About This Species
The Gray Catbird is a charismatic, slate-gray songbird often found in dense shrubs, woodland edges, gardens, and overgrown hedgerows. Known for its expressive behavior and curious nature, it frequently moves low through tangles of vegetation, flashing its rusty undertail as it hops and flits about.
Fun Facts
- A voice with attitude: The Gray Catbird is known for its varied, rambling song and its signature mew call that sounds remarkably like a cat—giving the bird its distinctive name.
- Master mimic: Like its cousin the mockingbird, the catbird can imitate other birds and even mechanical sounds, weaving these mimicked notes into its complex song repertoire.
- Berry lover: Catbirds have a strong preference for fruit and berries, especially in late summer and fall, and are often drawn to gardens with elderberry, serviceberry, and dogwood.
- Rusty giveaway: The chestnut-colored undertail coverts are often the best field mark for identifying this otherwise uniformly gray bird, especially when it flicks its tail while moving through the underbrush.
- Bold and curious: Gray Catbirds are inquisitive and will often investigate disturbances, sometimes approaching birders closely and scolding intruders with their cat-like calls.
