Information about Gray Catbird

Grey Catbird
Conservation status
Least Concern (IUCN)
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Aves Order: Passeriformes Family: Mimidae Genus: Dumetella Wood, 1837 Species: D. carolinensis
Binomial name
Dumetella carolinensis (Linnaeus, 1766)
Gray Catbird range Gray Catbird range
Synonyms
Dumetella bermudianus Bangs & Bradlee, 1901 Dumetella carolinensis bermudianus Bangs & Bradlee, 1901 Dumetella carolinensis carolinensis Linnaeus, 1766

The Grey Catbird (Dumetella carolinensis^[1]) is a medium-sized northern American perching bird of the mimid family. It is the only member of New World catbird genus Dumetella. Like the Black Catbird, it is among the basal lineages of the Mimidae^[2].

Adults are dark gray with a slim, black bill and dark eyes. They have a long dark tail, dark legs and a dark cap; they are rust-colored underneath their tail.

Vocalizations

A Gray Catbird's song is easily distinguished from that of the Northern Mockingbird or Brown Thrasher because the mockingbird repeats phrases 3-4 times, and the brown thrasher usually repeats each phrase twice, whereas the catbird sings each phrase only once. The catbird's song is usually described as more raspy and less musical than a mockingbird.

In contrast to many songbirds which choose a prominent perch from which to sing, the catbird often chooses to sing from inside a bush or small tree, where they are obscured from view by the foliage.

This species is named for its cat-like call but, like many members of the Mimidae family, it also mimics the songs of other birds, as well as tree frogs and even mechanical sounds that they hear, having a syrinx like most birds, are able to make two sounds at the same time. The alarm call resembles the quiet calls of a male mallard.

Ecology

Their breeding habitat is semi-open areas with dense, low growth across most of North America. They are found in urban, suburban, and rural habitats; in the winter quarters they actually seem to associate with humans more^[3]. They build a bulky cup nest in a shrub or tree, close to the ground. Eggs are light blue in color, and clutch size ranges from 1-5, with 2-3 eggs most common. Both parents take turns feeding the young birds.

They migrate to the southeastern United States, Mexico and Central America in winter. The smaller Bermudian birds, which have narrow and shorter tail feathers and primaries, were described as bermudianus, but this taxon was never widely accepted. They are extremely rare vagrants to western Europe.

These birds forage on the ground in leaf litter. They mainly eat insects and berries; in the iwnter quarters, Cymbopetalum mayanum (Annonaceae) and Trophis racemosa (Moraceae) bear fruit well-liked by this species, and such trees can be planted to attract the Grey Catbird into parks and gardens ^[3]. Grey Catbirds are not afraid of predators and respond to them aggressively by flashing their wings and tails and by making their signature mew sounds. They are also known to even attack and peck predators that come too near their nests. They also will destroy eggs of the Brown-headed Cowbird laid in their nests by pecking it.

This species is generally plentiful and widespread. It is not considered threatened by the IUCN. On Bermuda however, Grey Catbirds were once very common, but their numbers have been greatly reduced in recent years by deforestation and nest predation by introduced species (including the Great Kiskadee and the European Starling).

In the United States, this species receives special legal protections under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act of 1918.

Footnotes

References

• BirdLife International (2004). Dumetella carolinensis. 2006 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. Retrieved on 12 May 2006. Database entry includes justification for why this species is of least concern
• Barber, Brian R.; Martínez-Gómez, Juan E. & Peterson, A. Townsend (2004): Systematic position of the Socorro mockingbird Mimodes graysoni. J. Avian Biol. 35: 195-198. doi:10.1111/j.0908-8857.2004.03233.x (HTML abstract)
• Foster, Mercedes S. (2007): The potential of fruiting trees to enhance converted habitats for migrating birds in southern Mexico. Bird Conservation International 17(1): 45-61. doi:10.1017/S0959270906000554 PDF fulltext
• Hunt, Jeffrey S.; Bermingham, Eldredge; & Ricklefs, Robert E. (2001): Molecular systematics and biogeography of Antillean thrashers, tremblers, and mockingbirds (Aves: Mimidae). Auk 118(1): 35–55. DOI:10.1642/0004-8038(2001)118[0035:MSABOA]2.0.CO;2 HTML fulltext without images

External links

• The Original Description and Author of the genus Dumetella
• Gray Catbird Species Account - Cornell Lab of Ornithology
• Gray Catbird - Dumetella carolinensis - USGS Patuxent Bird Identification InfoCenter
• Gray Catbird Information and Photos - South Dakota Birds and Birding
• Bermuda Online: Bermudian Fauna.
• Catbird (BirdHouses101.com)
• Life Histories of Familiar North American Birds: Gray Catbird.
• Grey Catbird stamps (for Grenadines of Grenada, Turks and Caicos Islands)
• Gray Catbird photo gallery VIREO
• Photo-High Res; Photo-2--High Res; Article sdakotabirds.com
• Grey Catbird videos on the Internet Bird Collection