Bower's Shrikethrush

1. Chunky body with a substantial, black (male) or paler (female/immature) bill.

2. Blue-grey upperparts and cinnamon-rufous underparts with streaked throat.

3. Red-brown eyes and broad rufous eyebrow in females.

Bower’s Shrikethrush feeds mainly on insects and other arthropods, gleaning prey from leaves, branches, and trunks in the subcanopy and canopy. It occasionally eats small frogs. The breeding season is from September to December. Nests are compact cups made of rootlets, leaves, twigs, and bark strips, bound with spider web, and placed 2–9 meters above ground in tree forks or vine tangles. Females typically lay two eggs, sometimes three. Both parents share incubation and care for the young.

This species is restricted to the upland rainforests of northeastern Queensland, from Cooktown south to Townsville, mainly above 4 meters elevation. It prefers the subcanopy and lower canopy (typically 3–1 meters above ground) of dense, tropical rainforest. Bower’s Shrikethrush is most often seen foraging in the mid-levels of the forest and is best detected by its distinctive song, especially at dawn and early morning`.`