Wood Thrush (Hylocichla mustelina)

County List:

Rule:

Forested or Mixed Forested/Nonforested Landscapes

      (Oak (Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven))
      or (Assorted Hardwoods (Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven))
      or (Northern Hardwoods (Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven))
      or (Mixed Northern Hardwoods (Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven))
      or (Mixed Upland Hardwoods (Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven))
      or (Swamp Hardwoods (Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven))
      or (Bottomland Hardwoods (Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven))
      or (Mixed Lowland Hardwoods (Sm Saw or Lg Saw or Uneven))
   containing:
      Mast

Habitat List:

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Literature:

Habitat: The Atlas Habitat Survey indicated highest numbers of Wood Thrushes in wet and mesic deciduous forests and somewhat lower numbers in dry deciduous forests. Although the species has been reported from a coniferous bog near Douglas Lake, Cheboygan Co. and evidently prefers eastern hemlock as a nest tree in Vermont, there were only a few Atlas reports from mesic and dry mixed forests and none from coniferous forest.

The Wood Thrush is virtually absent from areas of early successional growth and generally prefers dark, dense woodlands. Physical factors, especially moisture, may be more important than floristic composition in habitat selection, though large trees are required. Barrows noted that uneven country containing abrupt ridges associated with small streams is preferred, and several authors have commented on a preference for small streams and springs associated with a dense understory. The nest is a compact, open structure located on a limb or fork in the understory at a height of 2 to 5 m or more and containing a layer of mud that makes it superficially similar to an American Robin nest.

The territory of a Wood Thrush is not large, often averaging less than 1 ha in size. Evidently, woodlots as small as 5 ha maybe acceptable. Year to year woodlot occupancy can be erratic, depending on weather fluctuations and associated effects on vegetation and food supply. Beetles, spiders, Orthoptera, Lepidoptera, and fruit are important in the diet, and Wood Thrushes rarely forage in the canopy but instead feed on the ground, often by bill-sweeping leaf litter.

Habitat: Breeding: Mature lowland forests (mainly deciduous or mixed); shady, cool, mature upland forests, often near a swamp, pond, stream, or lake; sometimes in residential areas. Requires abundant undergrowth. Absent from higher mountains of New England.

Special Habitat Requirements: Deciduous or mixed forests with tall trees and abundant sapling growth. Cool, moist conditions. Apparently requires a tree at least 40 feet, possibly for song perches.

Habitat: Mainly deciduous woodlands. Breeds in the understory of woodlands, mostly deciduous but sometimes mixed, in areas with tall trees. More numerous in damp forest and near streams than in drier woods; will nest in suburban areas where there are enough large trees. In migration, found in various kinds of woodland.

Diet: Mostly insects and berries. Feeds on many insects, especially in breeding season, including beetles, caterpillars, ants, crickets, moths; also spiders, earthworms, and snails. Berries and small fruits are eaten at all seasons. Young are fed mostly insects but also some berries.

Nest: Placed in vertical fork of tree (usually deciduous) or saddled on horizontal branch, usually about 10-15 feet above the ground, sometimes lower, rarely as high as 50 feet. Nest is rather like Robin's nest, an open cup of grass, leaves, moss, weeds, bark strips, mixed with mud; has lining of soft material such as rootlets. Often adds pieces of white paper or other trash to nest.

Conservation Status: Numbers have declined seriously in recent decades. Cowbirds lay many eggs in their nests, so the thrushes often raise mainly cowbirds, with few young of their own. As forests are cut into smaller fragments, it apparently becomes easier for cowbirds to penetrate these small woodlots and find more of the thrush nests.