Field Guide
Spotted Palm Thrush
Cichladusa guttata Swahili: Kuruwiji
- Type
- Bird
- Daily Rhythm
- Diurnal
- Diet
- Omnivorous
- Conservation Status
- Lower risk
- Size
- 6.5 in (17 cm) long
The spotted palm thrush is also known as the spotted morning thrush because of its joyful habit of hailing the dawn with a fluting song. These thrushes sing all day long and burst into encores on nights when the moon is high.
Spotted palm thrushes sing a series of sweet—and often loud—variable calls.
Spotted palm thrushes spend their days foraging on the forest floor, rummaging through leaf litter, or prowling for food in thickets.
These thrushes feed on insects and plant parts.
Spotted palm thrushes build nests in palm trees. Typically, the female lays one to four eggs, which she incubates. Thrush chicks hatch in about 11 days.
Kenya’s spotted palm thrushes are found in wide swaths of thickets, gullies, and dry riverbeds at elevations below 5,250 feet (1,600 m).
Spotted palm thrushes are found in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, east to Tanzania, Kenya, and Uganda, and north to Sudan, Ethiopia, and Somalia, They prefer dry forests and savanna or shrub land.
