Family Thrushes (Turdidae)
Least Concern
Bassian Thrush (Zoothera lunulata)
Taxonomy
French: Grive à lunules German: Tasmanerddrossel Spanish: Zorzal lunado
Taxonomy:
Turdus lunulata
Latham
, 1801,Sydney, Australia
.
Subspecies and Distribution
Z. l. cuneata
(De Vis, 1889) – #RNE Australia (NE Queensland).
Z. l. lunulata
(Latham, 1801) – SE Australia, Tasmania, and islands in Bass Strait (King I, Flinders I).
Z. l. halmaturina
(A. G. Campbell, 1906) – SE South Australia in Mt Lofty Range, Telowie Gorge Conservation Park and Wittaburra Forest, and on Kangaroo I.
Descriptive notes
27–29 cm; 90–120 g. Dark olive-brown above, heavily scaled black; throat whitish, rest of underparts whitish, heavily scaled black; bill moderately large,... read more
Voice
Song a series of phrases consisting of 3 far-carrying whistled trills, first and third level,... read more
Habitat
Cool damp forests, including rainforest, eucalypt forest and woodland, in areas with closed canopy... read more
Food and feeding
Earthworms, insects, molluscs and fallen fruit. In one study, diet estimated to be 95% earthworms (c. 5 cm in length) by volume, the rest... read more
Breeding
Jul–Jan. Nest a rounded cup made of bark strips, leaves and grasses, camouflaged externally with green moss, lined with rootlets,... read more
Movements
Resident; post-breeding dispersal, sometimes even reaching inland to C R Murray system in non-... read more
Status and conservation
Not globally threatened. Common. Nominate race has declined near settled areas, such as Melbourne. Race halmaturina nationally red-listed as “Near-threatened”; has... read more
Formerly treated as a race of Z. dauma, but differs in tail-tip pattern; wide geographical separation, with intervening related species (Z. heinei, Z. machiki), tends to support species status, but detailed evaluation of evidence needed, and present treatment provisional. Has been though to include Z. heinei as a small race, but the two shown to be sympatric without interbreeding, and songs somewhat different. Isolated race cuneata structurally rather distinct, and speculated as representing a different species. Described race macrorhyncha (from Tasmania) synonymized with nominate. Three subspecies recognized.