Townsend's Solitaire Identification

The Four Keys to ID

• Size & Shape

  This thrush is a medium-sized songbird with a long tail, a short bill, and a small rounded head relative to its body size. Their upright posture and long tail gives them a long and slender appearance.

  Relative Size

  Larger than a Mountain Bluebird, smaller than an American Robin.

  robin-sized

  Measurements

  • Both Sexes
  • • Length: 7.9-8.7 in (20-22 cm)
    • Weight: 1.1-1.2 oz (30-35 g)
    • Wingspan: 13.0-14.6 in (33-37 cm)

  © Ryan O'Donnell / Macaulay Library

• Color Pattern

  Townsend’s Solitaires are gray birds with prominent white eyerings. Their buffy wing patches and white outer tail feathers are often prominent in flight. Juveniles are dark gray overall and heavily spotted with buff and white, giving them a scaly look.

• Behavior

  The elegant Townsend’s Solitaire perches upright and sings from prominent perches at all times of the year. Birds fly out and back to nab insects on the wing or pounce on insects on the ground. In the winter, they move south or to lower elevations to feed on juniper berries which they aggressively defend.

• Habitat

  Townsend’s Solitaires inhabit open pine, fir, and spruce forests in mountainous regions from about 1,100–11,500 feet. During the nonbreeding season some Townsend’s Solitaires migrate short distances to lower elevations especially where juniper berries are abundant.