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Thrush (bird)
Encyclopedia
The thrushes, family
Turdidae, are a group of passerine
bird
s that occur worldwide.
, at 21 g (0.740753204207351 oz) and 14.5 cm (5.7 in). However, the shortwing
s, which have ambigious alliances with both thrushes and Old World flycatcher
s, can be even smaller. The Lesser Shortwing
averages 12 cm (4.7 in). The largest thrush is Blue Whistling-thrush
, at 178 g (6.3 oz) and 33 cm (13 in). The Great Thrush
is similar in length but less heavily built. Most species are grey or brown in colour, often with speckled underparts.
They are insectivorous
, but most species also eat worms, land snail
s, and fruit. Many species are permanently resident in warm climes, while others migrate to higher latitudes during summer, often over considerable distances.
Thrushes build cup-shaped nests
, sometimes lining them with mud. They lay two to five speckled eggs
, sometimes laying two or more clutch
es per year. Both parents help in raising the young.
The songs of some species, including members of the genera Catharus
, Myadestes
, and Turdus, are considered to be among the most beautiful in the avian world.
and European Robin
in the subfamily Saxicolini, but most authorities now place this group in the Old World flycatcher
family Muscicapidae.
This article follows the Handbook of the Birds of the World
with edits from Clement and Hathaway, Thrushes (2000), and retains the large thrushes in Turdidae. Recent biochemical studies place certain traditional thrush genera (Monticola, Pseudocossyphus, Myiophonus, Brachypteryx, and Alethe
) in the Muscicapidae. Conversely the Asian saxicoline genera Grandala
and Cochoa
belong here among the thrushes.
Now usually considered a distinct family distantly related to Picathartes
:
For other species previously in Turdidae, see Muscicapidae and chat
s.
Family (biology)
In biological classification, family is* a taxonomic rank. Other well-known ranks are life, domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, genus, and species, with family fitting between order and genus. As for the other well-known ranks, there is the option of an immediately lower rank, indicated by the...
Turdidae, are a group of passerine
Passerine
A passerine is a bird of the order Passeriformes, which includes more than half of all bird species. Sometimes known as perching birds or, less accurately, as songbirds, the passerines form one of the most diverse terrestrial vertebrate orders: with over 5,000 identified species, it has roughly...
bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
s that occur worldwide.
Characteristics
Thrushes are plump, soft-plumaged, small to medium-sized birds, inhabiting wooded areas, and often feed on the ground or eat small fruit. The smallest thrush may be the Forest Rock-thrushForest Rock-thrush
The Forest Rock Thrush is a songbird in the family Muscicapidae, formerly placed in the Turdidae together with the other chats. It nowadays usually includes Benson's Rock Thrush as a subspecies M. s. bensoni, while the Amber Mountain Rock-thrush has been raised to distinct species status.It is...
, at 21 g (0.740753204207351 oz) and 14.5 cm (5.7 in). However, the shortwing
Shortwing
The shortwings are colourful medium-sized mostly insectivorous birds in the genus Brachypteryx of the thrush family Turdidae. In addition to these another species, the Great Shortwing, Heinrichia calligyna, is known as a shortwing....
s, which have ambigious alliances with both thrushes and Old World flycatcher
Old World flycatcher
The Old World flycatcher family Muscicapidae is a large family of small passerine birds mostly restricted to the Old World. These are mainly small arboreal insectivores, many of which, as the name implies, take their prey on the wing.-Characteristics:...
s, can be even smaller. The Lesser Shortwing
Lesser Shortwing
The Lesser Shortwing is a species of chat. This thrush-like Old World flycatcher is nowadays placed in the family Turdidae....
averages 12 cm (4.7 in). The largest thrush is Blue Whistling-thrush
Blue Whistling-thrush
The Blue Whistling-thrush is a species of thrush in the family Turdidae. At 178 grams and 33 cm , it is believed to be the world's largest species of thrush...
, at 178 g (6.3 oz) and 33 cm (13 in). The Great Thrush
Great Thrush
The Great Thrush is a species of bird in the Turdidae family.It is found in Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and Venezuela. At 30–35 cm in length, it is the largest thrush in the Americas, although a couple of Asian species equal or surpass its size...
is similar in length but less heavily built. Most species are grey or brown in colour, often with speckled underparts.
They are insectivorous
Insectivore
An insectivore is a type of carnivore with a diet that consists chiefly of insects and similar small creatures. An alternate term is entomophage, which also refers to the human practice of eating insects....
, but most species also eat worms, land snail
Land snail
A land snail is any of the many species of snail that live on land, as opposed to those that live in salt water and fresh water. Land snails are terrestrial gastropod mollusks that have shells, It is not always an easy matter to say which species are terrestrial, because some are more or less...
s, and fruit. Many species are permanently resident in warm climes, while others migrate to higher latitudes during summer, often over considerable distances.
