Gray Catbird

(Dumetella carolinensis)

Conservation Status
Gray Catbird
Photo by Ramona Abrego
  IUCN Red List

LC - Least Concern

 
  NatureServe

N5B, N5N - Secure Breeding and Nonbreeding

SNRB - Unranked Breeding

 
  Minnesota

not listed

 
           
           
           
 
Description
 
 

Gray Catbird is a chunky, medium-sized, perching bird. They are present in Minnesota from May through mid-October. They winter in the southeastern United States, Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean. The oldest recorded lifespan is of a bird in captivity is 17 years and 10 months.

Adults are 8¼ to 9½ long, weigh .8 ounce to 2 ounces, and have a wingspan of 8¾ to 12.

The wings, back, chest, and belly are slate gray. The bird often displays a raised tail when perched. The tail feathers are slate gray or dark gray above, black with pale edges below. The undertail coverts are chestnut brown. The legs and feet are black.

The head is slate gray with a black crown and forehead. The bill is short, slender, and black. The eyes are black.

Males and females are alike in size and appearance. They can be distinguished only by behavior in Breeding season.

 
     
 

Size

 
 

8½ to 9in length

11 wingspan

 
     
 

Voice

 
   
 

The call is a descending, cat-like mew, not repeated.

 
     
   
 

The song is long and complex, consisting of a series of phrases, each phrase sung only once.

 
     
 

Similar Species

 
 

Gray Jay (Perisoreus canadensis) has a white forehead, cheek, and throat. It does not have a black crown or chestnut undertail coverts.

Northern Mockingbird (Mimus polyglottos) has a pale throat, chest, and belly. The wings are dark with two white wing bars. It does not have a black crown, black forehead, or chestnut undertail coverts.

Townsend’s Solitaire (Myadestes townsendi) has buffy wing patches and a white eye ring. It does not have a black crown, black forehead, or chestnut undertail coverts.

 
     
 
Habitat
 
 

Dense, deciduous, woodland thickets, forest edges

 
     
 
Ecology
 
 

Migration

 
 

 

 
     
 

Nesting

 
 

Gray Catbirds usually have two broods per season. Breeding begins soon after the adults reach the Breeding territory in April. The female builds a nest, sometimes with the male supplying materials, usually on a horizontal branch near the center of a dense shrub or small tree.

The female lays usually 3 or 4, but as few as 1 or as many as 5, turquoise-colored eggs. The eggs hatch after 12 to 14 days. The young leave the nest after 10 or 11 days.

 
     
 

Food

 
 

Fruit, seeds, insects, and other invertebrates.

 
     
 
Distribution
 
 

Occurrence

 
 

Common migrant and breeder

 
         
 

Maps

 
 

The Minnesota Ornithologists’ Union All Seasons Species Occurrence Map

 
         
 
Taxonomy
 
  Class Aves (birds)  
 

Order

Passeriformes (perching birds)  
 

Family

Mimidae (mockingbirds and thrashers)  
 

Genus

Dumetella (catbirds)  
       
 

Subordinate Taxa

 
 

 

 
       
 

Synonyms

 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
 
Visitor Photos
 
           
 

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Gregory Gilman

 
 

Catbird

 
    Gray Catbird      
 

Ramona Abrego

 
    Gray Catbird      
 

Margot Avey

 
 

It was in the marshy area.

 
    Gray Catbird      
 

Roger

 
 

Has a nest in my raspberries with blue eggs, next day chicks

 
    Gray Catbird      
 

Lynn Rubey

 
  A Gray Catbird foraging on the ground in The Big Stone National Wildlife Refuge, a rather secretive bird that the Chippewa Indians named "the bird that cries with grief" due to its raspy call. It will only nest in thick shrubs.   Gray Catbird  
 

Bill Reynolds

 
    Gray Catbird      
 

Tom Baker

 
    Gray Catbird   Gray Catbird  
           
    Gray Catbird      
           
 
MinnesotaSeasons.com Photos
 
    Gray Catbird      

 

Camera

     
 
Slideshows
 

Gray Catbird
Andy Reago & Chrissy McClarren

  Gray Catbird  

Gray Catbird
JMC Nature Photos

  Gray Catbird  

Gray Catbirds
jt893x

  Gray Catbirds  

Gray Catbird
Craig A. Mullenbach

  Gray Catbird  

 

slideshow

       
 
Visitor Videos
 
       
 

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Other Videos
 
  Catbird (Dumetella carolinensis) mating song
robiss88
 
   
 
About

Uploaded on May 19, 2011

Grey Catbird (Dumetella carolinensis) mating song in rose bush... 5-18-11...no video of bird, sorry...I had to hide the camera in the bush, & wait for the male to return.

 
  The Gray Catbird (Mimidae: Dumetella carolinensis)
Carl Barrentine
 
   
 
About

Uploaded on Dec 28, 2009

A brief but contemplative look at the Gray Catbird, which is an often heard but seldom seen avian species found in deciduous and riparian habitats throughout the upper midwest of the United States. Specimens shown here were photographed in North Dakota.

 
  Gray Catbirds (Dumetella carolinensis)
TheChannelOfAnimals
 
   
 
About

Published on May 14, 2013

In this video, two gray catbirds (Dumetella carolinensis) are shown hopping around branches in a small ravine. This video was recorded on May 11, 2013 in Guilford, Connecticut.

