Song thrush - Turdus philomelos

The Song Thrush can be seen year round, a telltale sign are broken snail shells around an 'anvil' type stone where the thrush has broken the shell to get out the snail on which it then feeds.

Habitat

Small woodlands, parks, gardens and hedgerows. They require trees and bushes with areas of open grassland and moist soil with a plentiful supply of invertebrate food.

Description

The Song Thrush has sandy brown upperparts and creamy underparts with obvious dark brown spots; its wings are chestnut coloured along with its tail that is quite short. It is a small upright bird at just 23cm in length. It is often confused with the Mistle Thrush, but can be told apart as it is browner than the Mistle Thrush with no white on the tail and has smaller spots on the stomach.

Biology

Earthworms form the main part of the Song Thrush’s diet although they do take a variety of food including fruit and snails. When the ground becomes too hard to find earthworms the Song Thrush will then take to snails and breaks their shells by hitting them on stones, these ‘anvils’ can be found in parks and gardens with the broken shells of snails around them. This behaviour is unique to the Song Thrush, but Blackbirds may be seen stealing the snails from a Song Thrush once the thrush has done the hard work of breaking into the shell.

Breeding starts in March and lasts until August and is triggered by the weather, during this time the Song Thrush can have up to three broods. Nests are built in low cover in trees and shrubs or on ledges where there is thick vegetation; they are built from twigs and grass and then lined with a mix made up of mud, rotten wood and leaves. All nest building is done by the female and may be used again for their next brood if it is still in good condition. There are up to five eggs in each brood and the chicks are mainly fed on worms, slugs and caterpillars. They leave the nest after nine days and are independent after another couple of weeks.

Threats

The numbers of the Song Thrush have declined dramatically since the 1970’s especially on farmland making it a Red List species. The reasons for its decline are thought to be due to changes in agricultural practices including the use of pesticides, loss of winter stubble and the removal of hedgerows; all of which have resulted in a loss of nesting and feeding sites.

Conservation

The Song Thrush is a UK and Wiltshire Biodiversity Action Plan (BAP) species. They are also protected under the Wildlife and Countryside Act (1981) making it an offence to intentionally kill or injure a Song Thrush; also it is an offence to intentionally damage or destroy its eggs, young or nest whilst it is still in use.