Bird of the Week 7/20 - 7/24

This week’s bird is the: Sage Thrasher

1. This bird was originally called the “Mountain Mockingbird” – a name that isn’t too far off. The Sage Thrasher is in the Mimidae family, which includes both thrashers and mockingbirds (plus two catbirds).

2. The Sage Thrasher loves a desert. It migrates up from the Southwest U.S. to the Northwest during the summer months, but sticks to the interior of the continent where sagebrush is dominant.

3. Like other thrashers and many desert birds, this species spends a lot of time running around on the ground. While it’s down there, this bird searches for insects – its primary food source.

4. This bird doesn’t nest far from the ground either. In most cases, this bird places its nests about one foot off the ground, usually under dense vegetation (i.e. sagebrush). Having more vegetation above both shades the nest (it gets hot in the desert, and you don’t want your eggs to be cooked) and blocks the view from would-be predators.

5. The biggest threat to this species is habitat loss. Conversion of sagebrush habitats to agricultural conversion, urbanization, etc. can lead to big declines in this species. For this reason, this bird is red-listed by British Columbia and identified as a “Species of Greatest Conservation Need” by Washington State.

Have a great week!