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Swainson's Thrush

Catharus ustulatusOrder: PASSERIFORMESFamily: Thrushes (Turdidae)

Swainson's Thrush (swainsoni) Breeding Male Portrait
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General

Swainson's Thrush: Medium-sized thrush (swainsoni),with dull olive-brown or olive-gray upperparts, pale buff eye-ring, dark moustache stripe, brown-spotted buff throat and breast, and white belly. Legs and feet are pink-gray. Sexes are similar.

Range and Habitat

Swainson's Thrush: Breeds from Alaska east across Canada to Newfoundland, south to British Columbia, Michigan, and northern New England, and in mountains to southern California, Colorado, and West Virginia. Spends winters in tropics. Prefers coniferous forests and willow thickets.

Listen to Call

Voice Text

"whit", "peep"

Interesting Facts

 The Swainson's Thrush is the only woodland thrush whose song goes up in pitch.

 It was named after William Swainson, an English ornithologist, and is also called the Olive-backed Thrush.

 This species may be displaced by the Hermit Thrush where their ranges overlap. Possibly, the latter species adapts more readily to human encroachment upon its habitat.

 A group of thrushes are collectively known as a "hermitage" and a "mutation" of thrushes.



Author

Gary Owen Dick

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Range Map for Swainson's Thrush
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Bird Call Credits: The Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Martyn Stewart, http://www.naturesound.org, Redmond, Washington USA. The reuse or copying of bird calls in this database is strictly forbidden.
Family Thrush (Turdidae)_blue
Species Catharus ustulatus
Length6 - 7 Inches
Wingspan11.5 Inches

Swainson's Thrush

Swainson's Thrush: Medium-sized thrush (swainsoni), with dull olive-brown or olive-gray upperparts, pale buff eye-ring, dark moustache stripe, and brown-spotted buff throat and breast, and white belly. Legs and feet are pink-gray. Flies in a swift, direct flight with rapid wing beats.

● Song: "whit", "peep"

● Foraging & Feeding: Swainson's Thrush: Eats insects, snails, and earthworms; also takes fruits and berries during fall migration. Forages near the ground, but higher in understory than other thrushes; occasionally catches insects in mid-air. Follows army ant swarms in winter.

● Breeding & nesting: Swainson's Thrush: Three to five pale blue eggs, usually flecked with brown, are laid in a nest made of sticks, moss, leaves, plant fibers, and bark, a middle layer of mud, and lined with lichens, dried leaves, and rootlets. Nest is built close to the trunk on a conifer branch, usually from 4 to 20 feet above the ground. Incubation ranges from 12 to 14 days and is carried out by the female.

● Similar species: Swainson's Thrush: Gray-cheeked Thrush is larger, has gray cheeks, and lacks conspicuous eye-ring. Bicknell's Thrush is smaller, has browner upperparts, more yellow on bill, and different voice. Hermit Thrush has white eye-ring, lacks buff face, and has a rufous tail contrasting with the browner back. Western form of Veery has less buff on face, more red-brown on wings, and gray flanks.

Flight Pattern

Relatively swift direct flight with rapid wing beats.
Swainson's Thrush (swainsoni) Breeding Male Body Illustration
● Range & Habitat: Swainson's Thrush: Breeds from Alaska east across Canada to Newfoundland, south to British Columbia, Michigan, and northern New England, and in mountains to southern California, Colorado, and West Virginia. Spends winters in tropics. Prefers coniferous forests and willow thickets.
BreedingMonogamous, Solitary nester
PopulationFairly common
MigrationMigratory
Weight1.1 Ounces