Orange Headed Thrush

[Roopak Gangadharan]

A true ground thrush and a excellent mimic caught this on a mango tree, Wiki says it is partial to mango and coffee bushes for nesting. Personally i have seen it around mango groves a lot. This is the southern sub species (cyanotus) male. C&C welcome

500D 55-250, AE , f5.6. ISO 400, SS 1/160, +0.7EC, Cropped image.

Regards
Roopak

[Dr. Kalpamoi Kakati]

Nice image Roopak.Where did you photograph this ?

[Abhishek Jamalabad]

Nice. A little head turn away from you would have given you a better side-on shot. You have got it in good light, considering this bird's habits. The +ve EC has ensured that the underparts are well-exposed. Nice that you managed it with the 55-250. I remember trying (unsuccessfully) to get this bird with the 100mm .
TFS

[Saktipada Panigrahi]

Nice Image,well composed, in Natural Colours.It is an Orange Headed Thrush . The Orange Headed Ground Thrush (Zoothera Citrina) seen in the outskirts of Kolkata,( say, CK Bird Sanctuary, Narendrapur) does not have long white patches near the eyes as seen in the photo and it likes to stay on Ground to feed on insects and worms.The Female here has browner upper parts as seen in the photo .Rightly it belongs to Z.C. cyanotus seen in South India /Western Ghats having this patch. Thanks for sharing.SaktiWild

[Abhishek Jamalabad]

Nice Image,well composed, in Natural Colours.It is an Orange Headed Thrush .But the Orange Headed Ground Thrush (Zoothera Citrina) seen in the outskirts of Kolkata say, CK Bird Sanctuary, Narendrapur) does not have long white patches near the eyes as seen in the photo and it likes to stay on Ground to feed on insects and worms .Is this then belongs to Z.C. cyanotus seen in South India /Western Ghats?(I do not have any knowledge about these forests). To me it appears to be a Female because of browner upper parts.My friends may enlighten us.Thanks for sharing.SaktiWild

Hi sir,
As you mentioned, the bird in the image is Z. citrina cyanotus, which is the race found in peninsular India. Not sure about the exact range, but it is found all along the Western Ghats and also in some interior regions of the peninsula. I have seen this race around Bombay, which I believe is the northernmost part of its distribution.

[Bhargava Srivari]

Nice image. I too wish you had got a slightly more side profile so that there was a possibility of a catchlight in the eye. You've been doing very well with the 55-250

tfs

[Mrudul Godbole]

Nice image. Its good you got it mostly in the clear. A slight more space on the top would be good. Thanks for sharing.

[Sabyasachi Patra]

Good one Roopak! You got it in the clear without any intervening vegetations. Thanks for sharing.

Cheers,
Sabyasachi