Curve-billed Thrasher

The Curve-billed Thrasher is one of the most familiar and conspicuous birds of the desert Southwest, a bold, noisy resident that thrives in the cactus-studded landscapes of Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas. Grayish-brown overall with only faint breast spotting, its most distinctive feature is a long, strongly downcurved bill used for probing soil and cactus for food.

The species is a common, year-round backyard bird across much of its range, readily nesting in cholla and other spiny cacti, and it is often heard before it is seen thanks to its loud, whistled call notes.

Key field marks

• Grayish-brown overall plumage
• Long, strongly downcurved black bill
• Bright orange-red eyes
• Faint, diffuse breast spotting
• White wing bars and white tips on the outer tail feathers

Similar species

Bendire's Thrasher is very similar but has a shorter, straighter bill, paler yellowish eyes, and more distinct, arrowhead-shaped breast spots. Crissal Thrasher lacks breast streaking entirely and shows a chestnut undertail patch. Curve-billed's combination of orange-red eyes and long curved bill with faint spotting is diagnostic in most of its range.

Habitat

Curve-billed Thrashers favor desert scrub, especially areas with abundant cholla and other cacti, as well as suburban yards and parks with cactus landscaping within their range.

Range

The species is a year-round resident across the Sonoran and Chihuahuan Desert regions of the southwestern United States, including Arizona, New Mexico, and Texas, and ranges south through much of Mexico.

Migration

Curve-billed Thrashers are non-migratory, remaining on their desert territories throughout the year.

Behavior

Curve-billed Thrashers forage mainly on the ground, using their curved bills to dig and flip through soil and leaf litter for insects, and also eat cactus fruit and other berries; they are bold and often approach human dwellings and feeders.

Voice

The call is a loud, sharp, whistled "whit-wheet," often the first clue to the bird's presence; the song is a long, varied series of warbled phrases, richer and more musical than the call.

Nesting

Nests are built within the protective spines of cholla or other cactus, constructed as a bulky cup of twigs. Females lay 2-4 pale blue-green eggs, and the species may raise multiple broods in a season.