Vermont Rare Bird Reports 2021

Overcast, with a few sprinkles. Temperature ~63 degrees F.

Nikon Monarch 5 8x42 binoculars.

Very familiar with all breeding thrush species in Vermont including Bicknell's, from 30 years of intense birding in this state. Quite familiar with Gray-cheeked Thrush from birding trips to the Midwest during spring migration, where this species passes through in large numbers.

Trail surface, trailside brush and grass, and thick forest understory near trail. There seemed to be a thrush migration event in progress since I saw this bird in the same general area with 2 Swainson's Thrushes and 2-3 Hermit Thrushes. Also along the trail in the same area were numerous White-throated Sparrows and Song Sparrows.

Standing or hopping on the trail surface or adjacent grass. Short flights into and out of the brush and forest understory, always on the east side of the trail between the trail and La Platte Creek marsh. Occasionally eating small berries, species unknown to me. The bird did not seem to react to me. (I was holding my distance and trying not to make any moves or noise.). The bird did fly into the woods for a couple of minutes when a jogger came by, but I found it again in the understory. While in the woods. it spent most of its time on the ground or hopping from one low branch to another, never more than 3 ft above the ground.

None observed.

Walking south along the Ti-Haul trail, just past the large, fenced pasture on the west side, I spotted this thrush as it flew out of some brush on the left and landed on the trail about 20 ft in front of me. I watched the bird though binoculars off and on for 8-10 minutes at ranges of 20-40 ft, as it made forays into the brush or understory near the trail, reacted to a jogger, and occasionally came back out onto the trail surface or adjacent grass. Lighting conditions were excellent - diffuse light from overcast sky, no backlighting.

My first impression, which held up with further observation, was that this bird seemed relatively large and elongated in shape compared to a Hermit Thrush, for example. Contributing to this impression, the bird had a relatively long tail for its body size, and it was relatively long-winged as evidenced by very long primary projection.

All colors and markings were muted on this thrush, including on its head. The face and sides of the neck were extensively gray, not brown. The color was slightly paler around the eye, but there was no distinct face pattern (no eyering or spectacles effect). There were no bright buffy regions on the face or sides of neck as one would see in the "Olive-backed" form of Swainson's Thrush. The throat was whitish-gray and showed a thin, dark malar stripe. The crown and nape were a cold grayish-brown color that continued onto the back.

The legs and feet were pale pink in color, and the length seemed typical for a thrush of this genus. The bill appeared relatively short and stout proportional to body size, as compared to a Hermit Thrush for example. The bill was dark at the tip and paler at the base.

The upper back was a plain, cold grayish brown color, unmarked by any streaks, continuous with the same color on the nape and crown.

The uncolorful trend of cold grayish brown continued onto the lower back and rump.

The folded wings were grayish brown in color and unmarked - no warm brown or reddish colors, no pale feather edges or wingbars. Most notably, the folded wings had very long primary projection beyond the secondaries. The primary projection was much longer than what I observed on a nearby Hermit Thrush a few minutes later. This suggestion of long winged-ness was confirmed by the few brief views that I had of the bird in flight. In flight the bird appeared proportionately long-winged, slender-bodied, and uniformly grayish brown above.

The breast was heavily marked with dark brown spots on pale grayish tan background, again lacking any warm buffy tones. The spotting pattern continued with fading spots still visible on the upper ~1/2 of the belly. The flanks had a light olive-y wash, but the undertail coverts were white.

The tail appeared relatively long, which is noteworthy since the bird's long primary projection would tend to make the tail seem shorter. The tail was a similar grayish-brown color as the rest of the upperparts. There was no hint of warmer brown or reddish color in the tail.

Hermit Thrush, Swainson's Thrush (Olive-backed and Russet-backed), Veery, and Wood Thrush were easily eliminated by combinations of field marks. The important distinction is with Bicknell's Thrush, a very similar species that was split from Gray-cheeked not that long ago. Understanding that there is much overlap with Bicknell's Thrush, I would place this bird solidly on the Gray-cheeked end of the spectrum based on the lack of reddish color in the tail, the extensive gray on the face and sides of neck, the very long primary projection, the impression of greater size and more elongated shape, and the generally muted, relatively cold coloration of the bird overall. None of these marks are consistent with a "typical" Bicknell's.

It was not possible to determine the age or sex of the bird. I prepared this report of a Gray-cheeked Thrush based on notes that I took during and immediately after the observation, and after reflecting on my previous field experiences with Gray-cheeked and Bicknells' Thrushes, plus revisiting some of the literature about these two species and the split.