Today we feature another of our backyard regulars, the Brown Thrasher. The Brown Thrasher has bright reddish-brown (rufous) upper parts with two white wing bars. A white breast with distinguished teardrop-shaped brown markings. A long rufous tail, brilliant yellow eyes and a long slightly down-curved bill. Males and females are similar in appearance, how stunning they are with those Chestnut-brown colors.
Brown Thrashers are a bird of the "Mimidae" family, which includes Thrashers, Mockingbirds and Catbirds. They're noted for their ability to mimic a wide variety of birds and outdoor sounds. The male Brown Thrasher has the largest song repertoire of any bird in North America, estimated at over 1100 songs. The Brown Thrasher is the state bird of Georgia.
They made their first appearance to our yard in March 2011. We've had as many as four in the yard at the same time. It's fun to watch them "thrash" the leaves and dirt with that long bill, looking for insects. And, oh how they love their baths. We had read of their mastery of mimicry, yet we didn't here a peep from them for the longest time. When we finally started to take notice, we discovered that they make many of the same sounds as their cousin, the Northern Mockingbird. The biggest difference is that the Mockingbird belts out his songs, like he's performing on stage. The Thrasher is much more subdued, like he's performing back stage. Enjoy the photos of the beautiful Brown Thrasher.....tweet.....tweet!!
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Brown Thrasher
(Taken 7/10/12, Our Backyard)
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| Brown Thrasher (Taken 6/24/11, Our Backyard) http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Brown_Thrasher/id |
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