Birds in Nature - images of wild birds by Richard Ditch

Subject: Bendire's Thrasher (Toxostoma bendirei)
Place: South Mountain Park, Phoenix, AZ, USA
Date: March 2002
Equipment: Nikon N90S, Nikkor AF-S 300/2.8 & TC20E (= 600/5.6), car window
Film: Fujichrome Sensia 100
Exposure: aperture priority matrix metered
Scan: Minolta Dimage, 80% of frame

Commentary: A noted local birder recently commented that the best place to see Bendire's Thrashers is near the horse stables at the entrance to South Mountain Park. Living on the other side of South Mountain we have had occasional visits from Bendire's to our backyard, but I thought I'd see about the birds on the north side.

Bendire's are birds of the desert, and often overlooked as they closely resemble the more common Curve-billed Thrasher. Compared to the Curve-billed Thrasher, Bendire's has a smaller straighter bill with a pale base to the lower mandible, and more distinct arrowhead shaped spots on the breast. But even with lots of experience with these birds I find telling them apart can be an under appreciated challenge.