Tropical Mockingbird Mimus gilvus Scientific name definitions

The Tropical Mockingbird is the neotropical counterpart to the Northern Mockingbird (Mimus polyglottus), replacing Northern Mockingbird south of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec. The two species are similar in appearance, but Tropical Mockingbird has less white in the wings, lacking the white primary coverts and white bases to the primaries of Northern Mockingbird. The distribution of this species is discontinuous. The original range was southern Mexico south to Honduras, and again in northern South America, but with a gap from central Honduras south to Colombia. In the 1930s, however, an introduced population was discovered in central Panama. Tropical Mockingbird occupies open habitats with scattered shrubs and trees, and readily colonizes towns and gardens. It often perches in exposed sites, such as along telephone or electric lines or in the tops of shrubs. This species is primarily insectivorous, but also consumes small vertebrates and small fruit. The song of the Tropical Mockingbird is a long musical series of phrases, many of which are repeated several times. Unlike the Northern Mockingbird, however, the Tropical Mockingbird is not reported to mimic other species.

23–25·5 cm; 88 g (tolimensis), means 58·4 g (melanopterus), 46·4 g (antillarum), 45·5 g (rostratus). Dull greyish mimid with short, straight bill. Nominate race has whitish supercilium, darker grey lores; crown and upperparts uniform grey, upperwing-coverts narrowly tipped whitish; wings and tail blackish, outer retrices with broad whitish tips; chin to vent whitish, breast tinged grey; whitish underwing (displayed in wing-flashing); iris colour varies, both geographically and individually, in nominate form typically dull yellowish, sometimes more olive, orange or brownish; bill and legs blackish. Differs from M. polyglottos in slightly larger size, no white in wing, less prominent tail markings. Sexes alike, female c. 5% smaller and lighter than male. Juvenile is browner, chest and flanks streaked dusky, eyes dark brown. Races vary mainly in plumage tone, extent of pale markings and size: antelius is longer-tailed than nominate, paler grey above, with flanks streaked, reduced white tips on rectrices; <em>antillarum</em> is darker above, with little grey on breast, wider but less sharply defined white on wing-coverts, iris commonly dark reddish-brown; tobagensis differs from previous in more extensive white tips on lateral rectrices, thicker (stouter but not longer) bill, iris commonly orange-brown; <em>melanopterus</em> is larger, paler above, almost pure white below, with more extensive white on outer rectrices, iris orange-brown to olivaceous; rostratus is similar to previous, but heavier-billed; tolimensis is also similar, but larger, with longer wings and tail; gracilis differs in browner upperparts, buffy-grey chest, and white (rather than grey) tips of wing-coverts; <em>leucophaeus</em> differs from previous in being more clear grey above, with narrow and grey edgings on wing-coverts, more extensive white on lateral rectrices; magnirostris is distinctive, much larger in size, also obviously heavier-billed than other races.

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.

Race tolimensis introduced in E El Salvador S to Costa Rica and C Panama (2 Angehr, G. R., and R. Dean (2010). The Birds of Panama. Cornell University Press, Ithaca, NY, USA. Close ).

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EBIRD GROUP (POLYTYPIC)

Tropical Mockingbird (Mayan) Mimus gilvus gracilis/leucophaeus

Available illustrations of subspecies in this group

• eBird map
• 224 photos
• 58 recordings

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SUBSPECIES

Mimus gilvus gracilis Scientific name definitions

Distribution

S Mexico (E from E Veracruz and E Oaxaca) S to Honduras and El Salvador.

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SUBSPECIES

Mimus gilvus leucophaeus Scientific name definitions

Distribution

Yucatán Peninsula, Cozumel I and other offshore islands.

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EBIRD GROUP (POLYTYPIC)

Tropical Mockingbird (Southern) Mimus gilvus [gilvus Group]

Available illustrations of subspecies in this group

• eBird map
• 364 photos
• 65 recordings

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SUBSPECIES

Mimus gilvus antillarum Scientific name definitions

Distribution

Lesser Antilles S from Antigua.

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SUBSPECIES

Mimus gilvus tobagensis Scientific name definitions

Distribution

Trinidad and Tobago.

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SUBSPECIES

Mimus gilvus rostratus Scientific name definitions

Distribution

S Caribbean islands (Aruba E to Blanquilla).

