Forest and Rangeland Birds of the United States
Natural History and Habitat Use
Veery -- Catharus fuscescens
RANGE: Breeds from south-central and southeastern British Columbia to New
Brunswick and southwestern Newfoundland, south to central Oregon, southern Idaho,
northeastern South Dakota, northern Illinois, and northern Ohio, in the mountains
through West Virginia, western and central Maryland, eastern Kentucky, western
and central Virginia, eastern Tennessee, and western North Carolina to northwestern
Georgia, and in the Atlantic region to eastern Pennsylvania, central New Jersey,
and the District of Columbia. Also in east-central Arizona. Winters in South America.
STATUS: Common.
HABITAT: Inhabits low, moist, deciduous woods, bottomland forests,
wooded swamps, and damp ravines; prefers sapling stands of deciduous second-growth
or open woods with fairly dense undergrowth of ferns, shrubs, and trees.
SPECIAL HABITAT REQUIREMENTS: Moist woodlands with understory of low
trees or shrubs.
NEST: Builds a bulky nest on or near the ground at the base of a shrub,
on a mossy stump, in a clump of weeds, or occasionally in a low shrub or tree.
FOOD: Often forages on the forest floor, turning leaves with bill in
search of food; occasionally searches for food in trees. Consumes a diet that
is about 57 percent animal and 43 percent vegetable.
REFERENCES: Beal 1915b, DeGraff et al. 1980, Forbush and May 1955,
Terres 1980.
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