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Bird name:

Hermit Thrush

Catharus guttatus

Order

PASSERIFORMES

Family

Thrushes (Turdidae)

Code 4

HETH

Code 6

CATGUT

ITIS

179779

Breeding Location:

Forests, coniferous, Forest edge

Breeding Type:

Monogamous, Solitary nester

Breeding Population:

Fairly common

Egg Color:

Green blue sometimes with black flecks

Number of Eggs:

3 - 6

Incubation Days:

12 - 13

Egg Incubator:

Female

Nest Material:

Weeds, rotted wood, twigs, mud, and other fine materials.

Migration:

Most migrate

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General

Hermit Thrush: Small thrush with olive-brown to red- or gray-brown upperparts, black-spotted white underparts, and rufous tail. White eye-ring is distinct. Sexes are similar. Only thrush that repeatedly lifts its tail.

Range and Habitat

Hermit Thrush: Breeds from central Alaska east to Newfoundland and south to southern California, northern New Mexico, Wisconsin, and Virginia. Spends winters from Washington and southern New England southward. Preferred habitats include coniferous and mixed forests; deciduous woodlands and thickets are favored during migration and winter.

Breeding and Nesting

Hermit Thrush: Three to six green blue eggs, sometimes flecked with black, are laid in a well-made cup of moss, leaves, and rootlets concealed on the ground or in a low bush in the forest. Incubation ranges from 12 to 13 days and is carried out by the female.

Foraging and Feeding

Hermit Thrush: Eats insects, small invertebrates, fruits, and forbs. Forages on both the ground and in vegetation; may move leaf litter with its bill to look for food.

Readily Eats

Raisins, Currants, Nut Meal

Vocalization

Hermit Thrush: Song is a series of clear, musical phrases, each on a different pitch, consisting of a piping introductory note and a reedy tremolo. Call is a low "tuck."

Similar Species

Hermit Thrush: Veery has red-brown upperparts and much paler breast spots. Wood Thrush is browner and has larger breast spots.

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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.

Underparts

Belly, undertail coverts, chest, flanks, and foreneck.

Upperparts

Back, rump, hindneck, wings, and crown.

4 and 6 letter alpha codes

The four letter common name alpha code is is derived from the first two letters of the common first name and the first two letters of common last name. The six letter species name alpha code is derived from the first three letters of the scientific name (genus) and the first three letters of the scientific name (species). See (1) below for the rules used to create the codes..

Four-letter (for English common names) and six-letter (for scientific names) species alpha codes were developed by Pyle and DeSante (2003, North American Bird-Bander 28:64-79) to reflect A.O.U. taxonomy and nomenclature (A.O.U. 1998) as modified by Supplements 42 (Auk 117:847-858, 2000) and 43 (Auk 119:897-906, 2002). The list has been updated by Pyle and DeSante to reflect changes reported by the A.O.U from 2003 through 2006.

Field Guide to Birds of North America