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SUBSPECIES

Mimus gilvus tolimensis Scientific name definitions

Distribution

W and C Colombia S to extreme N Ecuador.

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SUBSPECIES

Mimus gilvus melanopterus Scientific name definitions

Distribution

N and NE Colombia, most of Venezuela (including Margarita I and Los Testigos), Guyana and N Brazil (Roraima).

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SUBSPECIES

Mimus gilvus gilvus Scientific name definitions

Distribution

Suriname and French Guiana.

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SUBSPECIES

Mimus gilvus antelius Scientific name definitions

Distribution

coastal NE and E Brazil (S to Rio de Janeiro).

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EBIRD GROUP (MONOTYPIC)

Tropical Mockingbird (San Andres) Mimus gilvus magnirostris Scientific name definitions

• eBird map
• 22 photos
• 2 recordings

Distribution

San Andrés I, in SW Caribbean (off E Nicaragua).

• Tropical x Northern Mockingbird (hybrid) Mimus gilvus x polyglottos

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.

Generally open, scrubby, edge and savanna habitat, and arid coastal scrubland; common in disturbed habitat, around parks, farmland, habitations, including suburban gardens. Open savanna in N Venezuela; confined to sparse coastal restinga scrub in E Brazil, where M. saturninus common inland. Avoids closed forest and mangroves. Lowlands and middle elevations; reaches c. 2500 m in Central America and N Andes, occasionally to 2600 m in Colombia, and recently found as high as 3100 m in N Ecuador.

Sedentary.

Broadly omnivorous. Diet comprises wide variety of arthropods, small fruits and berries, also larger crop fruits such as mango, sapodilla. Known to take bird and lizard eggs ; also various birdfeeder offerings. Forages on ground or low in vegetation; hawks swarming termites in air.

Song , often heard at night, a varied and long-continued sequence of diverse mellow to harsh notes, trills, with considerable repetition of phrases, similar to song of M. polyglottos; pauses between phrases give song a discontinuous, staccato quality. Typical call a resonant “pree-ew”, alarm a harsh “chuck” or “chek”. Said to mimic only rarely, although certain individuals apparently accomplished mimics, even (only captives?) learning music, such as Brazilian national anthem.

Extended season, e.g. Jan–Sept in Venezuela and in all months except Aug and Dec in Trinidad, but generally in late dry season to early wet season; at least three broods. Monogamous; co-operative breeding recorded in Panama and Venezuela, young of previous brood help in feeding subsequent brood and in territory defence, up to five adults and subadults found on a territory. Aggressively territorial; repels conspecifics and other species, as well as potential predators. Nest, built by both sexes, of coarse twigs lined with finer material, usually low down (mostly 1–4 m) in shrub or low tree, often not well concealed. Clutch 3 eggs, sometimes 2 or 4, blue-green, spotted or blotched reddish-brown; incubation by both sexes but predominantly by female, period 13–15 days; chicks fed by both parents, nestling period 12–15 days, occasionally to 19 days; young fed by parents after leaving nest, and some remain on territory during raising of later broods.

Not globally threatened (Least Concern). Common and conspicuous nearly throughout range; less common in newly colonized areas, such as recently cleared highlands, and on Guadeloupe (in Lesser Antilles). First recorded in Ecuador in 1996. San Andrés race magnirostris, possibly a separate species, reportedly still common in 1989, despite development on island. Has recently spread N through Lesser Antilles; range has also expanded within some islands, such as Trinidad. Some expansion of range due to individuals escaping from captivity; this apparently the origin of several populations in lowlands of Central America. Benefits from forest clearance and other human activity, as it particularly favours disturbed areas and habitations of all sorts. Race antelius, however, is endangered at the southernmost edge of its distribution, where in the last decades it has disappeared from a large number of restinga remnants in the state of Rio de Janeiro due both to habitat loss and illegal capture of nestlings (3 Zanon, M.S., Vale, M.M. and Alves, M.A.S. (2015). Missing for the last twenty years: the case of the southernmost populations of the Tropical Mockingbird Mimus gilvus (Passeriformes: Mimidae). Zoologia (Curitiba). 32(1): 1–8. Close ).