The thrushes are a passerine bird family, Turdidae, with a worldwide distribution. The family was once much larger before biologists reclassified the former subfamily Saxicolinae, which includes the chats and European robins, as Old World flycatchers. Thrushes are small to medium-sized ground living birds that feed on insects, other invertebrates, and fruit. Some unrelated species around the world have been named after thrushes due to their similarity to birds in this family.
Chats are a group of small Old World insectivorous birds formerly classified as members of the thrush family (Turdidae), but following genetic DNA analysis, are now considered to belong to the Old World flycatcher family (Muscicapidae).
The mimids are the New World family of passerine birds, Mimidae, that includes thrashers, mockingbirds, tremblers, and the New World catbirds. As their name suggests, these birds are notable for their vocalization, especially some species' remarkable ability to mimic a wide variety of birds and other sounds heard outdoors. They are commonly referred to as mimic thrushes but are not, in fact, thrushes.
The Old World flycatchers are a large family, the Muscicapidae, of small passerine birds restricted to the Old World, with the exception of several vagrants and two species, bluethroat and northern wheatear, found also in North America. These are mainly small arboreal insectivores, many of which, as the name implies, take their prey on the wing. The family is relatively large and includes 351 species, which are divided into 54 genera.
True thrushes are medium-sized mostly insectivorous or omnivorous birds in the genus Turdus of the wider thrush family, Turdidae. The genus name Turdus is Latin for "thrush". The term "thrush" is used for many other birds of the family Turdidae as well as for a number of species belonging to several other families.
The Asian thrushes are medium-sized mostly insectivorous or omnivorous birds in the genus Zoothera of the thrush family, Turdidae.
The rock thrushes, Monticola, are a genus of chats, medium-sized mostly insectivorous or omnivorous songbirds. All are Old World birds, and most are associated with mountainous regions.
The whistling thrushes comprise a genus Myophonus of the Old World flycatcher family Muscicapidae.
The wood thrush is a North American passerine bird in the family Turdidae and is the only species placed in the genus Hylocichla. It is closely related to other thrushes such as the American robin and is widely distributed across North America, wintering in Central America and southern Mexico. The wood thrush is the official bird of the District of Columbia.
The hermit thrush is a medium-sized North American thrush. It is not very closely related to the other North American migrant species of Catharus, but rather to the Mexican russet nightingale-thrush. The specific name guttatus is Latin for "spotted", though historically this species has been given 17 additional species or subspecies names by various authors, now all treated as synonyms.
Swainson's thrush, also called olive-backed thrush and russet-backed thrush, and Reverbius Maximus Harmonius, is a medium-sized thrush. It is a member of genus Catharus and is typical of it in terms of its subdued coloration and beautiful, ascending flute-like voice. Swainson's thrush was named after William Swainson, an English ornithologist.
The blue rock thrush is a species of chat. This thrush-like Old World flycatcher was formerly placed in the family Turdidae. It breeds in southern Europe, northwest Africa, and from Central Asia to northern China and Malaysia. The blue rock thrush is the official national bird of Malta and was shown on the Lm 1 coins that were part of the country's former currency.
The varied thrush is a member of the thrush family, Turdidae. It is the only species in the monotypic genus Ixoreus.
The grey shrikethrush or grey shrike-thrush, formerly commonly known as grey thrush, is a songbird of Australasia. It is moderately common to common in most parts of Australia, but absent from the driest of the inland deserts. It is also found in New Guinea.
The ant thrushes are medium-sized insectivorous birds in the genus Neocossyphus of the thrush family Turdidae. These are African forest dwelling species. The genus Stizorhina is sometimes placed here.
The Sulawesi thrush is a species of passerine bird in the thrush family, Turdidae. It is endemic to the island of Sulawesi in Indonesia, where it inhabits evergreen montane forests at altitudes of 1,100–2,400 m (3,600–7,900 ft). Although it has a limited range and is not a common bird, the IUCN has assessed it as being a "least-concern species".
Finsch's rufous thrush, also known as Finsch's flycatcher-thrush, Finsch's rusty flycatcher, Finsch's ant thrush or Finsch's rufous ant thrush, is a little-known flycatcher-like thrush of West African forests. It is often considered a subspecies of Fraser's rufous thrush.
The Geokichla thrushes are medium-sized mostly insectivorous or omnivorous birds in the thrush family, Turdidae. They were traditionally listed in the Zoothera, but molecular phylogenetic studies published in 2008 led to their placement in a separate genus.
Myadestinae are a subfamily of passerine birds in the family Turdidae. Members of this group have been noted by ornithologists to be rather unusual in that they lack the typical diagnostic traits seen in the "true" thrushes of the sister subfamily Turdinae. Examples of including the lack syringeal morphology seen in turdines and the feeding ecology of myadestines being similar to those of Old World flycatchers. A 2005 molecular study from Klicka et al. found support in a basal clade consisting of the genera Sialia, Neocossyphus, Stizorhina, and Myadestes to be sister to the rest of the thrushes. The divergence between myadestines and turdines occurred 11 million years ago in the Serravallian.
