Bird Guide

Scaly Thrush vs White's Thrush

Scaly Thrush (Zoothera dauma)

Scaly Thrush

Zoothera dauma

Medium134 gForest

The sexes are similar, 27–31 cm long, with black scaling on a paler white or yellowish background. The most striking identification feature in flight is the black band on the white underwings, a feature shared with most other species in the genus Zoothera, and also Siberian thrush in the genus Geokichla. The male has a song which is a loud, far-carrying mechanical whistle, with 5-10 second pauses between each one second long phrase twee...tuuu....tuuu....tuuu.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Sonogram of the Scaly Thrush
Recorded by Untung Sarmawi · Call · Ijen, Java, Indonesia · CC BY 4.0
Photo: Guy Babineau · CC BY 4.0
White's Thrush (Zoothera aurea)

White's Thrush

Zoothera aurea

Medium134 gForest

The sexes are similar, 27–31 cm long, with black scaling on a paler white or yellowish background. The most striking identification feature in flight is the black band on the white underwings, a feature shared with Siberian thrush. The male has a song which is a loud, far-carrying mechanical whistle, with 5–10 second pauses between each one second long phrase twee...tuuu....tuuu....tuuu. It was previously considered a subspecies of the scaly thrush.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: renshuchu · CC0

Where you might meet both

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Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Scaly Thrush and White's Thrush.