Forest Thrush Turdus lherminieri Scientific name definitions

The Forest Thrush is a shy forest dweller of a few of the Lesser Antillean Islands: Montserrat, Guadeloupe, Dominica and St. Lucia. It is found in moist and tall montane forest; not dry forest. This thrush is quite difficult to see, keeping to the midstory when singing and seldom moving much, and thus staying largely out of view. The song is a typical Turdus type song, slow and melodic.  It gives a harsh and rasping alarm note. The odd plumage of this thrush, showing white belly feathering edged in dark, so white spotted rather than dark spotted as in some other thrushes in addition to the bare yellow skin around the eye has kept this thrush in a genus all by itself. However recent molecular data shows it is clearly in the genus Turdus, but basal to a large division of South American and Old World thrushes, and that it is unrelated to all other thrushes in the Caribbean.

25–30 cm; 100 g. Nominate race is warm brown above , including side of head (cheeks and ear-coverts with thin white lines), with broad yellow eyering and postocular flange; below, whitish with buff-bordered dark brown scalloping ; iris yellow; bill and legs yellow. Sexes similar. Juvenile is slightly paler, with vague thin pale streaks above, more mottled effect below. Race dorotheae has rufous-edged throat feathers, and longer, more pointed white centres of breast feathers; <em>dominicensis</em> is smaller than nominate, darker above and on breast, with smaller ʿscalesʾ, white belly and paler legs (1 Arnoux, E., Eraud, C., Navarro, N., Tougard, C., Thomas, A., Cavallo, F., Vetter, N., Faivre, B. and Garnier, S. (2014). Morphology and genetics reveal an intriguing pattern of differentiation at a very small geographic scale in a bird species, the forest thrush Turdus lherminieri. Heredity. 113(6): 514–525. Close ); sanctaeluciae is also smaller than nominate, paler above, spots on breast larger, buffish. Within Guadeloupe (race lherminieri) birds are significantly larger in Basse-Terre than in Grande-Terre (2 Arnoux, E., Eraud, C., Thomas, A., Cavallo, F., Garnier, S. and Faivre, B. (2013). Phenotypic variation of Forest Thrushes Turdus lherminieri in Guadeloupe: evidence for geographic differentiation at fine spatial scale. Journal of Ornithology. 154(4): 977–985. Close ).

Editor's Note: This article requires further editing work to merge existing content into the appropriate Subspecies sections. Please bear with us while this update takes place.

Editor's Note: Additional distribution information for this taxon can be found in the 'Subspecies' article above. In the future we will develop a range-wide distribution article.

All strata in moist mountain primary and secondary forest and edge, at middle and high elevations. On Montserrat, it prefers mature mesic forests with dense canopy (8 Parashuram, D., Oppel, S., Fenton, C., James, G., Daley, J., Gray, G., Collar, N.J. and Dolman, P.M. (2015). The Forest Thrush Turdus lherminieri prefers mature mesic forest with dense canopy. Bird Conservation International. 25(4): 503–513. Close ).

Apparently sedentary; records of large numbers at fruiting trees on St Lucia suggest collective wandering outside breeding season.

Insects and berries. Forages from ground to canopy. Formerly, when more numerous, gathered in large numbers in autumn to take berries on St Lucia.

Song , from concealed perch, a musical cadence of clear notes, fairly loud and far-carrying, resembling a melodious T. migratorius. There may be differences in the male song in Dominica (race dominicensis) (1 Arnoux, E., Eraud, C., Navarro, N., Tougard, C., Thomas, A., Cavallo, F., Vetter, N., Faivre, B. and Garnier, S. (2014). Morphology and genetics reveal an intriguing pattern of differentiation at a very small geographic scale in a bird species, the forest thrush Turdus lherminieri. Heredity. 113(6): 514–525. Close ). Calls include sharp “chuk” or “chuk-chuk”. 

Apr–Jul. Nest a bulky cup made externally of moss, usually built close to ground in bush, tree-fern or tree. Eggs 2–3, greenish-blue. No other information.

VULNERABLE. Restricted-range species: present in the Lesser Antilles EBA. Total numbers considered greater than 10,000 mature individuals, but loss and degradation of habitat are chronic, and on Montserrat (the only island where ever judged reasonably common) have recently accelerated. Uncommon on Montserrat, Guadeloupe and Dominica; rare on St Lucia. Has probably declined owing to habitat loss, competition from Turdus nudigenis, brood parasitism by Shiny Cowbird (Molothrus bonariensis), and human exploitation for food (still legally hunted on Guadeloupe, illegally so elsewhere, but once widely considered a delicacy); possibly also predation by introduced mongoose (Herpestes). Range on Montserrat was reduced by two-thirds following a series of volcanic eruptions, but population estimated to have recovered by 50% in two years from Dec 1997 to Dec 1999, to c. 3100 individuals (9 Arendt, W.J., Gibbons, D.W. and Gray, G. (1999). Status of the volcanically threatened Montserrat Oriole Icterus oberi and other forest birds in Montserrat, West Indies. Bird Conservation International. 9(4): 351-372. Close ). On Dominica, may have been affected by damage to canopy trees from hurricanes in 1979 and 1980, reducing area of open leaf litter. Occurs within Centre Hills Protected Area, on Montserrat; Morne Diablotin National Park, on Dominica; Guadeloupe National Park, on Guadeloupe; and, at least formerly, various forest reserves, including Edmond, on St Lucia, but no confirmed records on this island since 1980. New surveys needed, along with hunting bans and public-awareness campaigns.