Thrushes build cup-shaped nests
Bird nest
A bird nest is the spot in which a bird lays and incubates its eggs and raises its young. Although the term popularly refers to a specific structure made by the bird itself—such as the grassy cup nest of the American Robin or Eurasian Blackbird, or the elaborately woven hanging nest of the...
, sometimes lining them with mud. They lay two to five speckled eggs
Egg (biology)
An egg is an organic vessel in which an embryo first begins to develop. In most birds, reptiles, insects, molluscs, fish, and monotremes, an egg is the zygote, resulting from fertilization of the ovum, which is expelled from the body and permitted to develop outside the body until the developing...
, sometimes laying two or more clutch
Clutch (eggs)
A clutch of eggs refers to all the eggs produced by birds or reptiles, often at a single time, particularly those laid in a nest.In birds, destruction of a clutch by predators, , results in double-clutching...
es per year. Both parents help in raising the young.
The songs of some species, including members of the genera Catharus
Catharus
Catharus is a genus of birds in the thrush family Turdidae. It contains the small, mostly insectivorous or omnivorous migrant thrushes of North America and the nightingale-thrushes of Central and South America...
, Myadestes
Myadestes
Myadestes is a genus of solitaires, medium-sized mostly insectivorous birds in the thrush family Turdidae.They are found in the Americas and Hawaii, where several island species have become extinct.-Species in taxonomic order:...
, and Turdus, are considered to be among the most beautiful in the avian world.
Taxonomy
The taxonomic treatment of this large family has varied significantly in recent years. Traditionally, the Turdidae included the small Old World species, like the NightingaleNightingale
The Nightingale , also known as Rufous and Common Nightingale, is a small passerine bird that was formerly classed as a member of the thrush family Turdidae, but is now more generally considered to be an Old World flycatcher, Muscicapidae...
and European Robin
European Robin
The European Robin , most commonly known in Anglophone Europe simply as the Robin, is a small insectivorous passerine bird that was formerly classed as a member of the thrush family , but is now considered to be an Old World flycatcher...
in the subfamily Saxicolini, but most authorities now place this group in the Old World flycatcher
Old World flycatcher
The Old World flycatcher family Muscicapidae is a large family of small passerine birds mostly restricted to the Old World. These are mainly small arboreal insectivores, many of which, as the name implies, take their prey on the wing.-Characteristics:...
family Muscicapidae.
This article follows the Handbook of the Birds of the World
Handbook of the Birds of the World
The Handbook of the Birds of the World is a multi-volume series produced by the Spanish publishing house Lynx Edicions. It is the first handbook to cover every known living species of bird. The series is edited by Josep del Hoyo, Andrew Elliott, Jordi Sargatal and David A Christie.So far, 15...
with edits from Clement and Hathaway, Thrushes (2000), and retains the large thrushes in Turdidae. Recent biochemical studies place certain traditional thrush genera (Monticola, Pseudocossyphus, Myiophonus, Brachypteryx, and Alethe
Alethe
The Alethes are small mainly insectivorous birds in the genus Alethe of the Old World flycatcher and chat family Muscicapidae. The genus is one of many chats moved from the thrush family to the flycatchers.All are African species:...
) in the Muscicapidae. Conversely the Asian saxicoline genera Grandala
Grandala
The Grandala is a species of bird in the Muscicapidae family.It is found in Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, and Nepal.-References:* BirdLife International 2004. . Downloaded on 26 July 2007....
and Cochoa
Cochoa
The cochoas are medium-sized frugivorous, insectivorous and molluscivorous birds in the genus Cochoa...
belong here among the thrushes.
Genera
FAMILY: TURDIDAE- Genus Turdus: true thrushes (some 65 species, 1 recently extinct)
- Genus PlatycichlaPlatycichlaPlatycichla is a small genus of tropical South American thrushes. It contains just two species:* Pale-eyed Thrush, Platycichla leucops* Yellow-legged Thrush, Platycichla flavipes...
: (2 species) - part of a South American group within Turdus - Genus Nesocichla: Tristan Thrush or Starchy - part of a South American group within Turdus
- Genus Cichlherminia: Forest Thrush - genus paraphyletic with Turdus
- Genus Psophocichla: Groundscraper Thrush
- Genus Zoothera: Asian thrushes (some 22 species, 1 recently extinct)
- Genus CatharusCatharusCatharus is a genus of birds in the thrush family Turdidae. It contains the small, mostly insectivorous or omnivorous migrant thrushes of North America and the nightingale-thrushes of Central and South America...
