Bendire's thrasher (''Toxostoma bendirei'') is a medium-sized species of

thrasher Thrashers are a New World group of passerine birds related to mockingbirds and New World catbirds. Like these, they are in the family Mimidae. There are 15 species in one large and 4 monotypic genera. These do not form a clade but are a phe ...

native to the

southwestern United States The Southwestern United States, also known as the American Southwest or simply the Southwest, is a geographic and cultural list of regions of the United States, region of the United States that includes Arizona and New Mexico, along with adjacen ...

and northwestern

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

. It is long, with a long tail and a medium-sized bill. Coloration is grayish-brown on its upperparts with paler, faintly dark streaked underparts. The base of the lower bill is often pale, the eyes are bright yellow, and the tips of the tail are white-tipped.

Identification

Because of its similar coloration and structure to the

curve-billed thrasher The curve-billed thrasher (''Toxostoma curvirostre'') is a medium-sized mimid native to most of Mexico and to the deserts of southwestern United States. It is a non-migratory species, and throughout most of its range it is the most common desert ...

, the two birds are very easy to mistake for one another. The Bendire's thrasher's shorter bill is a distinguishing feature when comparing mature birds, but it is still easy to misidentify an adult Bendire's thrasher as a young curve-billed thrasher as its beak has not grown to a mature length. The Bendire's thrasher's yellow eyes and pale-based lower mandible are additional markings which aid in separation from the curve-billed thrasher.

Distribution and habitat

Bendire's thrasher lives in the brush-filled deserts and valleys and drylands of the south-western United States, mainly along the southern border that

Arizona Arizona is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States, sharing the Four Corners region of the western United States with Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah. It also borders Nevada to the nort ...

and

New Mexico New Mexico is a state in the Southwestern United States, Southwestern region of the United States. It is one of the Mountain States of the southern Rocky Mountains, sharing the Four Corners region with Utah, Colorado, and Arizona. It also ...

shares with Mexico, (the

Madrean sky islands The Madrean Sky Islands are enclaves of Madrean pine–oak woodlands, found at higher elevations in a complex of small mountain ranges in southern and southeastern Arizona, southwestern New Mexico, and northwestern Mexico. The sky islands are su ...

, mountain range

sky island Sky islands are isolated mountains surrounded by radically different lowland environments. The term originally referred to those found on the Mexican Plateau and has extended to similarly isolated high-elevation forests. The isolation has s ...

s of the northern Mexican range:

Sierra Madre Occidental The Sierra Madre Occidental is a major mountain range system of the North American Cordillera, that runs northwest–southeast through northwestern and western Mexico, and along the Gulf of California. The Sierra Madre is part of the American C ...

). The species has been described as polytypic, with two subspecies in addition to the nominate form. ''Toxostoma bendirei'' (Coues, 1873): Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, Nevada, Utah, California; in Mexico, Sonora, Sinaloa, and Baja California. ''Toxostoma bendirei candidum'' van Rossem, 1942: Desert of western Mexico in western Sonora. ''Toxostoma bendirei rubricatum'' van Rossem, 1942: Interior of southern and central Sonora and the coastal areas near Isla Tiburón. There is also a 1988 record of it from Alberta, Canada, based on a photograph taken of the subject.

Nesting

The Bendire's thrasher constructs a cup-shaped nest from twigs, lining the interior with grass stems and rootlets. It is usually placed in a cactus or an otherwise thorny desert shrub or tree. The female lays three or four eggs, which are pale green to blue in color, and speckled with brown and purple.

Diet

The Bendire's thrasher, like many other thrashers, feeds on small ground-dwelling insects as well as berries.

Voice

Like other mimids, the often silent Bendire's thrasher incorporates the songs and calls of other species into its own songs. A sharp "chek" is the species' most common call.

Discovery

On July 28, 1872, U.S. Army Lieutenant

Charles Bendire Major (rank), Major Charles Emil Bendire (April 27, 1836 – February 4, 1897) was a United States Army soldier and ornithologist and oologist. The Bendire's thrasher is named for him. Early life Born Karl Emil Bender at Bad König, König im Od ...

was hiking through the brushy desert near

Fort Lowell Fort Lowell was a United States Army post active from 1873 to 1891 on the outskirts of Tucson, Arizona. Fort Lowell was the successor to Camp Lowell, an earlier Army installation.http://www.oflna.org/fort_lowell_museum/ftlowell.htm Fort Low ...

, Arizona. While exploring the desert Bendire, an avid bird enthusiast, spotted a bird that was unfamiliar to him. Lieutenant Bendire shot the bird, which appeared to be a female thrasher, and sent its remains to the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums, Education center, education and Research institute, research centers, created by the Federal government of the United States, U.S. government "for the increase a ...

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

The remains of the specimen were examined by

Elliott Coues Elliott Ladd Coues (; September 9, 1842 – December 25, 1899) was an American army surgeon, historian, ornithologist, and author. He led surveys of the Arizona Territory, and later as secretary of the United States Geological and Geographi ...

, who was perplexed as to its species. After several of Coues's colleagues looked at the bird they believed it was a female curve-billed thrasher, but Coues did not agree with their conclusion. Coues believed that the thrasher was a species unknown to science and sought out Bendire for additional information on the bird. Bendire replied to Coues with his affirmation that he also believed that it was a new species. Lieutenant Bendire soon sent back a second specimen of the thrasher, a male, and details about its habits and eggs, all which were different from those of a curve-billed thrasher. Finally convinced, Coues named the new thrasher species Bendire's thrasher in the honor of Charles Bendire.

Conservation

The Bendire's thrasher is listed as Vulnerable due to range-wide declines primarily as a result of the conversion of habitat to farmland.

References

External links

BirdLife - Bendire's ThrasherBendire's Thrasher photo gallery
CalPhotos

VIREO * ttps://web.archive.org/web/20070716205126/http://nationalzoo.si.edu/ConservationAndScience/MigratoryBirds/Featured_photo/Images/Bigpic/beth1.jpg Photo-High Res ttps://web.archive.org/web/20070825023549/http://nationalzoo.si.edu/ConservationAndScience/MigratoryBirds/Featured_photo/photographer.cfm?photographer=George_Jameson Article"Migratory Bird Center"-Smithsonian {{Taxonbar, from=Q3181155 Bendire's thrasher Bendire's thrasher Endemic birds of Southwestern North America Fauna of the Sonoran Desert Fauna of the Mojave Desert Fauna of the Chihuahuan Desert Fauna of the Lower Colorado River Valley Birds of the Rio Grande valleys Birds of Mexico Native birds of the Southwestern United States Bendire's thrasher