Rufous-collared Robin

The rufous-collared thrush is 23 to 25.5 cm (9.1 to 10 in) long; three individuals weighed 70 to 74 g (2.5 to 2.6 oz). The species is sexually dimorphic. Adult males have a mostly black head with a whitish chin and a throat streaked with black and cinnamon-rufous. They have a wide collar of cinnamon-rufous or chestnut-rufous on the nape and sides of the neck that in front extends to include the breast. Their flanks, belly, and undertail coverts are black. Adult females have a pattern similar to the male's but with lighter and duller colors. Their crown is brownish with darker streaks. The rest of their head is mostly grayish brown with a dusky-streaked dull white to dull cinnamon chin and throat. Their upperparts are grayish brown with gray feather edges on the back and rump. Their collar and breast are buffy cinnamon or tawny. Their flanks, belly, and undertail coverts are buffy grayish with white streaks on the coverts. Juveniles have brown upperparts. Their underparts are brownish buff with black or dusky spots. Immature males are similar to adult females with a brighter collar and breast and often a cinnamon wash on the belly. Immature females are like adults but with a less contrasting collar and dusky grayish underparts with little or no cinnamon. …

The rufous-collared thrush has a disjunct distribution. One population is in the central part of the southern Mexican state of Chiapas. Another extends from southern Chiapas across most of southern Guatemala. A third extends across south-central Honduras and the last is in western El Salvador. The rufous-collared thrush inhabits primary montane evergreen forest, pine-oak forest, and secondary forest in the subtropical and lower temperate zones. It also occurs in grassy clearings, villages, and urban areas. In elevation it ranges between 1,500 and 3,300 m (4,900 and 10,800 ft).

The rufous-collared thrush's diet has not been studied but is assumed to be similar that of the American robin, which is mostly insects with some small fruits. It generally forages alone or with its mate but outside the breeding season may gather in small flocks. It feeds at all levels of the forest from the ground to the canopy.