Plate 014 · male pulling up an earthworm IdentificationFive marks on the plate
- 1Blackish head darker than the body.
- 2Yellow bill and eye-ring in the adult male.
- 3White throat streaked black like a bib.
- 4Slate grey on back, wings and breast.
- 5Yellowish legs. The female is olive-brown.
Easily confused with Creamy-bellied ThrushTurdus amaurochalinusBrown, with a yellow bill and black lores. No slate grey. Chiguanco ThrushTurdus chiguancoEven brownish grey, with no streaked throat or dark head. Commoner in high, dry areas. 014 / 100 · BIRDS · TURDIDAELEAST CONCERN Slaty Thrush
Turdus nigriceps
Zorzal plomizo · Andean Slaty Thrush
It arrives in the Yungas of Tucumán in spring to breed and leaves for the north in autumn. Its high, fluty song is one of the forest sounds of November. The male is slate grey, with a yellow bill and eye-ring.
- Length
- c. 21 cm
- Altitude
- 500 – 2,500 m
- In Tucumán
- Sep – Apr
- Winters
- in Bolivia and further north
- Summer migrant
- Songbird
- Ground forager
- Mud and moss nest
Altitude rangeForest, in summer only
Breeding (Oct–Mar) Breeds in foothill forest, montane forest and montane woodland. In autumn it leaves Argentina and spends the winter further north.
FoodFrom the ground and the trees
- Earthwormsin damp soil
- Insects and grubsunder leaf litter
- Fleshy fruitin fruiting trees
- Small snailsoccasional
It runs across the ground, stops, listens and flips leaves with its bill. In summer it also takes fruit in the canopy.
BehaviourA summer visitor
J F M A M J J A S O N D BreedingPresent - Migrant. Arrives in September and leaves in autumn for Bolivia and beyond.
- High song. Short, thin, fluty phrases from a hidden perch, mostly at dawn.
- Mud cup. Builds a cup of mud, rootlets and moss in a low fork.
Where to look in Tucumán- Sierra de San Javier
- Reserva Experimental Horco Molle
- Parque Provincial La Florida
- Río Los Sosa
- El Siambón
- Raco