Bird Guide

Chilean Mockingbird vs Tropical Mockingbird

Chilean Mockingbird (Mimus thenca)

Chilean Mockingbird

Mimus thenca

Medium66 gShrubland

The Chilean mockingbird is 28 to 29 cm (11.0 to 11.4 in) long and weighs 66 g (2.3 oz). The male is somewhat larger than the female. Adults have a wide whitish supercilium. Their crown, neck, and back are brownish gray with darker streaks and their rump browner. The wings and tail are blackish. The wings show two narrow bars when folded. The outermost tail feathers have white edges and most of the others have white tips. The throat is whitish, the chest brownish gray, the belly dirty white, and the flanks buffy with blackish streaks. Voice: The Chilean mockingbird sings year round, "a series of sweet, variable notes and phrases". It is an "excellent mimic of other bird species".

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: nebrooks · CC BY 4.0
Tropical Mockingbird (Mimus gilvus)

Tropical Mockingbird

Mimus gilvus

Small52 gShrubland

Adult tropical mockingbirds are 23 to 25.5 cm (9.1 to 10.0 in) long. The mean weights of various subspecies vary greatly. Adults of the nominate subspecies are gray on the head and upper parts and have a whitish supercilium and a dark stripe through the eye. The underparts are off-white and the wings are blackish with two white wing bars and white edges to the flight feathers. They have a long dark tail with white feather tips, a slim black bill with a slight downward curve and long dark legs. Juveniles are browner and their chest and flanks have dusky streaks. Voice: The tropical mockingbird's song is "a varied and long-continued sequence of diverse mellow to harsh notes, trills, with considerable repetition of phrases". It will often sing through the night. It apparently rarely mimics other species. Its calls include "a resonant 'pree-ew'" and "a harsh 'chick' or 'chek'".

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Sonogram of the Tropical Mockingbird
Recorded by JUAN ANTONIO ALONSO DE JUAN · Song · Pacho, Cundinamarca, Colombia · CC BY 4.0
Photo: datadan · CC BY 4.0

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Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Chilean Mockingbird and Tropical Mockingbird.