Townsend's Solitaire is a medium-sized thrush

Thrush (bird)

The thrushes, family Turdidae, are a group of passerine birds that occur worldwide.-Characteristics:Thrushes are plump, soft-plumaged, small to medium-sized birds, inhabiting wooded areas, and often feed on the ground or eat small fruit. The smallest thrush may be the Forest Rock-thrush, at and...

, the only solitaire

Solitaire (bird)

For other uses, see Solitaire The Solitaires are medium-sized mostly insectivorous birds in the genera Myadestes, Cichlopsis and Entomodestes of the thrush family Turdidae....

 native to America

Americas

The Americas, or America , are lands in the Western hemisphere, also known as the New World. In English, the plural form the Americas is often used to refer to the landmasses of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions, while the singular form America is primarily...

 north of Mexico

Mexico

The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...

.

Range and habitat

This solitaire ranges from southern Alaska

Alaska

Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...

, British Columbia

British Columbia

British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...

 and Alberta

Alberta

Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...

 south to northern Zacatecas

Zacatecas

Zacatecas officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Zacatecas is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 58 municipalities and its capital city is Zacatecas....

, preferring montane woodlands. During winter, it may move in search of food to lower elevations, including the Great Plains

Great Plains

The Great Plains are a broad expanse of flat land, much of it covered in prairie, steppe and grassland, which lies west of the Mississippi River and east of the Rocky Mountains in the United States and Canada. This area covers parts of the U.S...

, northern interior Mexico, and even desert oases

Oasis

In geography, an oasis or cienega is an isolated area of vegetation in a desert, typically surrounding a spring or similar water source...

.

Description

Townsend's Solitaire reaches a length of approximately 8–9.5 inches (20–24 cm) and wingspan of 14.5 in (37 cm); it weighs approximately 1.2 oz (34 g). It has a short, thick, blackish bill; a white eye ring; and gray plumage with a buffy wing stripe and edges of the flight feathers. The tail is long, tapered when shut, and edged with white. Juveniles are mottled gray and white.

It perches in a rather upright position, often high on a branch and often staying still for a long time.

Though it has some similarities to the Northern Mockingbird

Northern Mockingbird

The Northern Mockingbird, Mimus polyglottos, is the only mockingbird commonly found in North America. This species was first described by Linnaeus in his Systema naturae in 1758 as Turdus polyglottos....

, particularly as to the tail, its dark underparts, shape, size, and behavior are not similar.

It feeds primarily on berries and insects. The Solitaire is amongst the most specialized of all North American birds since its diet in winter consists almost entirely of the fleshy cones of the Juniper bush, and the solitary birds form territories around productive juniper patches which they strongly defend

Voice

Its song consists of loud, melodious flute-like rising and falling phrases with "low, husky notes interspersed but no distinct pattern" and "a slightly mechanical quality." The call is a squeaky eeek or "clear, soft whistle heeh".

Nesting

The nest resembles that of other solitaires: a cup of fine plant material on or close to the ground. Townsend's Solitaire usually lays 3–4 eggs that are grayish-white with brown dots or splotches concentrated at the larger end.

External links

• Townsend's Solitaire at USGS
• Townsend's Solitaire photo gallery VIREO; (with picture: egg clutch
  Clutch (eggs)
  A clutch of eggs refers to all the eggs produced by birds or reptiles, often at a single time, particularly those laid in a nest.In birds, destruction of a clutch by predators, , results in double-clutching...
  
  )
• Townsend's Solitaire photo, Article Washington State