: typical American thrushes and nightingale-thrushes (12 species) - Genus HylocichlaWood ThrushThe Wood Thrush, Hylocichla mustelina, is a North American passerine bird. It is closely related to other thrushes such as the American Robin and is widely distributed across North America, wintering in Central America and southern Mexico...
: Wood Thrush - Genus RidgwayiaAztec ThrushThe Aztec Thrush is a species of bird in the Turdidae family. It is found mainly in Mexico, but vagrants are occasionally seen in the United States. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montane forests.-References:* BirdLife International 2004. . Downloaded on 27 July 2007....
: Aztec Thrush - related to Hylocichla - Genus IxoreusVaried ThrushThe Varied Thrush is a member of the thrush family Turdidae.It breeds in western North America from Alaska to northern California. It is migratory, with northern breeders moving south within or somewhat beyond the breeding range...
: Varied Thrush - related to other New World genera - Genus GeomaliaGeomaliaThe Geomalia, Geomalia heinrichi also known as the Sulawesi Mountain-Thrush is a rare member of the thrush family endemic to Sulawesi in Indonesia. It is the only species in its monotypic genus....
: Geomalia - Genus Cataponera: Sulawesi Thrush
- Genus Sialia: bluebirds (3 species)
- Genus GrandalaGrandalaThe Grandala is a species of bird in the Muscicapidae family.It is found in Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, and Nepal.-References:* BirdLife International 2004. . Downloaded on 26 July 2007....
: related to Sialia - Genus Cichlopsis: Rufous-brown Solitaire - related to CatharusCatharusCatharus is a genus of birds in the thrush family Turdidae. It contains the small, mostly insectivorous or omnivorous migrant thrushes of North America and the nightingale-thrushes of Central and South America...
- Genus EntomodestesEntomodestesEntomodestes is a small genus of birds in the thrush family. They are found in humid Andean highland forest in South America. The two species both have black underparts and head, and a white patch on the lower face, but differ in the colour of the back....
: solitaires (2 species) - related to CatharusCatharusCatharus is a genus of birds in the thrush family Turdidae. It contains the small, mostly insectivorous or omnivorous migrant thrushes of North America and the nightingale-thrushes of Central and South America... - Genus MyadestesMyadestesMyadestes is a genus of solitaires, medium-sized mostly insectivorous birds in the thrush family Turdidae.They are found in the Americas and Hawaii, where several island species have become extinct.-Species in taxonomic order:...
: solitaires (10-11 living species, 2-3 recently extinct) (includes formerly recognized genus Phaeornis) - Genus Neocossyphus: flycatcher thrushes and "ant-thrushes" (4 species) - related to MyadestesMyadestesMyadestes is a genus of solitaires, medium-sized mostly insectivorous birds in the thrush family Turdidae.They are found in the Americas and Hawaii, where several island species have become extinct.-Species in taxonomic order:...
- Genus CochoaCochoaThe cochoas are medium-sized frugivorous, insectivorous and molluscivorous birds in the genus Cochoa...
: cochoaCochoaThe cochoas are medium-sized frugivorous, insectivorous and molluscivorous birds in the genus Cochoa...
s (4 species) - Genus Chlamydochaera: Fruit-hunter - related to CochoaCochoaThe cochoas are medium-sized frugivorous, insectivorous and molluscivorous birds in the genus Cochoa...
- Genus HeteroxenicusGould's ShortwingThe Gould's Shortwing is a species of bird in the Turdidae family.It is found in Bhutan, China, India, Myanmar, Nepal, and Vietnam.Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical moist montanes.-References:...
: Gould's Shortwing
Now usually considered a distinct family distantly related to Picathartes
Picathartes
The picathartes, rockfowl or bald crows are a small genus of two passerine bird species forming the family Picathartidae found in the rain-forests of tropical west and central Africa. They have unfeathered heads, and feed on insects and invertebrates picked from damp rocky areas...
:
- Genus ChaetopsRock-jumperThe Rock-jumpers are medium-sized insectivorous or omnivorous birds in the genus Chaetops, which constitutes the entire family Chaetopidae. The two species, the Rufous Rock-jumper, Chaetops frenatus, and the Drakensberg Rockjumper, Chaetops aurantius, are endemic residents of southern Africa...
: rock-jumpers (2 species)
For other species previously in Turdidae, see Muscicapidae and chat
Chat (bird)
Chats are a group of small Old World insectivorous birds formerly classed as members of the thrush family Turdidae, but now considered Old World flycatchers....
s.
External links
- Thrush videos on the Internet Bird Collection
- High-resolution photo gallery of around 100 species.
- Story on thrush ingenuity