California Thrasher
Toxostoma redivivum
Despite being birds, they are reluctant flyers and prefer to run through dense vegetation to escape predators.
- Scientific name
- Toxostoma redivivum
- Taxonomy
- Animalia › Chordata › Aves › Passeriformes › Mimidae › Toxostoma
- IUCN Red List status
- Least Concern
- Population trend
- stable
- Biome
- grassland
- Habitat
- Chaparral, coastal sage scrub, and oak woodlands with dense undergrowth.
- Diet
- Invertebrates like beetles and spiders, supplemented by berries and seeds.
- Range
- California, USA, Baja California, Mexico
- Size
- 28-32 cm (11-12.5 in) in length
- Lifespan
- 5-9 years
- Active
- diurnal
- Threats
- Habitat loss from urban development and increased frequency of high-intensity wildfires.
- Safe to approach?
- Harmless and secretive. Maintain a respectful distance of 10-15 feet to observe their unique ground-foraging behavior. If they retreat into brush, do not pursue them.
The California thrasher ( Toxostoma redivivum ) is a large thrasher found primarily in chaparral habitat in California and Baja California. Similar to the crissal and Le Conte's thrashers in habit, the California thrasher is the only species of Toxostoma throughout most of its limited range. Like most thrashers, it rarely flies in the open, preferring to keep hidden in dense brush. Therefore, while it is common throughout much of its range, it is rarely seen.
Photo: Pat Farris, CC-BY, via iNaturalist
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