)

> [“The Witcher had a knife to his throat. He was wallowing in a wooden tub, brimfull with soapsuds, his head thrown agains the slippery…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrzej-sapkowski/the-witcher-had-a-knife-to-his-throat-he-was-wallowing-in-a-wooden/)

[Andrzej Sapkowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrzej-sapkowski/)

> [“I’ll pay back what I owe,’ he said quietly. ‘I won’t forget. It may happen that one day you’ll be in need of help.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrzej-sapkowski/i-ll-pay-back-what-i-owe-he-said-quietly-i-won-t-forget-it-may-happen/)

[Andrzej Sapkowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrzej-sapkowski/)

> [“The Witcher bounding softly, the girl trotting, the Witcher on his knees, the girl’s thin hands around his neck, the mousy hair on his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrzej-sapkowski/the-witcher-bounding-softly-the-girl-trotting-the-witcher-on-his/)

[Andrzej Sapkowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrzej-sapkowski/)

> [“It is easy to kill with a bow, girl. How easy it is to release the bowstring and think, it is not I, not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrzej-sapkowski/it-is-easy-to-kill-with-a-bow-girl-how-easy-it-is-to-release-the/)

[Andrzej Sapkowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrzej-sapkowski/)

> [Lesser, greater, middling, it's all the same. Proportions are negotiated, boundaries blurred. I'm not a pious hermit, I haven't done only good in my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrzej-sapkowski/lesser-greater-middling-it-s-all-the-same-proportions-are-negotiated/)

[Andrzej Sapkowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrzej-sapkowski/)

> [“Your mother gives birth to you only once and only once do you die,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrzej-sapkowski/your-mother-gives-birth-to-you-only-once-and-only-once-do-you-die/)

[Andrzej Sapkowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrzej-sapkowski/)

> [“You won't do it.' Bonhart's voice resounded in the complete silence. 'You won't do it, witcher girl. In Kaer Morhen you were taught how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrzej-sapkowski/you-won-t-do-it-bonhart-s-voice-resounded-in-the-complete-silence-you/)

[Andrzej Sapkowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrzej-sapkowski/)

> [“- A ty? Ty nie miewasz już snów? - Miewam - powiedział z goryczą. - Ale od przekroczenia Jarugi bardzo rzadko. I w ogóle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrzej-sapkowski/a-ty-ty-nie-miewasz-ju-sn-w-miewam-powiedzia-z-gorycz-ale-od/)

[Andrzej Sapkowski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrzej-sapkowski/)

[Explore all 161 Andrzej Sapkowski quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrzej-sapkowski/)

## More Bird quotes

> [And I have been very blessed, having coached some of the greatest that have ever played the game. But if I had to start…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/red-auerbach/and-i-have-been-very-blessed-having-coached-some-of-the-greatest-that/)

[Red Auerbach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/red-auerbach/)

> [Some minds corrode and grow inactive under the loss of personal liberty; others grow morbid and irritable; but it is the nature of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/washington-irving/some-minds-corrode-and-grow-inactive-under-the-loss-of-personal/)

[Washington Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/washington-irving/)

> [Set the bird's wings with gold and it will never again soar in thesky.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rabindranath-tagore/set-the-bird-s-wings-with-gold-and-it-will-never-again-soar-in-thesky/)

[Rabindranath Tagore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rabindranath-tagore/)

> [“He unfixes the metal notch and slips his hand around the body of the bird. Feels its heat, its small heart beating. He stares…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nina-schuyler/he-unfixes-the-metal-notch-and-slips-his-hand-around-the-body-of-the/)

[Nina Schuyler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nina-schuyler/)

> [I would rather learn from one bird how to sing than to teach 10,000 stars how not to dance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-e-cummings/i-would-rather-learn-from-one-bird-how-to-sing-than-to-teach-10-000/)

[e. e. cummings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-e-cummings/)

> [Can you imagine any better example of divine creative accomplishment that the consummate flying machine that is a bird? The skeleton, very flexible and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/guy-murchie/can-you-imagine-any-better-example-of-divine-creative-accomplishment/)

