The black-billed thrush is a bird in the family Turdidae native to Colombia and also scantily distributed across Venezuela, the Guiana Shield and the western Amazon.
Region
Northern South America
Typical Environment
The black-billed thrush is native to Colombia and extends locally into adjacent parts of Venezuela and the western Amazonian foothills. It favors lowland to foothill habitats including forest edges, riparian woodlands, secondary growth, plantations, and urban green spaces. It adapts well to disturbed areas and often occurs near human habitation. In many places it is a common garden thrush where fruiting trees are present.
Altitude Range
Sea level to 2000 m
Climate Zone
Tropical
Ease of Keeping
Beginner friendly: 1/5
The black-billed thrush is a versatile Turdidae thrush that thrives in edges of forests, second-growth, and even gardens and parks. It is named for its distinctly dark bill, which contrasts with the yellow or orange bills of many related thrushes. Often tame around human settlements, it forages methodically on the ground for fallen fruit and invertebrates. Its song is a series of mellow, fluty phrases delivered from exposed perches at dawn and dusk.
Temperament
solitary and territorial
Flight Pattern
short rapid wingbeats
Social Behavior
Usually seen singly or in pairs holding small territories, especially during the breeding season. Outside of breeding, it may gather loosely at fruiting trees with other thrushes and tanagers. Nests are cup-shaped and placed in shrubs or low trees, with both parents involved in care.
Migratory Pattern
Resident
Song Description
A mellow series of clear, fluty whistles and short phrases, repeated with pauses from exposed perches. Calls include soft chuck and seep notes used during foraging and alarm.
Plumage
Plain brown to olive-brown upperparts with paler, gray-brown underparts and slightly buffy throat with fine streaking; overall smooth, unspotted appearance typical of Turdus thrushes.
Diet
It consumes a mix of small fruits and berries along with insects, spiders, and other invertebrates. Foraging is often on or near the ground where it flips leaf litter to uncover prey. It also gleans fruit directly from low branches and will visit fruiting trees in gardens and parks. Opportunistically, it may take small snails or earthworms after rains.
Preferred Environment
Feeds in forest edges, secondary woodlands, shaded plantations, and urban green areas with fruiting shrubs and trees. Often forages along trails, hedgerows, and riparian strips where leaf litter and fallen fruit accumulate.
