Black catbird

Melanoptila glabrirostris

(Photo from Flickr)

Common name:
black catbird (en); sabiá-preto (pt); moqueur noir (fr); maullador negro (es); glanzkatzenvogel (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Mimidae

Range:
This species is found on the Yucatán Peninsula, in south-eastern Mexico, northern Belize and northern Guatemala.

Size:
These birds are 19-20,5 cm long and weigh 32-42 g.

Habitat:
The black catbird is mostly found in dry scrublands and humid to semi-arid scrubby woodlands and forests. They also use forest edges, second growths and mangroves.

Diet:
During the breeding season they feed mainly on insects and other arthropods, while fruits such as Ficus, Solanum, Metopium and other are more important outside the breeding season.

Breeding:
Black catbirds breed in May-August. The nest is built by both sexes, consisting of an open cup made of twigs and dry leaves, and lined with finer materials. It is placed in a small tree or scrub, about 2 m above the ground. The female lays 2-3 greenish-blue eggs, which she incubates alone for about 17 days. The chicks are fed by both parents and fledge 12-13 days after hatching.

Conservation:
IUCN status - NT (Near-Threatened)
This species has a relatively small breeding range and a global population estimated at 20.000-50.000 individuals. the population is believed to be declining at a moderately rapid rate, owing to habitat loss and fragmentation due to tourist development and conversion to coconut plantations. Hurricanes may also affect this species, particularly if their frequency and intensity increases.

Galápagos mockingbird

Nesomimus parvulus

Photo by Ian Hempstead (Internet Bird Collection)

Common name:
Galápagos mockingbird (en); sabiá-das-Galápagos (pt); moqueur des Galapagos (fr); sinsonte de Galápagos (es); Galapagosspottdrossel (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Mimidae

Range:
This species is endemic to the Galápagos Islands, being found in most of the islands in the archipelago with the exception of Floreana, Española and San Cristóbal.
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Size:
These birds are 25-26 cm long and weigh 40-45 g.

Habitat:
The Galápagos mockingbird is found in most habitats available in the islands, including dry and coastal scrublands, mangroves and dry tropical forests such as Bursera woodlands. They are present from sea level up to an altitude of 1.500 m.

Diet:
They feed mainly on arthropods, such as caterpillars and centipedes, but also take small lava lizards Microlophus sp., sea bird eggs and nestlings, young finches, fruits and nectar from cacti and other plants.

Breeding:
Galápagos mockingbirds are cooperative breeder, living in groups of up to 24 birds including one or several breeding females. They breed mostly in January-April. The nests are made of twigs and placed low on a cactus or small tree. Each female lays 3-4 eggs which are incubated for 12-13 days. The chicks are fed by both parents and by male helpers, fledging 11-17 days after hatching.

Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has a relatively small breeding range but is described as common. The population is suspected to be stable in the absence of evidence for any declines or substantial threats.

Brown thrasher

Toxostoma rufum

Common name:
brown thrasher (en); sabiá-castanho (pt); moqueur roux (fr); cuitlacoche rojizo (es); rotrücken-spottdrossel (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Mimidae

Range:
This species is found in southern Canada and the eastern United States, from Alberta and Minnesota to Maine and south to Texas, Louisiana and Florida. The more northern population migrate south to winter along the southern parts of the range.

Size:
These birds are 23-30 cm long and have a wingspan of 29-32 cm. They weigh 60-90 g.

Habitat:
They are mostly found in temperate scrublands and forest edges, but also in woodlands with cottonwood, willow, dogwood, American plum, salt cedar, hawthorn, pitch pine, or scrub oak. Occasionally they are also found in gardens.

Diet:
They mainly feed on insects and other arthropods, namely beetles, grubs, wire-worms, army worms, cutworms, tent caterpillars, gypsy-moth caterpillars, leafhoppers, treehoppers, cicadas, grasshoppers, crickets, wasps, bees and harvestmen, but also some lizards, snakes and tree frogs. They also eat fruits, seeds and nuts.

Breeding:
Brown thrashers are mostly monogamous, but there are some cases of mate-switching even within the same breeding season. They breed in March-July, with both sexes collaborating on building the nest, which consists of a bulky cup made of twigs, dead leaves, thin bark, grass stems, and rootlets. There the female lays 2-6 bluish or greenish eggs with reddish-brown speckles. The eggs are incubated by both parents for 10-14 days. The chicks are fed by both parents and fledge 9-13 days after hatching. Each pair can raise 1-2 broods per season.

Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has a very large breeding range. In Canada de population is estimated at 50.000-500.000 individuals, but represents just a small part of the total. The population has undergone a small decrease over the last 4 decades, but it is not threatened at present.