[Guy Murchie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/guy-murchie/)

> [Surely, God could have caused birds to fly with their bones made of solid gold, with their veins full of quicksilver, with their flesh…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/galileo-galilei/surely-god-could-have-caused-birds-to-fly-with-their-bones-made-of/)

[Galileo Galilei](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/galileo-galilei/)

> [And wheresoever, in his rich creation, Sweet music breathes--in wave, or bird, or soul-- 'Tis but the faint and far reverberation Of that great…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frances-sargent-osgood/and-wheresoever-in-his-rich-creation-sweet-music-breathes-in-wave-or/)

[Frances Sargent Osgood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frances-sargent-osgood/)

> [A clock struck out the hour of twelve, and the bird in the hedgerow was still singing as we marched out to the roadway,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patrick-macgill/a-clock-struck-out-the-hour-of-twelve-and-the-bird-in-the-hedgerow/)

[Patrick MacGill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patrick-macgill/)

> [Every wife ought to answer for her man. If the husband be engaged in a seditious club, or drinks mysterious healths, or be frugal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-addison/every-wife-ought-to-answer-for-her-man-if-the-husband-be-engaged-in-a/)

[Joseph Addison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-addison/)

> [Meanwhile, the trees were just as green as before; the birds sang and the sun shone as clearly now as ever. The familiar surroundings…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-hardy/meanwhile-the-trees-were-just-as-green-as-before-the-birds-sang-and/)

[Thomas Hardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-hardy/)

> [When they started to drain a swamp where birds and fish had lived, for a new housing development down the road from his apartment,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maile-meloy/when-they-started-to-drain-a-swamp-where-birds-and-fish-had-lived-for/)

[Maile Meloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maile-meloy/)

> [The bird with the thorn in its breast, it follows an immutable law; it is driven by it knows not what to impale itself,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colleen-mccullough/the-bird-with-the-thorn-in-its-breast-it-follows-an-immutable-law-it/)

[Colleen McCullough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colleen-mccullough/)

> [Real like sucks the life out of losers. if you want to fuck with the eagles, you must learn how to fly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/real-like-sucks-the-life-out-of-losers-if-you-want-to-fuck-with-the/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [“If we studied birds ,maybe we could learn to be free.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-alire-s-enz/if-we-studied-birds-maybe-we-could-learn-to-be-free/)

[Benjamin Alire Sáenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-alire-s-enz/)

[Browse all 4,802 Bird quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bird/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“We’ll do a bit of reconnaissance. If it’s safe, I’ll make a call like a sparrow hawk.’ ‘Like a sparrow hawk?’ said Munro Bruys, anxiously moving his chin. ‘Since when did you know anything about mimicking bird calls, Zoltan?’ ‘That’s the whole point. If you hear a strange, unrecognisable sound, you’ll know it’s me.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Andrzej Sapkowski"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrzej-sapkowski/we-ll-do-a-bit-of-reconnaissance-if-it-s-safe-i-ll-make-a-call-like-a/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Bird"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrzej-sapkowski/we-ll-do-a-bit-of-reconnaissance-if-it-s-safe-i-ll-make-a-call-like-a/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1be/andrzej-sapkowski-1769_bird_we-ll-do-a-bit-of-reconnaissance-if-it-s_2525548.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1be/andrzej-sapkowski-1769_bird_we-ll-do-a-bit-of-reconnaissance-if-it-s_2525548.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/1be/andrzej-sapkowski-1769_bird_we-ll-do-a-bit-of-reconnaissance-if-it-s_2525548.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“We’ll do a bit of reconnaissance. If it’s safe, I’ll make a call like a sparrow hawk.’ ‘Like a sparrow…” — Andrzej Sapkowski",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Andrzej Sapkowski",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andrzej-sapkowski/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“We’ll do a bit of reconnaissance....",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrzej-sapkowski/we-ll-do-a-bit-of-reconnaissance-if-it-s-safe-i-ll-make-a-call-like-a/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andrzej-sapkowski/we-ll-do-a-bit-of-reconnaissance-if-it-s-safe-i-ll-make-a-call-like-a/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```