Click on any image to open the slideshow
Dumetella carolinensis (Linnaeus, 1766)
Gray Catbird
Florida native
While gray catbirds may occasionally be found year-round - mostly in central and northern Florida - they are common statewide in winter and can be abundant during migration. The preferred habitat is dense thickets of shrubs and vines in woodlands, but also occasional in residential areas. I have noticed that most of my catbird sightings also include cardinals.
Distinctly uniform slaty gray, with a dark blackish cap and rufous rump (the undertail coverts). Smaller than their kin the mockingbird, Dumetella carolinensis are typically 21.5 cm (8-1/2 in.) long and have a wingspan of 28 cm (11 in.).
Catbirds have several calls, one is their namesake cat-like mewing mwee or meeur. Other songs can last for minutes and consist of seemingly random whistles, squeaks, whines, gurgles and other sounds.
Dumetella carolinensis is a member of the Mimidae - Mockingbirds and Thrashers family.
iNaturalist profile for this species
For more information on this species, visit the following link:
Cornell Lab of Ornithology All About Birds page for this species
Date record last modified: Jun 13, 2025
