English        -       Rufous-bellied thrush 

Portuguese -       Sabiá-laranjeira 

Latin            -       Turdus rufiventris 

The rufous-bellied thrush is a songbird of the thrush family. (Turdidae) It has been the state bird of São Paulo since 1966, and the national bird of Brazil since 2002. 

The adult Males and females are similar in appearance but the female is slightly duller and with a greyer bill. They have olive-brown upper-parts and a slightly washed greyish head and face. Wings and tail are brown. On the under-parts, the chin and throat are white and finely streaked brown. The breast is mostly buffish to pale buffish-brown. Rest of the underparts are bright orange to orange-rufous. The bill is a dull yellow, with dark base to upper mandible. The eyes are dark brown, surrounded by a narrow orange-yellow eye-ring. Their legs and feet are a variably grey to a light pink or purplish colour. The legs are also relatively long and slender which they use to hop, rather than walk along the ground. They get to 25 cm in length and weight around 78 g. They can live 25 to 30 years in the wild. 

The rufous-bellied thrush is found throughout southern and eastern Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay and neighbouring parts of Bolivia and Argentina. It is one of the best-known thrushes and is commonly seen in woodland areas, gardens, parks, backyards and the edges of forests. The rufous-bellied thrush migrates north to the warmer tropical zone during the winter and returns to the temperate zone when the climate in southern Brazil becomes warmer. 

Rufous-bellied thrushes are mainly insectivorous, which means a large part of their diet consists of insects and spiders. They also like to feed on oranges, mature papayas and on coconuts from several species of palm tree, spitting out the pits after about an hour, which helps contribute to the distribution of these plants. 

The breeding season varies slightly according to the range. The Rufous-bellied Thrush builds a large cup-shaped nest 1-3 metres above the ground, in trees, close to the tree trunk. The structure is made with roots and plant fibres. The inner cup is lined with mud, dried grasses and twigs. The cup is often rimmed with cow dung. Some nests can be different, with the cup made of hardened earth or green moss. The female lays 3-4 bluish or greenish eggs with dark spots and blotches. Incubation is by both adults for 13-15 days. The young are fed primarily on earthworms. They fledge 13-14 days after hatching and still depend on their parents for around two weeks after fledging.

Like many thrushes, this bird has a very attractive song and for this reason, it is often sold as a cage bird in Brazil. The Rufous-bellied Thrush is common in its range. This species is able to adapt to new areas due to deforestation and degradation of its habitat. Numbers are currently stable and at this stage the species is not globally threatened. Becoming the national bird of Brazil may help to ensure its protection in the future. 

Photo No. 1 was taken at Parque Tingui - Curitiba - Parana. 

Photo No 2 was taken at an irrigation pond - Santa Teresa - Espirito Santo.