Bendire's Thrasher

Bendire's Thrasher

Toxostoma bendirei

Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic

LCNTVUVulnerableENCR
Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
at Saguaro National Park

In 3 days <5%

70 Verified sightings at Saguaro National Park From 2019 to 2026
70 In 1 park
December Best month
☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted

About the Bendire's Thrasher

Bendire's thrasher (Toxostoma bendirei) is a medium-sized species of thrasher native to the southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico. It is 23–28 centimetres (9.1–11.0 in) long, with a long tail and a medium-sized bill. Coloration is grayish-brown on its upperparts with paler, faintly dark streaked underparts. The base of the lower bill is often pale, the eyes are bright yellow, and the tips of the tail are white-tipped.

Because of its similar coloration and structure to the curve-billed thrasher, the two birds are very easy to mistake for one another. The Bendire's thrasher's shorter bill is a distinguishing feature when comparing mature birds, but it is still easy to misidentify an adult Bendire's thrasher as a young curve-billed thrasher as its beak has not grown to a mature length. The Bendire's thrasher's yellow eyes and pale-based lower mandible are additional markings which aid in separation from the curve-billed thrasher.

Bendire's thrasher lives in the brush-filled deserts and valleys and drylands of the south-western United States, mainly along the southern border that Arizona and New Mexico shares with Mexico... Wikipedia →

Sounds

Call0:14

United States · 2022

© Paul Marvin · XC703924 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Song1:16

United States · 2018

© Frank Lambert · XC409670 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Call0:07

United States · 2018

© Julia Wittmann · XC435479 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Saguaro National Park 🇺🇸 United States
<5%

More parks will be added in future updates.

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Phoenix 🇺🇸 United States
<5%
2 Mesa 🇺🇸 United States
<5%

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Bendire's Thrasher in Saguaro National Park?

Rare

Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Bendire's Thrasher sighting in Saguaro National Park on a given day, based on 70 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 159th most-seen of the 220 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to under 5%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Bendire's Thrasher in Saguaro National Park?

Any time of year

In every month with enough records, under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Bendire's Thrasher in Saguaro National Park on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.

What time of day is best to see a Bendire's Thrasher?

Between 7 and 10 am

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Bendire's Thrasher sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.

Where else can you see a Bendire's Thrasher?

Only Saguaro National Park, in our data

Saguaro National Park is the only park on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Bendire's Thrasher sightings: under 5% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.

Where does the Bendire's Thrasher sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Bendire's Thrasher is recorded against all the birds logged in Saguaro National Park (70 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.

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