About Mimus thenca (Molina, 1782)
The Chilean mockingbird (scientific name Mimus thenca (Molina, 1782)) is 28 to 29 cm (11.0 to 11.4 in) long and weighs an average 66 g (2.3 oz), with males being somewhat larger than females. Adult individuals have a wide whitish supercilium. Their crown, neck, and back are brownish gray with darker streaks, while their rump is browner. Their wings and tail are blackish; two narrow bars are visible on the wings when folded. The outermost tail feathers have white edges, and most other tail feathers have white tips. The throat is whitish, the chest brownish gray, the belly dirty white, and the flanks buffy with blackish streaks. Juvenile Chilean mockingbirds are similar to adults, but are more buffy on their underparts and have more streaking. The Chilean mockingbird is distributed in Chile from Copiapó Province in the Atacama Region south to Los Lagos, Puerto Montt, and Chiloé Island, with a small separate population in Neuquén Province, Argentina. It inhabits a wide variety of biomes, most of which are characterized by scrub, shrubs, or widely spaced trees. Examples of these habitats include succulent coastal scrub, inland savanna bushland, and evergreen Chilean matorral. It also occurs at the edges of low relict woodland patches such as those found in Bosque de Fray Jorge National Park, and in disturbed habitats, though it only rarely occurs in urban areas. It avoids Nothofagus and Cryptocarya woodlands in southern Chile and introduced pine plantations in central Chile. Its elevation range extends from sea level to 2,200 m (7,200 ft).
