Chestnut Thrush

Turdus rubrocanus Gray, JE & Gray, GR, 1847

≈28 cmLength92 gWeight

It is a thrush of scrub in high-altitude forest understory, found in spruce forest understory at around 3,800 m in Tibet.

Busiest months: May–June · Most records: China, Thailand, India

Least Concern

How to identify

Male, female and young

Male and female plumage differs, but the differences are usually difficult to see with the naked eye.

Where and when it's recorded

Busiest months: May–June · Most records: China, Thailand, India

Chestnut Thrush has been recorded at 211 of the 8,276 birding hotspots we track, in 7 countries and regions.

Records by month Northern Hemisphere

Where it's recorded most

Balang Shan – Tunnel AreaChina216 records
Balang Shan [General Area]China200 records
Baxi ForestChina187 records

More places

Wawu Mountain – Summit [2800m]China155 records
Lamasery, WolongChina151 records
Gonggangling PassChina118 records
Yaozigou Scenic AreaChina106 records
MengbishanChina105 records
Jiuzhaigou NNRChina100 records
Lianhuashan NNRChina97 records

Countries and regions with the most records

China Thailand India Nepal Bhutan Pakistan Myanmar (Burma)

eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.

About

The chestnut thrush (Turdus rubrocanus) is a species of bird in the family Turdidae. It breeds in the western Himalayas and central/southwestern China; it winters in Eastern Himalaya and northern Southeast Asia. Its natural habitat is temperate forests.

Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia

Questions

How big is the Chestnut Thrush?

The Chestnut Thrush is about ≈28 cm long and weighs around 92 g.

Where does the Chestnut Thrush live?

Its breeding range: Oriental: eastern Afghanistan to Myanmar. It is most often recorded in China, Thailand and India.

When is the best time to see the Chestnut Thrush?

At the hotspots we track, it is recorded most in May and June (Northern Hemisphere).

Is the Chestnut Thrush endangered?

The IUCN Red List classifies the Chestnut Thrush as Least Concern.

What does the Chestnut Thrush eat?

Main food: Insects & other invertebrates.

What family is the Chestnut Thrush in?

It belongs to the family Thrushes (Turdidae), order Passerines (Passeriformes).

At a glance

Length: ≈28 cm
Weight: 92 g
Habitat: Forest
Diet: Insects & other invertebrates
Lifestyle: Varied
Migration: Resident (barely migrates)
Conservation: Least Concern

More measurements

Wing: 139 mm
Tail: 108 mm
Bill: 28 mm
Tarsus: 32 mm

Averages from the AVONET dataset; length from field guides where available.

Range

Oriental: eastern Afghanistan to Myanmar

Breeding range, IOC World Bird List 15.2

Subspecies · 2

Turdus rubrocanus rubrocanus e Afghanistan, nw Himalayas and s Tibet | non-breeding: India
Turdus rubrocanus gouldii e Tibet to c, sw China | non-breeding: to Burma and Thailand