Song Thrush

Song Thrushes are resident breeders, and Winter visitors. This individual was caught, ringed and released in the Cemetery.

Species: Song Thrush (Turdus philomelos)

Family: Thrushes and Chats (TURDIDAE)

Category: Birds

Location: NW

A = Species Category, B = Species Family, C = Species

A. Birds

More extensive information on birds can be found in a separate blog post.

B. Thrushes and Chats (TURDIDAE)

Thrushes are predominantly unspecialised, omnivorous, ground foragers. Many are brown, the colour of turds, hence the family name. Most are monogamous, some being highly gregarious in the non-breeding season like our Winter thrushes, the Redwings and Fieldfares. Thrushes are melodious singers, and among the earliest contributors to the dawn chorus.

C. Song Thrush (Turdus philomelos)

The Song Thrush is one of our best songsters and has a characteristic habit of repeating phrases. The sight of them thrashing snails on a stone to break the shell and extract the flesh is not so common nowadays, and their 2016 population of 1.3 million pairs represents a sharp decline, giving them a conservation status of RED. They are resident breeders, and Winter visitors. If a large number is seen feeding on hawthorn bushes then tradition suggests we will have a harsh Winter, but this is now a rare sight.

The Song Thrush is listed on the IUCN Birds of Conservation Concern: Red List. It is classed as a UK Biodiversity Action Plan Priority Species. It is protected under Section 41 of The Natural Environment & Rural Communities Act, 2006, and is also on the Sussex Notable Bird List.

A = Species Category, B = Species Family, C = Species

Images

Song Thrushes are resident breeders, and Winter visitors. This individual was caught, ringed and released in the Cemetery in early February 2022.

Song Thrush

The Song Thrush is one of our best songsters and has a characteristic habit of repeating phrases. This individual was caught, ringed and released in the Cemetery in early February 2022.