Brown Thrasher vs Long-Billed Thrasher

Brown Thrasher

Toxostoma rufum

Also known as: Brown Thrush

How to recognise a brown thrasher?

General appearance

The Brown Thrasher is an approximately 11 1/2 inch (29 cm) bird, with a rufous-brown color above and a striped pattern below. It is notable for its long tail, yellow eyes, and a size comparative to a crow or robin. Its wings are broadly shaped with a long, rounded, wedge-shaped tail.

Male vs female

In the Brown Thrasher species, sexual dimorphism is not significant. Both males and females share similar physical traits and coloration, making it a challenge to differentiate them visually. They are both rufous-brown above and have black stripes.

Juvenile

As with many bird species, juvenile Brown Thrashers are similar to adults but have some differences. They may have a more muted or less defined coloration and patterning compared to adults, but they will develop the distinct adult plumage as they mature.

Size

9.3 - 12.0 in/2.2 - 3.1 oz

Habitat

Primary habitat

The brown thrasher typically inhabits areas with dense low growth like thickets, shrubbery and brush around the edges of deciduous or mixed woods, swamps, and open pine woods.

Additional range

It also occupies suburban areas with many shrubs and hedges in addition to similar habitats during the winter, which may include environments with dense brush.

Range Map

What do brown thrashers like to eat?

Natural diet

The brown thrasher's diet is varied, with a significant portion consisting of insects, including beetles, caterpillars, true bugs, grasshoppers, and cicadas. It also consumes spiders, sowbugs, earthworms, snails, crayfish, and occasionally lizards and frogs. In addition to its animal-based diet, berries and small fruits are important, especially in the fall and winter. It also eats many nuts and seeds, with a particular fondness for acorns.

Bird feeders

The brown thrasher may visit bird feeders, although it is not a primary feeder visitor. When it does, it is likely to be attracted to fruit, seeds, and nuts offered in the feeders. Providing a variety of such foods might entice the brown thrasher to visit those locations.

What does a brown thrasher sound like?

The Brown Thrasher produces a mixture of complex musical phrases, each typically repeated twice. Its vocalizations include sharp smacks named PatternComplex and diverge into Falling, Rising, and Undulating calls. The bird's versatile call types encompass a range of sounds from chirps and chips to flutes, trills, and whistles. Its songs showcase ranges, pitch shifts, and various rhythmic patterns, making it a unique songbird.

Song

Audio by Jonathon Jongsma

/ CC BY-SA 3.0

Song

Audio by Jonathon Jongsma

/ CC BY-SA 4.0

Song

Audio by Jonathon Jongsma

/ CC BY-SA 3.0

Song

Audio by Jonathon Jongsma

/ CC BY-SA 3.0

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Long-Billed Thrasher

Toxostoma longirostre

How to recognise a long-billed thrasher?

General appearance

The Long-billed thrasher has a body size of approximately 11 1/2" (29 cm), similar to the size of a Crow or a Robin. It has a broad-wing shape with long, rounded, wedge-shaped tail. The species is noted for its more grayish face compared to the Brown Thrasher, along with brighter orange eyes and slightly longer and curved bill. Its coloration features black, brown, gray, orange, red, and white.

Male vs female

There is no significant sexual dimorphism in the Long-billed thrasher. Both males and females share the same general appearance regarding size, coloration, and physical traits such as the broad wings, long bill, rounded and wedge-shaped tail.

Juvenile

Juvenile Long-billed thrashers are similar to adults in general appearance, but they may have a less intense coloration compared to adults. The gray on the face, the orange of the eyes, and the colors on the body might not be as bright as in adults. With age, they develop the definitive adult plumage and the distinct bright orange eye color.

Size

9.8 - 10.6 in/2.2 - 2.4 oz

Habitat

Primary habitat

The long-billed thrasher primarily resides in woodlands with dense, brushy undergrowth of hackberry, acacia, and ebony trees, especially near water sources, and in thickets of mesquite and other thorny shrubs.

Additional range

Apart from Texas, the bird occupies various kinds of woodland and semi-open areas in Mexico.

Range Map

What do long-billed thrashers like to eat?

Natural diet

The long-billed thrasher primarily feeds on a variety of insects and berries. Its diet closely resembles that of the Brown Thrasher. Common insects in its diet include beetles, ants, true bugs, moths, grasshoppers, and antlions, along with spiders and centipedes. It likely also consumes small vertebrates such as frogs and lizards. In addition to animal prey, the thrasher eats many types of berries and wild fruits, and probably some seeds.

Bird feeders

There is no specific information about the long-billed thrasher's consumption of food from bird feeders. However, they might occasionally visit feeders that offer fruits or insects, aligning with their natural diet preferences.

