Sulawesi Thrush

The Sulawesi thrush (Turdus turdoides) is a species of passerine bird in the thrush family, Turdidae. It is endemic to the island of Sulawesi in Indonesia, where it inhabits evergreen montane forests at altitudes of 1,100–2,400 m (3,600–7,900 ft). Although it has a limited range and is not a common bird, the IUCN has assessed it as being a "least-concern species". == Taxonomy == The Sulawesi thrush was formally described in 1896 by the German ornithologist Ernst Hartert based on specimens collected at 2,000 m (6,600 ft) altitude and above near Bantaeng in southern Sulawesi, Indonesia. Hartert introduced a new genus Cataponera and coined the binomial name Cataponera turdoides. The taxonomic placement of this species remained uncertain since its description, with some authorities classifying it with the laughingthrushes (family Leiothrichidae), while others classified with the true thrushes (family Turdidae). Since the 2000s, it was generally placed in the monotypic genus Cataponera within the Turdidae, on morphological grounds. However, prior to a 2022 study, it was not yet placed phylogenetically. The study found the Sulawesi thrush to actually represent a highly divergent member of the genus Turdus, belonging in a clade comprising primarily migratory Palearctic thrushes, but with no close relatives.…