Eyebrowed Thrush
Turdus obscurus
A long, slightly curving white eyebrow gives this species an elegant, sophisticated appearance. Typically keeps to cover on the ground and in mid-levels of trees but occasionally ventures into the open to feed, particularly during migration. Alert and quick to flush. Adult male has gray head, brown back, and orange belly. Females are brownish overall with more faded orange on the underparts. Breeds in eastern Siberian forests, typically in damp areas near water, or areas with dense understory. Winters in more open habitats, such as parks, but not as fond of open spaces as blackbirds. Well-spaced song phrases consist of rich warbling and ringing buzzy whistles. Also gives a high, piercing “tsssst!”
Identification
This is an attractive thrush, with a grey back and head, the latter having a black eyeline, bordered white above and below. The breast and flanks are orange, and the belly white. The sexes are fairly similar, but immatures have a browner back.<p>The male has a simple whistling song, similar to the related mistle thrush.
Taxonomy
The eyebrowed thrush was formally described in 1789 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's Systema Naturae. He placed it with the thrushes in the genus Turdus and coined the binomial name Turdus obscurus. The scientific name comes from Latin Turdus meaning "thrush" and obscurus meaning "dark" or "dusky". Gmelin based his account on the "Dark thrush" that had been described in 1783 by the English ornithologist John Latham in his multi-volume work A General Synopsis of Birds. Latham noted that "This is Sibirian species and found in the woods beyond Lake Baikal" but did not explain the source of his information. The species is monotypic: no subspecies are recognised.
- Scientific name
- Turdus obscurus
- Authority
- Gmelin, JF, 1789
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Turdidae
- Genus
- Turdus
Range and habitat
Breeding range: PAL : c to se Russia. Non-breeding range: se Asia, Philippines, Greater Sundas, n Sulawesi and Flores (c Lesser Sundas).
- Breeding range
- PAL : c to se Russia
- Non-breeding range
- se Asia, Philippines, Greater Sundas, n Sulawesi and Flores (c Lesser Sundas)
- Migration
- Complete migrants
Behavior
Migration pattern: Complete migrants.
Conservation
- Population trend
- unknown
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Peruvian Sierra Finch
Phrygilus punensis
Chunky finch-like tanager of high elevations. Males are yellow with a gray head, wings, and tail; females are similar but duller. Found in a variety of dry, open habitats including scrub, agricultural areas, and Polylepis woodlands. Often forages in groups on the ground, and may associate with other sierra-finches and similar species. Distinctive within its range; replaced by the similar Black-hooded Sierra-Finch farther south.
Gray-headed Tody-Flycatcher
Todirostrum poliocephalum
Tiny brightly-colored flycatcher with a fairly long pointed bill and an ample slender tail. Note the largely black head apart from a large yellow spot in front of the pale eye. Olive above and bright yellow below; the black wings are yellow edged . Similar to Common Tody-Flycatcher, but with yellow spots on the face. Found at the edge of forests, second growth, and in gardens and urban parks. The song is a sharp “tchip-tchip-tchip.”
Middle Spotted Woodpecker
Dendrocoptes medius
Medium-large black-and-white woodpecker. Marginally smaller than Great Spotted Woodpecker, but rounded head and shortish beak exaggerate this size difference. Both sexes are similar, with a red crown (brighter in the male) and an incomplete cheek bar. It has a rattle call: "kíg-gag-gag-gag-gag" and gives a nasal long-drawn series of “gwaaag” calls. Rarely drums. Closely tied to old deciduous forests, often in areas with an abundance of oak or beech.
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