What does a long-billed thrasher sound like?

The long-billed thrasher's vocalizations are quite varied, consisting of a series of paired phrases akin to the songs of a Brown Thrasher. Its key calls are characterized by a low 'chuck'. This bird possesses a unique Falling, Rising, and Undulating call pattern. The call types it employs are predominantly a Buzz, Chirp/Chip, Trill, and Whistle. Therefore, its vocal repertoire is diverse, complex, and distinctly melodious.

Call

Audio by Paul Marvin

/ CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

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Brown Thrasher

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Long-Billed Thrasher

Brown Thrasher

Toxostoma rufum

Also known as: Brown Thrush

General appearance

The Brown Thrasher is an approximately 11 1/2 inch (29 cm) bird, with a rufous-brown color above and a striped pattern below. It is notable for its long tail, yellow eyes, and a size comparative to a crow or robin. Its wings are broadly shaped with a long, rounded, wedge-shaped tail.

Male vs female

In the Brown Thrasher species, sexual dimorphism is not significant. Both males and females share similar physical traits and coloration, making it a challenge to differentiate them visually. They are both rufous-brown above and have black stripes.

Juvenile

As with many bird species, juvenile Brown Thrashers are similar to adults but have some differences. They may have a more muted or less defined coloration and patterning compared to adults, but they will develop the distinct adult plumage as they mature.

Size

9.3 - 12.0 in/2.2 - 3.1 oz

There's more to learn about Brown Thrasher

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Long-Billed Thrasher

Toxostoma longirostre

General appearance

The Long-billed thrasher has a body size of approximately 11 1/2" (29 cm), similar to the size of a Crow or a Robin. It has a broad-wing shape with long, rounded, wedge-shaped tail. The species is noted for its more grayish face compared to the Brown Thrasher, along with brighter orange eyes and slightly longer and curved bill. Its coloration features black, brown, gray, orange, red, and white.

Male vs female

There is no significant sexual dimorphism in the Long-billed thrasher. Both males and females share the same general appearance regarding size, coloration, and physical traits such as the broad wings, long bill, rounded and wedge-shaped tail.

Juvenile

Juvenile Long-billed thrashers are similar to adults in general appearance, but they may have a less intense coloration compared to adults. The gray on the face, the orange of the eyes, and the colors on the body might not be as bright as in adults. With age, they develop the definitive adult plumage and the distinct bright orange eye color.

Size

9.8 - 10.6 in/2.2 - 2.4 oz

There's more to learn about Long-Billed Thrasher

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How to tell the Brown Thrasher from the Long-Billed Thrasher

Visual differences

The Brown Thrasher and Long-Billed Thrasher both measure approximately 11.5 inches in length, akin to a crow or robin. Visually, the Brown Thrasher features a rufous-brown upper body and yellow eyes, while the Long-Billed Thrasher exhibits a more grayish face, brighter orange eyes, and a slightly longer, curved bill. Both have black streaks but differ in facial coloration. The Long-Billed's bill is more distinctively curved compared to the Brown Thrasher's straighter profile.

Key differences and behavior

Brown Thrashers and Long-Billed Thrashers show unique behavioral traits. Brown Thrashers are known for their impressive vocal repertoire, boasting over 1,100 songs, and are highly territorial, often aggressively defending their area. In contrast, Long-Billed Thrashers, while possessing complex songs, do not mimic and are more focused on maintaining strong pair bonds, sometimes remaining monogamous year-round. Both species forage by thrashing the ground but inhabit different environments; Brown Thrashers favor dense undergrowth and suburban areas, while Long-Billed Thrashers prefer brushy woodland near water, such as mesquite and acacia. In nesting, Brown Thrashers build nests 2-7 feet above ground in shrubs, whereas Long-Billed Thrashers select dense, thorny vegetation 4-10 feet high for better concealment. Both share similar diets, primarily consuming insects and berries, but only Brown Thrashers are noted for visits to bird feeders.

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Brown Thrasher or Long-Billed Thrasher?

Brown Thrasher

How to recognise a brown thrasher?

Habitat

What do brown thrashers like to eat?

What does a brown thrasher sound like?

Song

Song

Song

Song

There's more to learn about Brown Thrasher

Long-Billed Thrasher

How to recognise a long-billed thrasher?

Habitat

What do long-billed thrashers like to eat?

What does a long-billed thrasher sound like?

Call

There's more to learn about Long-Billed Thrasher

Brown Thrasher

There's more to learn about Brown Thrasher

Long-Billed Thrasher

There's more to learn about Long-Billed Thrasher

How to tell the Brown Thrasher from the Long-Billed Thrasher

Visual differences

Key differences and behavior

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