Gray-cheeked Thrush    Catharus minimus

Migratory Status: Neotropical migrant

PIF Population Estimate: 11 000 000

Percent of western hemisphere population breeding in boreal forest: 39%

BAM Effective Detection Radius (m) : 97.99

PIF Maximum Detection Distance (m) : 200

Canadian BBS Population trend: Insufficient data

Life History

The Gray-cheeked Thrush is a medium-sized thrush, relatively plain in appearance, and difficult to distinguish from several other similar looking thrush species. Both sexes look alike: their upperparts, tail and head are olive-brown, their eyes are dark with inconspicuous light-coloured eye-rings, and their cheeks are streaked with lighter colouring. The breast and throat are heavily mottled with dark and buffy coloured spots, flanks are olive, and undertail is white. The Gray-cheeked Thrush is almost identical in appearance to the Bicknell’s Thrush (C. bicknelli), a bird of the east coast and maritime provinces. Both species were originally classified as Gray-cheeked Thrush, but were recently separated into two distinct species.

The Gray-cheeked Thrush is probably the least studied thrush species in North America due to its remote, northern breeding range. This species nests in Newfoundland and Labrador, through northern Quebec, Ontario and Manitoba, across the southern half of the Northwest Territories and the Yukon, and most of Alaska, except along the northern coast. It probably also breeds locally in the northern parts of the western provinces and in subalpine areas in the northern mountains of British Columbia. In migration, Gray-cheeked Thrushes are infrequently seen and easily overlooked due to their shy nature and their habitat of skulking in the underbrush.

Gray-cheeked Thrushes nest throughout the taiga and northern parts of the boreal forest. They prefer stunted conifer forests, deciduous thickets, and riparian areas with heavy shrub understories. Nesting areas are often associated with habitats near the treeline, northern bogs, windswept coastal areas, glacial moraines and subalpine areas. The Gray-cheeked Thrush typically nests in trees or shrubs, but occasionally will nest on the ground where it prefers thick, mossy ground cover and moist soils. Territories appear to be fairly spread out and pairs are usually found in low densities.

Males sing complex songs consisting of liquid or ethereal, flute-like notes with stuttering pauses, “seeeeee freediila fridla fridla”, that typically descend in pitch at the end. In deep forests, the song has a faraway or echo-like quality. Males may sing while concealed in dense foliage or exposed on perches. Various calls are given by both sexes, including harsh scolding and call notes, “chuck” or “jee-er”. Adults may also perform a rapid “foot-quivering” that produces a rattling sound among dry vegetation and is thought to be an aggressive display.

Reference(s)

Lowther, P. E., C. C. Rimmer, B. Kessel, S. L. Johnson and W. G. Ellison. 2001. Gray-cheeked Thrush (Catharus minimus), The Birds of North America Online, . A. Poole, Ed. Ithaca: Cornell Laboratory of Ornithology; Retrieved from The Birds of North America Online database: http://bna.birds.cornell.edu/bna/species/591