The Japanese thrush is an Asian songbird you won't see in the wild in the US: it breeds in Japan and central China and winters in southern China, northern Laos, and Vietnam. Males are black above with a bright yellow bill and and a white belly scattered with black spots. It's also called the gray thrush.
Appearance
- Appearance
- About 8¼–8¾ in (21–22.5 cm) long and 1.8–2.3 oz (50–65 g). Males are black on the head, breast, back, wings, and tail, with a white belly spotted black and yellow bill, legs, and eye-ring. Females are brown above, white below with dark spots, and washed rusty orange on the flanks.
- Voice
- Males sing loud, varied songs of 2–4 seconds: a run of whistled phrases, often followed by a softer, muttering trill. One male can have about 20 kinds of whistled phrases.
Where it lives
- Typical habitats
- Deciduous forest
- Mixed forest
- Gardens and parks
- Range
- Breeds across Japan and in central China. Winters along the coast of southern China (including Hainan), northern Laos, and Vietnam, and passes through Taiwan now and then.
- Seasonal presence
- A migrant: it arrives in Japan in April or May and leaves the breeding grounds around October.
Behavior
- Diet
- Scratches through leaf litter for insects and earthworms, and also eats fruit.
Life cycle
- Nest
- A cup of twigs, grass stems, and moss bound with mud, usually tucked low in vine-covered branches.
- Clutch size
- 3–4 eggs, most often 4 (2–5 have been reported)
- Incubation
- 12–13 days, by the female
- Fledging
- About 12–14 days after hatching. A pair may raise two or even three broods in a season.
Conservation
- IUCN Red List
- LCLeast ConcernLow risk of extinction
More species to explore
Record what you meet and build your own collection
Your photos are kept with their date and place, and you can fill regional albums one species at a time.