Pearly-eyed Thrasher

The pearly-eyed thrasher (Margarops fuscatus) is a bird in the thrasher family Mimidae. It is found on many Caribbean islands, from the Bahamas in the north to the Grenadines in the south, with an isolated subspecies on Bonaire. == Description == The pearly-eyed thrasher is the largest species in the Mimidae, growing to 28 to 30 cm (11 to 11.8 inches) in length. == Taxonomy == Its genus, Margarops, is currently considered monotypic; formerly the scaly-breasted thrasher was placed in the same genus. However, M. fusctaus is now known to be closer to the Cinclocerthia tremblers. While this is not a migratory bird, considerable gene flow between populations appears to have taken place at least until fairly recently in its evolutionary history. There are four subspecies, two of which can be distinguished genetically: M. f. fuscatus (the nominate subspecies, which is found between the Greater Antilles and Antigua and Barbuda), and M. f. densirostris (occurring from Montserrat and Guadeloupe southwards). When exactly the pearly-eyed thrasher lineage diverged from its relatives cannot be said with reasonable certainty, as no fossils are known and the standard molecular clock model cannot be applied to the Mimidae, as mutation rates seem to have varied…