Redwing
| Redwing | ||||||||||||
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Redwing ( Turdus iliacus ) |
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| Systematics | ||||||||||||
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| Scientific name | ||||||||||||
| Turdus iliacus | ||||||||||||
| Linnaeus , 1758 |
The Redwing ( Turdus iliacus ) is a bird art from the family of thrushes (Turdidae) that the order of the passerines belongs (Passeriformes). In Central Europe , the red thrush is the smallest representative of the real thrush.
description
Red thrushes reach a body length of 21 centimeters. Their wingspan is 33 to 34 centimeters and they weigh between 60 and 65 grams. There is no noticeable sexual dimorphism .
Red thrushes are similar to song thrushes , they are mostly brown in color and have a light, speckled underside. The belly is almost entirely white, but they have a shorter tail and a larger head. The undersides of the wings are colored rust-red, which is easy to see in flight, and you can still see the red on the flanks while sitting. The best distinguishing feature to the song thrushes, however, is the light stripe over the eyes .
Newly hatched red thrushes are colored dense beige on the head, back, shoulders and wings. Her throat is yellow, the beak ridges are yellowish white.
The call is a drawn out "Tsiiiep". This call can be heard especially during departure or as a nocturnal flight call. The call repertoire also includes rough checks and däck or duck sounds reminiscent of blackbirds . The singing is variable and usually consists of two parts, first a few fluting tones and then restless and rough chirping. The full Reviergesang can occasionally be heard in Central Europe in spring.
habitat
Red Thrushes breed in Scandinavia , Scotland and Siberia . They are migratory birds that overwinter in Central, but especially in Western and Southern Europe . In the Baltic States and on the coasts of Iceland and Norway , they are sometimes annual birds . For this reason, they can be observed in Central Europe especially during the migration periods in spring and autumn. They are then mainly in parks, loosened forest and bush landscapes and at the edges of forests and are often associated with other thrush species, which also feed on berries in the winter half-year. Occasionally individual birds also spend the summer in Central Europe.
The breeding areas of the red thrush are the conifer and birch forests in Scandinavia and Siberia, but also parks and open woodlands.
food
Red thrushes feed on invertebrates , insects and, in autumn and winter, mainly on berries .
Brood
The breeding season of the red thrush begins in the south of its range from late April to early May. In the far north of their range, they occasionally only start breeding in July. The red thrush breeds in loosened or young conifer, birch and alder forests as well as birch and willow thickets on the edge of the tundra. The nest is built at variable heights on the ground, in low bushes or in trees. It is often leaning against the trunk or on a strong side branch. As with all thrushes, the nest is a solid, hemispherical bowl. It is made of grass, fine rice, moss and lichen and occasionally also damp earth or mud. The actual nesting trough is padded with fine grass. Red Thrushes quickly give up their nests in the event of disturbances, but immediately start building a new one.
The clutch consists of four to five, less often two or up to eight eggs. These are spindle-shaped and have a smooth, shiny surface. They resemble blackbird eggs and, like these, have a light greenish-blue basic color with uniform red-brown speckles or a red-brown marbling. Only the female breeds. The young hatch after 11 to 13 days and leave the nest after nine to twelve days, although they are not yet fully fledged. They hide in the herb layer near the nest. Red Thrushes raise up to two broods per year.
literature
- Einhard Bezzel : birds. BLV Verlagsgesellschaft, Munich 1996, ISBN 3-405-14736-0 .
- Collin Harrison, Peter Castell: Fledglings, Eggs and Nests of Birds in Europe, North Africa and the Middle East. Aula Verlag, Wiebelsheim 2004, ISBN 3-89104-685-5 .
Web links
- Redwing. at: vogelwarte.ch
- Turdus iliacus in the endangered Red List species the IUCN 2008. Posted by: BirdLife International, 2008. Accessed January 31 of 2009.
- Videos, photos and sound recordings of Turdus iliacus in the Internet Bird Collection
- Javier Blasco-Zumeta, Gerd-Michael Heinze: Age and Gender Characteristics ( Memento from March 14, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) (PDF; 2.2 MB) (English)
- Feathers of the red thrush