Song Thrush

Turdus philomelos (C.L. Brehm, 1831)

2018-05-01 Tyumen region, Tyumen	© Nadezhda Bogomyakova

Description

The adult Song Thrush in summer has grayish-brown upperparts, buffy tinged on the head and greyer on the uppertail. The upperwing coverts, flight feathers and tail feathers are dark-brown olive-rust tinged. The tips of greater and median coverts have light (sometimes white) spots. The underwing coverts are yellowish-buff. The bases of the inner webs of flight feathers are light-rusty. The underparts are white with roundish or drop-shaped spots on the flanks of throat, on craw, breast, flanks and abdomen. The chin and undertail are white without spots. The beak is blackish-brown, legs are yellowish. After the autumn molting it looks darker. The upperparts are dark, olive-brown; the underparts has buffy tinge, becoming richer on the craw. The Juveniles are similar on adults but have the rusty-tinged upperparts with buffy streaks. The greater wing coverts with rusty terminal spots. The spots on the underparts are less then on adults. The buffy underwings are in all plumages. The Song Thrush is wild bird and it's not always possible to discern it. The similar species are the Redwing and the Mistle Thrush. But it is distinguished from the Redwing by the absence of the strong white supercilium, red flanks, and doesn't show the red underwing in flight. From the Mistle Thrush it is distinguished by the much less size and the dark olive color of upperparts. Weight 65-90 grams, length 21-25, wing 10,9-12,4, wingspan 34-39 cm.

References