Birding at MOSI Outside: Gray Catbird

In much of the country, the Gray Catbird is a summer bird, seen from about May to October. In the Southeast,  the Gray Catbird makes its appearance in winter when it migrates south to escape the cold weather. They range during the winter months from the Gulf Coast down through Central America, all the way to Panama. (See a range map here.)

The Gray Catbird is mostly gray in color and can easily be confused with the Northern Mockingbird, but it has a few features that make it easier to identify. It has a black cap on the top of its head, which the mockingbird does not. It also has a patch of rusty red feathers under its tail, which mark it obviously as a catbird if you’re lucky enough to get a glimpse of them.

 Gray Catbirds love insects and fruit, and are rarely seen at seed feeders.Instead, they lurk in the thick shrubs - their scientific name, Dumetella carolinensis, roughly translates to “small bird of the thickets, found in the Carolinas”, since early explorers who named the bird hadn't ventured a whole lot further into the continent just yet. Like mockingbirds, they are wonderful mimics, including in their repertoire just about anything they hear (including car alarms!). One helpful way to distinguish their songs from those of other mimics is that Gray Catbirds generally repeat a phrase only once in a sequence of song, while mockingbirds repeat phrases several times and other mimics usually at least twice. (Hear Catbird songs and calls here.)

Rather than perched in the tree tops like mockingbirds, Gray Catbirds are more common in the Back Woods Nature Preserve at MOSI. They sometimes venture in the gardens to feast on berries in the bushes; look for them here from November to March.