Chalk-browed mockingbird

Mimus saturninus

(Photo from Terra de Gente)

Common name:
chalk-browed mockingbird (en); sabiá-do-campo (pt); mouqueur plombé (fr); sinsonte de cejas blancas (es); camposspottdrossel (de)

Taxonomy:
Order Passeriformes
Family Mimidae

Range:
This South American species is found from central and eastern Brazil and Bolivia down to central Argentina.

Size:
These birds are 24-27  cm long and weigh around 70 g.

Habitat:
The chalk-browed mockingbird is found in dry, open woodlands, scrublands, pastures, swamp forests and urban and sub-urban gardens. They occur from sea level up to an altitude of 2.500 m.

Diet:
They eat both fruits and insects, but also seeds, worms and spiders. The fruits include oranges, avocados, tapias and various other wild fruits, while the insects include ants, termites and beetles.

Breeding:
Chalk-browed mockingbirds breed in August-January. They are monogamous, but several helpers assist with territorial defence, nest-guarding and feeding of young. The nest is a cup made of twigs, placed in a scrub or tree up to 2 m above the ground. The female lays 3-4 white eggs which are incubated for 12-15 days. The chicks fledge 12-15 days after hatching, but remain within the parents, where they may become helpers and assist with the clutch in the next year.

Conservation:
IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)
This species has a very large breeding range and is described as common. The population is suspected to be stable in the absence of evidence for any declines or substantial threats

Grey catbird

Dumetella carolinensis

Photo by Peter Massas (Wikipedia)

Common name:

grey catbird (en); sabiá-cinzento (pt); moqueur chat (fr); maullador gris (es); katzendrossel (de)

Taxonomy:

Order Passeriformes

Family Mimidae

Range:

The grey catbird breeds in the United States and southern Canada, east of the Rocky mountains. They migrate south to winter along the Gulf coast from Florida, through Texas, and all the way down Central America and the Caribbean.

Size:

These birds are 21-24 cm long and have a wingspan of 22-30 cm. They weigh 35-40 g.

Habitat:

Gray catbirds live in dense thickets of shrubs and vines within woodlands, and are occasionally found in residential areas. They are also found around some forest edges and clearings, along roadsides, fencerows, abandoned farmland and stream sides. On their tropical wintering grounds they are mostly found in forests.

Diet:

They are omnivorous, consuming spiders and insects like ants, beetles, flies, aphids, caterpillars and moths, as well as the fruits of plants like Myrica, Sassafras, Prunus, Cordea, and Trema.

Breeding:

Grey catbirds breed in April-August. The female builds the nest, a bulky, open cup made of twigs, straw, bark, mud, and sometimes pieces of trash, lined with grass, hair, rootlets, and pine needles. There she lays 1-6 turquoise-coloured eggs, which she incubates alone for 12-14 days. The chicks are fed by both parents and fledge 10-11 days after hatching, but will only become fully independent 12 days later.

Conservation:

IUCN - LC (Least Concern)

This species has a very large breeding range and a global population estimated at 10 million individuals. This species has had stable population trends over the last 40 years and is thus not considered threatened at present.

Long-billed thrasher

Toxostoma longirostre

Photo by Bill Bouton (Wikipedia)

Common name:

long-billed thrasher (en); sabiá-de-bico-longo (pt); moqueur à long bec (fr); cuitlacoche de pico largo (es); langschnabel-spottdrossel (de)

Taxonomy:

Order Passeriformes

Family Mimidae

Range:

This North American species is only found in southern Texas and northeast Mexico, between Tamaulipas and Veracruz.

Size:

These slender birds are 26,5-29 cm long and have a wingspan of 33 cm. They weigh on average 68 g.

Habitat:

They occur in a variety of scrubby of thicketed habitats, namely along riparian woodland and mesquite.

Diet:

The long-billed thrasher is an omnivorous bird, eating mostly grasshoppers, beetles, spiders, snails, slugs and various kinds of berries.

Breeding:

They build a bulky cup-shaped nest in thick low or mid-height vegetation. The nest is mostly made of twigs and grasses. The females lay 2-5 bluish-white eggs with dense reddish-brown and gray speckles. The eggs are incubated for 13-14 days by both parents. The chicks are fed by both parents and fledge after 12-14 days. Long-billed thrashers may produce two broods per year.

Conservation:

IUCN status - LC (Least Concern)

With a current population estimated at 400.000 individuals, this species has undergone a large and significant increase over the last 40 years. Consequently, the species is not threatened at present.