Brown Thrasher

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Brown Thrasher in the UK

Brown Thrasher has one accepted British record. A bird was found at Durlston Head, near Swanage in Dorset, on 18 November 1966 and stayed until 5 February 1967. It was photographed and accepted by the national rarities committee, and the species is on the British List in Category A. There has been no other record in the sixty years since. It is a short-distance migrant in eastern North America, which makes an unaided Atlantic crossing unlikely, and a ride on a ship bound for Southampton has been suggested.

Where and when to see a Brown Thrasher

With one record there is no pattern. That bird spent the winter in dense coastal scrub on a south coast headland, which is the kind of cover a thrasher uses at home. Late autumn after strong westerlies, at a well-watched headland or island with thick bramble and blackthorn, is the best guess for a second. Any future bird would be major news and would be reported nationally within minutes.

Habitat, diet and field notes

Habitat: Scrub (very rare vagrant).
Diet: Insects.
Field note: Rufous above; long tail.

How to identify a Brown Thrasher

Bigger than a Song Thrush, with a long tail that makes up nearly half its length. Upperparts are bright rufous. The wing has two white bars. Underparts are whitish with heavy dark streaks, not round spots, on the breast and flanks. The eye is yellow and the bill long and slightly downcurved. It keeps low in thick cover and feeds on the ground, sweeping leaf litter aside with its bill.

Call and song

The call is a hard, smacking "tchak", like a loud kiss. The song is a long series of rich phrases, each given twice, but a lone vagrant in a British winter is unlikely to sing. Heard something you cannot place? Bird Hear identifies UK birds from a 10 second recording, free in your browser.

Confusion species

• Song Thrush: Song Thrush is smaller and short-tailed, olive-brown above with round spots below and a dark eye.
• Mistle Thrush: Mistle Thrush is grey-brown and upright with bold round spots and feeds in the open, not in scrub.
• Grey Catbird: Grey Catbird, a relative that is also a rare vagrant, is plain slate grey with a black cap and no streaks.

Related guide Rare birds in the UK.

Conservation status and Birdedex points

In the Birdedex the Brown Thrasher is a Legendary tier bird, worth +50 points when you log one. It is not on the Red or Amber lists in Birds of Conservation Concern 5.

Recent UK sightings

Similar birds

• Brown FlycatcherLegendary · Coastal scrub (very rare vagrant)
• Black-faced BuntingLegendary · Coastal scrub (very rare vagrant)
• Grey CatbirdLegendary · Dense scrub (very rare vagrant)
• Siberian RubythroatEpic · Coastal scrub (very rare vagrant)
• Asian Brown FlycatcherLegendary · Coastal scrub (very rare)
• Cream-coloured CourserLegendary · Coastal dunes (very rare vagrant)

Brown Thrasher: quick answers

Has a Brown Thrasher ever been seen in the UK?

Yes, once. A single bird wintered at Durlston Head in Dorset from 18 November 1966 to 5 February 1967, a stay of eleven weeks. It was photographed, and no other has been recorded since.

What does a Brown Thrasher eat?

It is an omnivore. It digs through leaf litter for beetles, grubs and other invertebrates, and takes berries, fruit, seeds and acorns in autumn and winter. The name comes from the way it thrashes its bill from side to side through dead leaves.

What habitat does Brown Thrasher live in?

Dense, low cover. In the eastern and central United States and southern Canada it nests in hedgerows, thickets, woodland edges and overgrown gardens. Northern birds move to the southern states for the winter.

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