Thrashing About.

I apologize for the poor quality of these photos, but they were they best that I could capture in such a short time and I have not posted about this bird.

This brown thrasher, sometimes incorrectly called the brown thrush, is fairly common throughout the eastern part of the U.S. and is the state bird of Georgia and the official name of Atlanta’s former National Hockey League team, the Atlanta Thrashers.   I sometimes confuse him with the wood thrush as they are similar in behavior, size and color.  But my brown thrasher has yellow eyes which is the primary clue.  My thrasher's bill is larger and curved.  He is sometimes referred to as the mockingbird of the south and they do belong to the mockingbird family.  They usually build their nests high in evergreen trees but also nest in hedgerows when available.  

He thrashes about in the woods and sounds like a squirrel tossing leaves. These birds are usually seen in the woods throwing up leaves and detritus in search of insects and berries...not usually seen on feeders as mine is in the photo above!  I must say that I have not heard him sing or perhaps recognized his song in my woods, but poems have been written about his many songs.  According to Wikipedia "The male Brown Thrasher has the largest song repertoire of any North American bird, which has been documented at least over 1,100."

These photos are rare as I see him only once or twice a year.