California
Thrasher, Toxostoma redivivum
Although this bird is fairly nondescript, it is one of my favorite birds. It has the most charming personality, and is captivating to watch. The California Thrasher has a beautiful song which in the spring it can be heard throughout the chaparral in California. And of course no one can forget that beak. It looks like a hay thrasher, hence the name.
Range of the California thrasher
The California Thrasher is found throughout California in the chaparral plant communities.
Diet
of the California Thrasher
The California thrasher has quite an adaptation for feeding. If you can't spot it, you need glasses. The beak of the thrasher is long and curved and excellent for digging around in the leaf litter for food.
The California thrasher eats insects, spiders and other invertebrates it finds in the mulch. They also eat berries, fruits, acorns and seeds. In our garden one of their favorite plants is the golden current. It is covered with small red berries that turn black when they have ripened. The branches droop down low to the ground and the thrasher will pluck them off. They also love Toyon, Heteromeles arbutifolia . This is a tall evergreen shrub with holly like berries.
The
California Thrasher will also use the bird
dish.
Nesting habitats used by the California thrasher
The California thrasher likes to nest in dense shrubbery.
Plant communities used by the California thrasher
The California thrasher prefers chaparral but will also use neighboring riparian or oak woodland habitats.
Migration
of the California thrasher
The California Thrasher does not migrate.
Niche filled by the California thrasher
The California Thrasher is quite adept at filtering through the leaf litter.
How to attract the California thrasher to your garden
The
California Thrasher likes leaf litter and berries. It does not
like cats for obvious reasons. This bird spends most of its time
on or near the ground, making it very susceptible to cats. Golden
Current is an excellent choice if you want to attract
thrashers. It forms a small and attractive thicket. It is covered
with yellow flowers in the spring which are utilized by many
insects as well as hummingbirds. Later, in spring, that mass of
flowers turns to a mass of berries. These berries are not only
edible but quite tasty. The California thrasher thinks so to. They
are also fond of Toyon
Berries. Toyon is a large evergreen shrub with bright red berries
around Christmas time. Mahonia
nevinii is also very popular with the California Thrasher.
This is a prickly evergreen shrub with gray foliage, showy yellow
flowers, and reddish-orange berries.