Asian thrush explained

The Asian thrushes are medium-sized mostly insectivorous or omnivorous birds in the genus Zoothera of the thrush family, Turdidae.

Taxonomy

The genus Zoothera was introduced in 1832 by the Irish zoologist Nicholas Vigors to accommodate a newly described species, Zoothera monticol, the long-billed thrush, which therefore becomes the type species.^{[1] [2]} The genus name combines the Ancient Greek zōon meaning "animal" with -thēra meaning "hunter".^[3]

Two New World species traditionally regarded as Zoothera (varied thrush and Aztec thrush) actually belong elsewhere in the thrush family. A group containing Siberian thrush and the African species is not closely related to the other Zoothera and are now assigned to the genus Geokichla.

Species

The genus contains the following 21 species:^[4]

• Long-tailed thrush (Zoothera dixoni)
• Alpine thrush (Zoothera mollissima)
• Himalayan thrush (Zoothera salimalii)
• Sichuan thrush (Zoothera griseiceps)
• Long-billed thrush (Zoothera monticola)
• Geomalia (Zoothera heinrichi)
• Dark-sided thrush (Zoothera marginata)
• Everett's thrush (Zoothera everetti)
• Sunda thrush (Zoothera andromedae)
• White's thrush (Zoothera aurea)
• Scaly thrush (Zoothera dauma)
• Nilgiri thrush (Zoothera neilgherriensis)
• Sri Lanka thrush (Zoothera imbricata)
• Amami thrush (Zoothera major)
• †Bonin thrush (Zoothera terrestris) - extinct (c. 1830s)
• Guadalcanal thrush (Zoothera turipavae)
• Makira thrush (Zoothera margaretae)
• Russet-tailed thrush (Zoothera heinei)
• Fawn-breasted thrush (Zoothera machiki)
• Bassian thrush (Zoothera lunulata)
• Black-backed thrush (Zoothera talaseae)

Traditional Zoothera species belonging elsewhere in family

• Varied thrush (Ixoreus naevius) - related to other new world genera
• Aztec thrush (Ridgwayia pinicola) - related to Hylocichla

Geokichla thrushes

• Siberian thrush, Geokichla sibirica
• Pied thrush, Geokichla wardii
• Grey ground thrush, Geokichla princei
• Black-eared ground thrush, Geokichla camaronensis
• Spotted ground thrush, Geokichla guttata - formerly G. fischeri
• Spot-winged thrush, Geokichla spiloptera
• Crossley's ground thrush, Geokichla crossleyi
• Abyssinian ground thrush, Geokichla piaggiae
  • Kivu ground thrush, Geokichla piaggiae tanganjicae
• Oberländer's ground thrush, Geokichla oberlaenderi
• Orange ground thrush, Geokichla gurneyi
• Orange-headed thrush, Geokichla citrina
• Buru thrush, Geokichla dumasi
• Seram thrush, Geokichla joiceyi
• Orange-sided thrush, Geokichla peronii
• Slaty-backed thrush, Geokichla schistacea
• Chestnut-capped thrush, Geokichla interpres
• Enggano thrush, Geokichla leucolaema
• Chestnut-backed thrush, Geokichla dohertyi
• Ashy thrush, Geokichla cinerea
• Red-backed thrush, Geokichla erythronota
• Red-and-black thrush, Geokichla mendeni

Further reading

• Klicka, J., G. Voelker, and G.M. Spellman. 2005.A molecular phylogenetic analysis of the ‘‘true thrushes’’ (Aves: Turdinae). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 34: 486–500.
• Sangster, G., J.M. Collinson, P.-A. Crochet, A.G. Knox, D.T. Parkin, L. Svensson, and S.C. Votier. 2011. Taxonomic recommendations for British birds: seventh report. Ibis 153: 883–892.
• Voelker, G., and J. Klicka. 2008. Systematics of Zoothera thrushes, and a synthesis of true thrush molecular systematic relationships. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 49: 377–381.
• Voelke, G., and R.K. Outlaw. 2008. Establishing a perimeter position: speciation around the Indian Ocean Basin. Journal of Evolutionary Biology 21: 1779–1788.

External links

• Asian thrush videos on the Internet Bird Collection

Notes and References

1. Vigors . Nicholas Aylward . Nicholas Aylward Vigors . 1832 . Zoothera . Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London . 172 .
2. Book: Mayr . Ernst . Ernst Mayr . Paynter . Raymond A. Jr . 1964 . Check-List of Birds of the World . 10 . Museum of Comparative Zoology . Cambridge, Massachusetts . 144 .
3. Book: Jobling, James A. . 2010. The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names . Christopher Helm . London . 978-1-4081-2501-4 . 414 .
4. Web site: Gill . Frank . Frank Gill (ornithologist) . Donsker . David . Rasmussen . Pamela . Pamela Rasmussen . July 2023 . Thrushes . IOC World Bird List Version 13.2 . International Ornithologists' Union . 13 December 2023 .