Turdus plebejus
Silhouette: Sharon Wegner-Larsen · PhyloPic
In 3 days <5% in a week ~10%
The mountain thrush (Turdus plebejus) is species of bird in the family Turdidae, the thrushes and allies. It is found from Mexico to Panama. It was formerly known as the mountain robin and has also been called the American mountain thrush.
The mountain thrush was originally described in 1861 with its current binomial Turdus plebejus. The species' further taxonomy is unsettled. The IOC, AviList, and BirdLife International's Handbook of the Birds of the World assign it these three subspecies:
This article follows the three-subspecies model. The mountain thrush is 23 to 25.5 cm (9.1 to 10 in) long; males weigh an average of about 81 g (2.9 oz) and females average about 92 g (3.2 oz). The sexes have the same plumage. Adults of the nominate subspecies T. p. plebejus have mostly olivaceous brown upperparts with a browner head and more olivaceous rump and uppertail coverts. Their throat is pale brown with faint sepia... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Los Quetzales National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 2 | Volcán Barú National Park | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 3 | Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 4 | Irazú Volcano National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 5 | Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 6 | La Amistad International Park (Panama) | 🇵🇦 Panama | |
| 7 | Braulio Carrillo National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 8 | Poás Volcano National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 9 | Chirripó National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 10 | El Triunfo | 🇲🇽 Mexico | |
| 11 | La Tigra National Park | 🇭🇳 Honduras | |
| 12 | Arenal Volcano National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 13 | Rincón de la Vieja National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica | |
| 14 | Tenorio Volcano National Park | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | San José | 🇨🇷 Costa Rica |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Mountain Thrush sighting in Arenal Volcano National Park on a given day, based on 218 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 315th most-seen of the 503 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to under 5%, and over a week to about 10%, if each day is a fresh chance.
Any time of year
In every month with enough records, under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Mountain Thrush in Arenal Volcano National Park on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.
Between 8 and 11 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Mountain Thrush sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
12th of 14
Of the 14 parks where we can rate Mountain Thrush sightings, Arenal Volcano National Park ranks 12th at under 5%. The best odds are in Los Quetzales National Park (Costa Rica, about 60%), Volcán Barú National Park (Panama, about 50%) and Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park (Costa Rica, about 50%). All parks ranked.
Same genus: Turdus
The closest relatives of the Mountain Thrush that you can see in Arenal Volcano National Park (genus Turdus, Typical Thrushes) are Clay-colored Thrush (about 70%) and White-throated Thrush (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Mountain Thrush is recorded against all the birds logged in Arenal Volcano National Park (218 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
