Bird
Bird
Yellow-legged Thrush
Platycichla flavipes
The Yellow-legged Thrush is a sleek, dark forest thrush of Trinidad, the male's glossy black plumage set off by a bright yellow bill, eye-ring, and legs, giving it a smart, well-defined appearance among the forest's more subtly coloured birds.
The Yellow-legged Thrush is a sleek, dark forest thrush of Trinidad, the male's glossy black plumage set off by a bright yellow bill, eye-ring, and legs, giving it a smart, well-defined appearance among the forest's more subtly coloured birds.
Identification
A medium-sized thrush around 20 cm long. The male is glossy black overall with a bright yellow bill, narrow yellow eye-ring, and yellow legs, a striking combination against the otherwise all-dark plumage. The female is dull grey-brown above and paler below, with duller yellowish-orange bill and legs, considerably less conspicuous than the male.
Ecology
The Yellow-legged Thrush feeds on fruit and insects, foraging both in the forest canopy and on the ground within forest interior, often singly or in pairs. It favours relatively undisturbed forest, generally at higher elevations within Trinidad's forested hills, and its clear, musical song is characteristic of montane and upper foothill forest.
Status in T&T
Found in forest, particularly at higher elevations in Trinidad's Northern Range. It is not threatened. It is protected under the Conservation of Wildlife Act and is not a game species.
Threats
- Loss of higher-elevation forest habitat