 
  Gray Catbird Mewing - June 25, 2013
Don Gagnon
 
   
 
About

Published on Jun 27, 2013

Gray Catbird (Dumetella carolinensis) Mewing, Yellow Trail, Emilie Ruecker Wildlife Refuge, Seapowet Avenue, Tiverton, Rhode Island, Tuesday afternoon, June 25, 2013, 5:14 PM - Canon PowerShot SX50 HS MVI_23490; 2:54 min.

 

 

Camcorder

 
 
Visitor Sightings
 
           
 

Report a sighting of this bird.

 
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Simply email us at info@MinnesotaSeasons.com.
Be sure to include a location.
 
  Jennifer
7/1/2023

Location: St Paul, Midway

Nesting pair appear to be in either my or my neighbor's backyard (raspberries, oak tree, vine/shrubs are all possible locations). They've been around for a while but today they were very noisy at my neighbor's cat in their yard so I finally looked up what they were.

 
  Kathybe
6/7/2021

Location: Plymouth MN

This bird hit my 2nd story window, and lay on the concrete below. I thought he would die, and it was 97 degrees, so put a bucket beside him to shade him. 4 hours later he is standing, which surprised me. I moved him with to shade behind my garage and make him a house out of a small box with both water and grape jelly inside. He did not seem afraid. He stays overnight in his box house. I check on him in the morning, and see his jelly is almost gone. I bring more jelly to his house, and he flies out and lands in my yard. Then flies away.

 
  Lemke
5/31/2021

Location: Forest Prairie Township, Central Minnesota

Had a pair hanging out in our yard this morning.

 
  Gregory Gilman
5/30/2020

Location: Rochester, MN

Catbird

Gray Catbird  
  Ramona Abrego

Location: Washington County

Gray Catbird  
  Margot Avey
7/30/2019

Location: Westwood Nature Center in St. Louis Park MN

It was in the marshy area.

Gray Catbird  
  Roger
7/12/2019

Location: Maplewood MN

Has a nest in my raspberries with blue eggs, next day chicks

Gray Catbird  
  kjtitan16
7/5/2019

Location: North Branch

Quite vocal, constantly calling from around our campsite

   
  Gavia Immer
5/27/2019

Location: eDuluth, MN; Hunter's Park Neighborhood

at suet feeder; potentially nesting in White Cedar Grove

   
  Lynn Rubey
5/23/2019

Location: Big Stone National Wildlife Refuge

A Gray Catbird foraging on the ground in The Big Stone National Wildlife Refuge, a rather secretive bird that the Chippewa Indians named "the bird that cries with grief" due to its raspy call. It will only nest in thick shrubs.

Gray Catbird  
  April
6/14/2018

Location: Eden Prairie

   
  Tom Baker
8/18/2012

Location: Purgatory Creek Park

Gray Catbird  
  Tom Baker
6/25/2012

Location: Purgatory Creek Park

Gray Catbird  
  Bill Reynolds
6/29/2013

Location: Pennington Co.

Gray Catbird  
           
 
MinnesotaSeasons.com Sightings
 
 

Afton State Park

Avon Hills Forest SNA, North Unit

Baker Park Reserve

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Blackhoof River WMA

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Bur Oak WMA

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Carver Park Reserve

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Chamberlain Woods SNA

Charles A. Lindbergh State Park

Cherry Grove Blind Valley SNA

Chimney Rock SNA

Clifton E. French Regional Park

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Cottonwood River Prairie SNA

Crow-Hassan Park Reserve

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Dodge Nature Center

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Falls Creek SNA

Felton Prairie SNA, Bicentennial Unit

Flandrau State Park

Forestville/Mystery Cave State Park

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Frontenac State Park

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Hyland Lake Park Reserve

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Iron Horse Prairie SNA

Jensen Memorial WMA

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John Peter Hoffman Spring Brook Valley WMA

Kasota Prairie

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Keller Regional Park

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Miller Prairie, East Unit

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Monson Lake State Park

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Murphy-Hanrehan Park Reserve

Myre-Big Island State Park

Nerstrand Big Woods State Park

Northern Tallgrass Prairie NWR, Hoffman Unit

Northern Tallgrass Prairie NWR, Rengstorf Unit

Old Mill State Park

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P.N. and G.M. Nelson Wildlife Sanctuary

Pembina Trail Preserve SNA, Pembina Trail Unit

Pin Oak Prairie SNA

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Prairie Bush Clover SNA

Prairie Creek WMA, Koester Prairie Unit

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Rice Lake Savanna SNA

Rice Lake State Park

Ritter Farm Park

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Robert Ney Memorial Park Reserve

St. Croix Savanna SNA

St. Croix State Park

Sakatah Lake State Park

Sand Prairie Wildlife Management and Environmental Education Area

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Savanna Portage State Park

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Seven Mile Creek County Park

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Tiedemann WMA

Tribute WMA

Twin Valley Prairie Addition

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Westwood Hills Nature Center

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Wild Indigo SNA

Wild River State Park

William O’Brien State Park

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Woodland Trails Park

 

 

 

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