Black-throated Thrush
Turdus atrogularis
黑喉鸫
Introduction
Passerine bird in the thrush family (Turdidae). Eastern Palearctic migratory species with range overlapping the more easterly-breeding red-throated thrush. Formerly considered conspecific with the red-throated thrush as the polytypic species 'dark-throated thrush', but now treated as separate species. Breeds along forest edges in coniferous or mixed deciduous woodland; winters in flocks with other thrush species.
Description
Large and distinctive thrush. Male has black plumage from chin to breast, greyish-black tail, grey upperparts, and whitish underparts with orange-red underwing coverts. Females and immatures are similar but have dusky streaking on the throat and breast rather than solid black. Robust thrush with characteristic dark throat patch in adult males.
Identification
Male distinguished from similar red-throated thrush by black (not red) throat and breast. Females and immatures are more challenging to differentiate but typically show darker, more extensive streaking below compared to female red-throated thrush. The orange-red underwing coverts are visible in flight and help distinguish both sexes from other thrush species.
Distribution & Habitat
Breeds from extreme eastern Europe across Western Siberia to north-west Mongolia. Winters from the Middle East (uncommon in Arabian Peninsula) east to eastern Myanmar. Vagrant records from Japan, Thailand, and Taiwan; occasionally wanders west to most of Europe outside normal range. Inhabits forest edges, clearings, and mixed woodland habitats.
Behavior & Ecology
Breeds solitarily or in loose pairs from late May through late July. Nest constructed of grasses and twigs bound with earth, lined with fine grasses, moss, or lichens, placed 1.5-2 meters above ground, occasionally on the ground. Forages on the ground, feeding on invertebrates, berries, cherries, and seeds. Winters in large flocks with other thrushes including Tickell's thrush, eye-browed thrush, mistle thrush, and dusky thrush. Roosts in dense evergreen vegetation.
Conservation
Not assessed in the provided source material.
Culture
Not mentioned in the provided source material.
Source: Wikipedia · CC BY-SA 3.0
Taxonomy
- Order
- Passeriformes
- Family
- Turdidae
- Genus
- Turdus
- eBird Code
- datthr1
Distribution
breeds eastern Russia to western Siberia; winters to northern India and China
Data Sources
CBR Notes: 中文名由黑颈鸫改为黑喉鸫
Species description from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Bird images and sounds sourced from GBIF, contributed by citizen scientists worldwide under Creative Commons licenses.
Taxonomy data from AviList 2025.