Red-backed thrush

The red-backed thrush or rusty-backed thrush (Geokichla erythronota) is a species of bird in the family Turdidae. Traditionally, it included the red-and-black thrush (Z. mendeni) as a subspecies. It is endemic to forests on Sulawesi and the nearby islands of Buton and Kabaena in Indonesia. It is becoming rare due to habitat destruction.

Red-backed thrush
Conservation status
Near Threatened  (IUCN 3.1)[1]
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Aves
Order:	Passeriformes
Family:	Turdidae
Genus:	Geokichla
Species:	G. erythronota
Binomial name
Geokichla erythronota PL Sclater, 1859
Synonyms
Zoothera erythronota

Taxonomy

Geokichla erythronota is very similar in morphology to the chestnut-backed thrush (Geokichla dohertyi) and some authorities believe they are conspecific. Others believe they are distinct. A subspecies (G. e. kabaena) has been named from Kabaena^[2] and some researchers believe there is an unnamed race of G. erythronota on the island of Buton, the status of which needs to be evaluated.^[3]

Description

The red-backed thrush is about 20 cm (8 in) long and the sexes are largely similar in appearance.^[4]