Song Thrush (Turdus philomelos): The Virtuoso Singer of Our Gardens

Identification: A Speckled Breast

The Song Thrush is a medium-sized bird, whose main characteristics are its plumage and posture.

Plumage Details

The upperparts, from the head to the tail, are a plain, warm brown. The underparts are much lighter, creamy-white to buff, and covered with many small, dark spots shaped like arrowheads or inverted Vs, which are particularly neat on the breast. In flight, a warm buff-orange panel on the underwing can be seen.

Male, Female, and Juvenile Differences

The sexes are virtually identical and cannot be distinguished in the field. Juveniles resemble adults, but their back is flecked with small, pale buff spots, giving them a slightly scaled appearance. The spots on their breast are also a bit less defined.

Size and Build

• Length: Approx. 20-24 cm (8-9.5 in).
• Wingspan: Approx. 33-36 cm (13-14 in).
• Weight: Approx. 65-90 grams (2.3-3.2 oz).

It has a typical thrush shape, plump but slender, with a relatively short tail. It moves on the ground with a series of hops, often pausing with its head cocked to listen for prey beneath the surface.

Scientific Dimensions and Records

These figures provide insight into the physical characteristics of the Song Thrush, a common and melodious passerine bird.

Habitat and Distribution

The Song Thrush (Turdus philomelos) is a widespread and beloved songbird, breeding across much of the West Palearctic, including Europe and extending eastward into Siberia. Four recognized subspecies show minor differences in size and coloration.

This adaptable species thrives in a variety of habitats, favoring woodlands, forests, gardens, parks, hedgerows, and areas of scrubland. They particularly seek locations with good undergrowth, leaf litter, and moist ground that provide an abundance of invertebrates, such as snails and earthworms. Song Thrushes construct neat, mud-lined cup nests in bushes, trees, or climbing vegetation, often close to the ground.

The Song Thrush exhibits partial migratory behavior. While populations in the milder western regions, like the British Isles and France, tend to be resident year-round, birds from northern and eastern breeding grounds (e.g., Scandinavia and Russia) undertake migrations to winter in southern Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East. Migration is typically nocturnal, with birds flying on a broad front. The species has also been introduced and established in New Zealand and Australia.

Distribution Map

Behavior: The Clever Loner

Unlike finches, the Song Thrush is rather territorial and solitary, especially during the breeding season.

The Use of the Anvil

Its most famous behavior is the use of an "anvil." The thrush picks up a snail in its beak and repeatedly and vigorously smashes it against a hard stone, paving slab, or piece of concrete until the shell breaks. It can then extract the flesh. One can often locate these anvils by the pile of broken shells that accumulates beside them.

A Territorial Bird

The male fiercely defends his territory through song, which he delivers from a high perch (treetop, antenna). Outside the breeding season, thrushes can be more gregarious, especially during migration or at feeding sites rich in berries.

Diet & The Art of the Anvil

The Song Thrush has a varied diet that changes with the seasons.

An Adaptable Menu

In spring and summer, it is mainly carnivorous. Its diet consists of earthworms, snails, slugs, spiders, and a wide variety of insects and their larvae. In the fall and winter, when animal prey becomes scarce, it becomes largely frugivorous, feeding on berries (rowan, holly, yew, ivy) and fallen fruit.

How to Help the Song Thrush

It does not frequent seed feeders. To help it, it's best to maintain a "natural" garden: avoid using toxic slug pellets, leave untreated lawn areas, maintain leaf piles, and plant berry-producing shrubs.

Nesting & Reproduction

The Song Thrush's nest is a unique and robust construction.

Nest Building

Built by the female, the nest is a deep, sturdy cup made of grass, twigs, and moss. Its unique feature is its inner lining: the female lines it with a mixture of rotten wood pulp, mud, and saliva, which she smooths with her body to form a hard, perfectly smooth bowl. This waterproof lining protects the eggs from ground moisture. The nest is often placed in a dense bush, ivy, or the fork of a tree.

Eggs and Raising the Young

The female lays 3 to 5 stunning, bright blue eggs, speckled with a few black or purple spots. Incubation lasts about 11 to 15 days, mainly by the female. Both parents feed the chicks, which leave the nest after 12 to 16 days. Song Thrushes can have 2 to 3 broods a year.

Vocalizations: A Repetitive Concert

The Song Thrush's song is one of the most recognizable and powerful in the European bird world.

Song and Calls

Its song is loud, clear, and fluty. It consists of a succession of short musical phrases (motifs), each repeated two to four times before the bird moves on to the next one. This repetitive structure is the best way to identify it by ear.

For an in-depth analysis of this structure and to listen to our recording, visit our dedicated page on the Song Thrush's song. For a wider library of reference sounds, the RSPB also provides excellent recordings.

Its contact call is a thin, high-pitched "tsic," and its alarm call is a sharp, agitated "tchook-tchook-tchook."

Conservation Status & How to Help

Although common, the Song Thrush has faced declines in some areas.

Current Status

Classified as "Least Concern" (LC) by the IUCN globally, the Song Thrush has suffered declines in some parts of Europe, likely due to changes in agricultural practices and garden management.

Threats and Support Actions

The main threats are the use of pesticides (especially molluscicides that poison slugs and snails) and the excessive "tidiness" of gardens and parks, which reduces food availability and nesting sites. To help:

• Ban slug pellets and use alternative methods.
• Maintain damp soil and leave piles of dead leaves that harbor invertebrates.
• Plant native, berry-producing shrubs.
• Leave a flat stone in a quiet corner of your garden; it might become an anvil!

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

References

1. EUNIS (European Nature Information System) - Song Thrush (Turdus philomelos)
2. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species - Turdus philomelos