Gray-cheeked Thrush Catharus minimus
Flight call description A high, raspy, downward-arched "vheer".
Fig.1. Manitoba July 4, 1954 (A. A. Allen and P.P. Kellogg).
Perched bird.
Examples Nocturnal
Diurnal calling sequence:
1. Manitoba July 4, 1954 (A.A. Allen and P.P. Kellogg). Perched bird on breeding grounds. Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds catalogue no.4202.
Similar species See Bicknell's Thrush, Veery, and thrush-like calls.
Behavior Primarily a nocturnal migrant. Diurnal onward migration occurs in spring in the Gulf coast region and presumably in the far northern latitudes. Rarely seen in redetermined migration, as this behavior apparently occurs to some degree prior to sunrise, coinciding with a characteristic early-dawn period of increased nocturnal flight call activity. Flight calls are given in nocturnal migration and also in diurnal onward migration. Perched birds may give flight calls at any time during the day, but they do so particularly around dawn and dusk.
Discussion See Evans (1994) and Ball (1952).